What Is Hydroponics: Amazing Advantages Over Soil

Hydroponics is a farming technique that uses up to 95% less water than traditional agriculture and yet water is what it relies on instead of soil. How can Hydroponics revolutionize the way we farm in the 21st century? Hydroponics does not rely on soil. Instead of growing in the earth, the plants are placed afloat circulating nutrient rich water. The nutrient content in the water is adapted to the plants needs. By changing the nutrient formula, you can grow almost any plant in hydroponics. All while using 20 times less water than traditional agriculture. Why is that? Agricultural flood irrigation in large fields loses water to simple evaporation, run-off, and dispersion beyond the reach of plant roots. The agricultural industry is changing its practices to be more water-wise, but even the best drip irrigation only cuts flood irrigation losses by about one-fourth, nothing close to hydroponics. The second resource that is used much more effectively is space. Because all that plants need is provided and maintained in a system, you can grow in your small apartment, or the spare bedrooms as long as you have some spaces. Since the plants roots don’t have to expand in search for nutrients and oxygen, you can grow your crops much closer to each other. In hydroponics, the unnecessity for extensive root growth also gives the plant the opportunity to invest more of its energy into growth above ground, giving you a bigger harvest. Through space savings and higher growth, the yield of hydroponics is up to 8 times higher than traditional soil-based agriculture. Another yield increasing factor is the lack of pests and diseases. Many diseases are soil-born, so are many organisms that potentially feed on the plant. The problem of annoying weeds that must be removed is also exclusive to soil-based agriculture. Since weeds, pests, and plant diseases are heavily reduced, there are fewer chemicals used. This helps you grow cleaner and healthier foods. The cut of insecticide and herbicides is a strong point of Hydroponics when the criteria for modern life and food safety are more and more placed on top. Hydroponic systems can be built and maintained indoors, so there is no need to adapt to the outside climate. In Hydroponics, you can grow each crop continuously all year round. By establishing a decentralized network of local hydroponic farms, you can grow everything locally, eliminating the need to import many fruits and vegetables from far-away countries. Strawberries from New York in December? No problem. Bananas from Seattle? No big deal. Hydroponics gives us the opportunity to reduce logistics costs and thus helps fight climate change. No airplanes and ships, no carbon dioxide. Through the saving of space, farms can be placed inside urban areas. And because of their effective water usage, hydroponic systems are ideal for arid regions like many sub-Saharan countries and areas where water is scarce. One special form of hydroponics is Aquaponics, which combines a recirculating aquaculture with soilless plant culture. In short: Aquaponics is a sustainable method of raising both fish and vegetables. It is a closed system in which the fish’s feces are used as fertilizer for the plants. The water from the fish tanks is directed into the hydroponic system where the plants absorb the nutrients and clean the water. The freshly cleaned water gets back to the fish. So not only can you grow fruits, herbs and vegetables all year round but also fresh fish, a rich and sustainable protein source. Entire communities can be fed through aquaponic systems. You are certainly asking yourself, then why isn’t hydroponics used more or even exclusively in commercial farming? First off: The initial investment. For a large-scale hydroponic operation, you need to build the facility first. A large field that you can pour tons of water over is cheaper than building gigantic greenhouses. Small decentralized hydroponic operations have a cost-advantage here. They can be established in pre-existing spaces for little cost. Another reason is that expert knowledge in the field is still hard to find. For commercial systems to function properly, you need the technical skills to keep it running and for constantly controlling the systems. If a disease does make it into the system, it spreads much quicker in water than in soil, or if a pump malfunctions and stops the circulation, all raising the need for tighter quality control. And not all crops can be grown successfully in hydroculture. Some root-based vegetables such as potatoes and carrots do better in traditional agriculture. There is still a lot to learn and to improve. But one thing is clear: Hydroculture is a very big opportunity for us to change agriculture in the 21st century. Stay valorous.