Hydroponics takes home gardening to a whole new level. Imagine a more rewarding and exciting gardening experience. There are many advantages that hydroponics can offer a home hobbyist. Compared to traditional soil gardening, your time and effort is more wisely used. Less time working in your garden means more time for you to enjoy your garden.
Hydroponics is a way to garden smart, not hard.
Here are 17 darn good reasons to ditch the dirt for a different way of gardening.
1. Say “bye-bye” to back pain.
Soil has no part in hydroponic systems. You will avoid all the intensive work of soil preparation and maintenance. Hydroponics replaces soil with an inert medium that’s often sterile. In some cases, systems use no medium at all. This means no tilling, digging, hoeing or weeding. Gardening is more enjoyable without these back-breaking tasks. You won’t miss the feeling of aching muscles and stiff joints, not one bit.
2. Say “hello” the comfort that comes with raised beds.
Design your projects with custom dimensions that work for you. No more bending and kneeling down to the ground. Hydroponics is container gardening. You can place a single plant in a container on a tabletop. You can also build larger projects with many plants at counter-top height.
3. No missing the muddy mess.
Dirt is dirty and gets everywhere with traditional soil gardening. Your clothes get filthy and your workstation gets covered in potting soil. The free edge of all your fingernails end up jam-packed with black crust too. Hydroponics offers a cleaner gardening experience by eliminating the mess of soil.
4. Grow a more consistent crop.
Hydroponics optimizes growing conditions for plants. You have full control of the contents of your nutrient solution. You supply all the minerals, water and oxygen that a plant needs to grow. Furthermore, you can adjust the temperature and pH levels of your solution. This will help your plants ability to take in the nutrients you’re providing. Your plants get all their required nutrients all the time. You can also adjust the formula of the nutrient solution to the needs of a specific plant. This makes it possible to grow almost any plant with hydroponics.
5. Grow food with more flavor and nutrients.
Feeding your plants with the proper nutrients is not only for healthy growth. What you feed your plants will affect how they taste and their nutritional value too. You can grow produce that is has more vitamins, minerals and flavor than what’s sold in your supermarket.
6. No Yard? No Problem.
Are you a frustrated apartment dweller that would love to have a garden? With hydroponics, you can. Gardening is not limited to only those who have land. Houseplants and flowers are easy to grow in a tiny corner of a room. Even fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs can be grown in small spaces.
7. Keep your damage deposit.
Renters can garden while leaving the ground undisturbed.
8. Grow more plants in less space.
You can grow your crops much closer to each other because of root systems are compact. Hydroponics delivers nutrients and oxygen directly to the plant’s roots. This eliminates the need for roots to expand and grow in search of food.
9. Grow larger plants in less time.
Since root systems are compact, more energy is invested in the growth above ground. You’ll be able to see changes on a daily basis as your plants develop.
10. Grow stronger plants.
Another factor that improves the quality of your crop is the lack of disease and pests. Many plant diseases are soil born or from the many organisms that feed on the plant.
11. Water waste? No way!
Hydroponic systems are self-contained and can use up to 80% less water. Traditional soil gardening loses water to runoff, evaporation and gravity.
12. Protect your plants from heavy wind and rain and cloudy days.
Your crops are not vulnerable to sudden weather changes. High winds or torrential downpour can destroy your outdoor garden. You have the opportunity to grow indoors with hydroponic systems. Your plants are protected from extreme weather.
13. Gardening goes year-round.
Again, hydroponics gives you the opportunity to garden indoors. Crops are no longer subject to a limited growing season like traditional agriculture. Gardeners are able to grow product during parts of the year when supply is small and in higher demand.
14. Grow plants with less poison.
It is uncommon to use pesticides in hydroponic gardens. This is because plants no longer have direct contact with soil. That is where diseases and pests thrive. Hydroponic gardens produce a fresher and cleaner product.
15. Less gardening tools required.
Many tools you need for traditional gardening are not required with hydroponics. You will not be spending money on hoes, shovels, garden forks, rakes, tillers, wagons or carts. And they won’t be taking up space in storage either.
16. A great hobby that will grow with you.
Hydroponics is limitless. There are countless ways of combining different systems with different techniques. Projects can be simple enough for child education. They can also be elaborate and complex for the most experienced grower. On any level, it is very engaging.
17. An absolute conversation piece.
The topic of hydroponics is edgy and far from boring. It will spark the interest and curiosity of first-time onlookers. It’s also fun chatting with other growers. You’ll learn so much from sharing the trials and tribulations of past projects.