We know that plants require sunlight, oxygen, water, and nutrients to grow. What about soil? Well, soil provides a hospitable place for a plant to anchor its root and serves as a source of water and nutrients needed for its growth. But if these two purposes are met by other means, plants would not need soil. That’s the basic principle behind hydroponic farming. By offering higher yield and using fewer resources, hydroponic technology may be able to mitigate impending food shortages from climate related events such as flooding, drought and high temperatures, scientists say. But how?
What is hydroponic farming?
As discussed earlier, hydroponics is the technique of growing plants without soil. In traditional gardening and fanning, plants get their nutrients from soil and additives such as compost, manure, and fertilizers. In hydroponic farming, plants get them from nutrient-fortified water.
Many hydroponic gardens are sprouting across the world, where crops and vegetables are produced in large quantities. The method is also catching up in urban areas in India, where households meet some of their vegetable needs this way.
Soil-less cultivation of vegetables was known to humankind since the ancient times. However, the interest in the technology was renewed in the 19th and the 20th centuries, when scientists such as Julius Sachs and W.E. Gericke studied the method extensively. Among other inventions, scientists also optimised the nutrient solution that are added to water for hydroponic farming. They include macronutrients (needed in large amounts) such as carbon phosphorous, hydrogen. nitrogen, oxygen, sulphur, potassium, magnesium, and calcium, and micronutrients (needed in tiny amounts but essential) such as zinc, nickel, boron, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, boron, and chlorine.
How it works
There are various methods of hydroponic farming. The most common method is to place the plants in a plastic trough, with their roots dipped directly into nutrient-rich solutions. Alternatively, the roots can be supported by a medium such as rockwool or peat moss, which acts as a sterile substitute for soil. These plants are watered with nutrient solution.
Hydroponic farming can be done indoors, with specific systems to control and monitor the pH level of water (pH level is the measure of how acidic / basic water is), temperature and the amount of light the plants receive. Some of the factors considered are:
Oxygen: In traditional farming, roots can get the oxygen needed for respiration from pockets of air in the soil. In hydroponic setup, the container has to be oxygenated using tools such as an air pump (similar to the ones in fish tank).
Root base: If not dipped in water, plants require root support in the form of materials such as vermiculite, perlite, peat moss, coconut fibre, and rockwool.
Light and temperature: The grower will have to be aware of the kind of light and temperature each species of plant requires to grow optimally.
Advantages
Saves space
- Since soil is not involved in hydroponic fanning, there is no need to worry about land requirement. (This method is often adopted for vertical gardens.)
- Moreover, roots don’t need spread because water and nutrients are delivered right to them. As a result hydroponic systems can grow more plants in the same amount of space as soil-based systems.
Faster growth
Since, hydroponically grown plants get their nutrients without much ado, they can divert more energy into the growth of leaves, stem, vegetables and fruits. This makes them grow faster. According to reports plants in hydroponic systems grow 30% to 50% faster than those grown in soil.
Anywhere, anytime
Hydroponics allows growers to produce food anywhere in the world, at any time of the year as climate and light can be controlled.
No pesticides
In a well-maintained, well-integrated indoor horticulture practice, the risks of pests is less, if not zero. Food grown this way are nutritionally superior.
Water conservation
Hydroponic systems use less water than traditional soil-based systems. This is because closed systems are not subject to the same rates of evaporation. Plus, the water used in hydroponic systems can be filtered, repopulated with nutrients, and fed back to plants. The same water can be used over and over again. According to reports, this method of faming reduces water dependence by as much as 90%.
Sustainable solution
The United Nations has estimated that the global human population will reach nearly 10 billion by 2050. In 2019, about 124 million people were estimated to have faced acute food shortages from climate related events such as flooding, irregular rains, drought, and high temperatures. With the rise in population and with farmers struggling to cope with demand, there is a global push for sustainable fanning. As hydroponics can help grow food in a controlled environment using less resources and offering healthier, higher yields, it is seen as a sustainable solution to food security.
Challenges
- Setting up a hydroponic farm can be extremely expensive. Consider the cost of containers, pumps, lights, nutrients, and automated systems.
- Since plants are grown in a controlled environment constant monitoring is required.
- The process of hydroponic farming depends on a range of equipment that requires proper expertise
- Air pump, lights, water pump, and the running of other appliances involve a high level of energy consumption.
- In theory, you can grow any plant hydroponically but some do better than others. While tomatoes, strawberries, lettuces, and herbs do particularly well, root vegetables don’t take to hydroponics well. As hydroponic plants have much smaller root systems, they can’t always support themselves very well. Heavy fruiting plants may need elaborate forms of support.
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