Hydroponic gardening as it is known today has been around for a long time, but it has not been widely practiced since its inception. Recent years have seen a renewed interest in hydroponics supplies and hydroponic systems.
The word hydroponic is derived from the Greek language. Hydro means “water” and ponics means “labor.” The concept of gardening without soil has actually been around for thousands of years. For example, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and the Floating Gardens of China are two of the earliest examples of hydroponic gardens. In the 11th century, the Aztec Nation (which was later totally destroyed by genocide perpetrated by European invaders) created floating gardens in Lake Tenochtitlan in the central valley of what is now called Mexico. Aztecs built rafts from shore vegetation, placed soil on top of the rafts, and floated them in the lake with plants growing on the soil. These rafts were called “Chinampas.” Plants growing on them sent roots through the soil and rafts; the roots fed off the nutrient-rich water of the lake. This may have been a first use of a hydroponics process now called aeroponics, in which plants are fed by water rather than soil. Some Chinampas were linked together into co-joined gardens big enough to be classified as islands- so big that people could walk on them!
Early European scientists also explored the idea of using water as a primary medium for plant roots and did other research to figure out how plants grew. In 1600, Jan van Helmont planted a one-pound willow shoot in a pipe containing 200 pounds of dried soil in Belgium. Five years later, the willow shoot weighed 160 pounds, but there was still 200 pounds of soil in the pipe. Van Helmont could not figure out how the willow got so big, because scientists were not yet aware that plants absorb nutrients through water and air.
A century later, Englishman John Woodward mixed water and soil as a root media. He’s credited with being one of the first people to figure out that plants absorb nutrients from soil and water, and some assert that his water-soil combination qualifies as the first hydroponic plant food. Soon thereafter, other Europeans discovered the function of roots, transpiration, nutrient uptake, carbon dioxide absorption from air through leaves, and absorption of oxygen through roots.
English researcher Joseph Priestly is the creator of the first CO2 enhancement chamber. He found that plants in a chamber filled with carbon dioxide gradually transform the carbon dioxide into oxygen. He also discovered that sunlight rapidly increased this transformation, which was an early indication of what was later called photosynthesis. The use of C02 augmentation is a valuable growth-enhancing tool for indoor hydroponics growers, and we will thoroughly explain this process in our free expert hydroponics newsletter, so make sure you sign up for the newsletter today.
Obviously the developers of these early gardens didn’t have access to the hydroponic equipment and advanced hydroponic drip systems that people have access to today. Instead, they had to rely on their own abilities to figure out how to best cultivate these kinds of gardens.
By the early 20th century, scientists had precisely analyzed minerals and other materials necessary for plant growth; they’d also devised liquid nutrient formulas that substituted for soil nutrients.
Before 1924, hydroponics was called nutriculture, chemiculture and aquaculture. In 1924, Dr. William F. Gericke of the University of California (often referred to as “the father of modern hydroponics”) created the word hydroponics to describe growing crops in non-soil media and nutrient-enriched water indoors and outdoors.
The green-thumbed professor grew hydroponic fruits, veggies, root crops, ornamentals and flowers. His tomato plants attained heights of 25 feet, producing tomatoes the size of grapefruits!
When the founders of Advanced Nutrients were conceptualizing the company’s formulations and goals, this story of Dr. Gericke’s amazing tomatoes was a guiding force in their quest for the biggest and best harvests. The founders decided that Advanced Nutrients would do for your crops what Gericke did for tomatoes.
During World War II, the US and British militaries used hydroponics to grow hundreds of thousands of tons of food for soldiers in remote locations where conventional farming was impossible. After World War II, the military continued to use hydroponics. For example, the American army grew eight million pounds of fresh hydroponic produce in 1952, most of it in Japan.
By the 1960’s, hydroponics agriculture had become a major industry worldwide, especially in parts of the US such as Florida, California, Hawaii, and Arizona, and in Russia, France, South Africa, the Middle East, Holland, Japan, Australia and Germany. A recent Australian government report estimates that 65,000 acres of high-intensity legal hydroponic production exists worldwide, with a value of six billion to eight billion US dollars per year.
Analysts cited in the Aussie report say global warming, desertification, water shortages, oil shortages, and globalization are making hydroponics increasingly important. The report notes that the industry has achieved phenomenal financial and technological success in a relatively short time, and that its value has a faster doubling time than almost any other category of the world agricultural economy.
In addition to the commercial use of hydroponics, many amateur or small-scale growers are using hydroponic systems in closets, on windowsills, in basements, greenhouses and spare rooms.
The US Navy grows hydroponic vegetables on submarines, and NASA has long attempted to perfect hydroponic systems that could provide oxygen and food for people on long space flights.
There are a number of benefits associated with hydroponics. One of the biggest advantages is the growth rate. People who use hydroponic kits have found that the growth rate of the hydroponic plants are around 30-50 percent quicker than the growth rates associated with plants that are grown in soil.
One of the reasons for the large difference in growth rate is because the hydroponic nutrients in a hydroponic system are mixed with water and sent directly to the root of the plant instead of working its way around in an indirect manner.People who own and use a home hydroponic system often find that the plants they have inside their home are able to grow more quickly thanks to the fact that these plants do not need as much energy to break down food as they would if they were planted in soil.Some people set up indoor hydroponic system in order to be able to keep a closer eye on their plants than they would be able to if the plants were to be planted in the outdoors.
Hydroponic gardens are considered by many to be better for the environment. This type of gardening uses much less water than traditional gardening does. The reason for this is because hydroponic gardening constantly reuses the nutrient solutions.Another environmental benefit associated with hydroponics is the fact that these plants and crops do not really need pesticides; therefore the land and air are free of this pollution. Likewise, because there is not soil needed with hydroponic gardening, there does not need to be any kind of concern about topsoil erosion.There are some who believe that hydroponic gardening is the wave of the future and will be used more and more often until it becomes the most popular type of gardening among people across the world.
It can help you produce bigger harvests of better quality fruit and vegetables, and a consistent year-round yield that you cannot equal using soil or by growing outdoors or in greenhouses using only natural light. In a hydroponic garden that uses sterile root zone media and has a clean environment, crops aren’t exposed to pathogens and diseases that live in soil. Hydroponic gardening eliminates weeds and other soil-borne problems.
The word hydroponic is derived from the Greek language. Hydro means “water” and ponics means “labor.” The concept of gardening without soil has actually been around for thousands of years. For example, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and the Floating Gardens of China are two of the earliest examples of hydroponic gardens. In the 11th century, the Aztec Nation (which was later totally destroyed by genocide perpetrated by European invaders) created floating gardens in Lake Tenochtitlan in the central valley of what is now called Mexico. Aztecs built rafts from shore vegetation, placed soil on top of the rafts, and floated them in the lake with plants growing on the soil. These rafts were called “Chinampas.” Plants growing on them sent roots through the soil and rafts; the roots fed off the nutrient-rich water of the lake. This may have been a first use of a hydroponics process now called aeroponics, in which plants are fed by water rather than soil. Some Chinampas were linked together into co-joined gardens big enough to be classified as islands- so big that people could walk on them!
Early European scientists also explored the idea of using water as a primary medium for plant roots and did other research to figure out how plants grew. In 1600, Jan van Helmont planted a one-pound willow shoot in a pipe containing 200 pounds of dried soil in Belgium. Five years later, the willow shoot weighed 160 pounds, but there was still 200 pounds of soil in the pipe. Van Helmont could not figure out how the willow got so big, because scientists were not yet aware that plants absorb nutrients through water and air.
A century later, Englishman John Woodward mixed water and soil as a root media. He’s credited with being one of the first people to figure out that plants absorb nutrients from soil and water, and some assert that his water-soil combination qualifies as the first hydroponic plant food. Soon thereafter, other Europeans discovered the function of roots, transpiration, nutrient uptake, carbon dioxide absorption from air through leaves, and absorption of oxygen through roots.
English researcher Joseph Priestly is the creator of the first CO2 enhancement chamber. He found that plants in a chamber filled with carbon dioxide gradually transform the carbon dioxide into oxygen. He also discovered that sunlight rapidly increased this transformation, which was an early indication of what was later called photosynthesis. The use of C02 augmentation is a valuable growth-enhancing tool for indoor hydroponics growers, and we will thoroughly explain this process in our free expert hydroponics newsletter, so make sure you sign up for the newsletter today.
Obviously the developers of these early gardens didn’t have access to the hydroponic equipment and advanced hydroponic drip systems that people have access to today. Instead, they had to rely on their own abilities to figure out how to best cultivate these kinds of gardens.
By the early 20th century, scientists had precisely analyzed minerals and other materials necessary for plant growth; they’d also devised liquid nutrient formulas that substituted for soil nutrients.
Before 1924, hydroponics was called nutriculture, chemiculture and aquaculture. In 1924, Dr. William F. Gericke of the University of California (often referred to as “the father of modern hydroponics”) created the word hydroponics to describe growing crops in non-soil media and nutrient-enriched water indoors and outdoors.
The green-thumbed professor grew hydroponic fruits, veggies, root crops, ornamentals and flowers. His tomato plants attained heights of 25 feet, producing tomatoes the size of grapefruits!
When the founders of Advanced Nutrients were conceptualizing the company’s formulations and goals, this story of Dr. Gericke’s amazing tomatoes was a guiding force in their quest for the biggest and best harvests. The founders decided that Advanced Nutrients would do for your crops what Gericke did for tomatoes.
During World War II, the US and British militaries used hydroponics to grow hundreds of thousands of tons of food for soldiers in remote locations where conventional farming was impossible. After World War II, the military continued to use hydroponics. For example, the American army grew eight million pounds of fresh hydroponic produce in 1952, most of it in Japan.
By the 1960’s, hydroponics agriculture had become a major industry worldwide, especially in parts of the US such as Florida, California, Hawaii, and Arizona, and in Russia, France, South Africa, the Middle East, Holland, Japan, Australia and Germany. A recent Australian government report estimates that 65,000 acres of high-intensity legal hydroponic production exists worldwide, with a value of six billion to eight billion US dollars per year.
Analysts cited in the Aussie report say global warming, desertification, water shortages, oil shortages, and globalization are making hydroponics increasingly important. The report notes that the industry has achieved phenomenal financial and technological success in a relatively short time, and that its value has a faster doubling time than almost any other category of the world agricultural economy.
In addition to the commercial use of hydroponics, many amateur or small-scale growers are using hydroponic systems in closets, on windowsills, in basements, greenhouses and spare rooms.
The US Navy grows hydroponic vegetables on submarines, and NASA has long attempted to perfect hydroponic systems that could provide oxygen and food for people on long space flights.
There are a number of benefits associated with hydroponics. One of the biggest advantages is the growth rate. People who use hydroponic kits have found that the growth rate of the hydroponic plants are around 30-50 percent quicker than the growth rates associated with plants that are grown in soil.
One of the reasons for the large difference in growth rate is because the hydroponic nutrients in a hydroponic system are mixed with water and sent directly to the root of the plant instead of working its way around in an indirect manner.People who own and use a home hydroponic system often find that the plants they have inside their home are able to grow more quickly thanks to the fact that these plants do not need as much energy to break down food as they would if they were planted in soil.Some people set up indoor hydroponic system in order to be able to keep a closer eye on their plants than they would be able to if the plants were to be planted in the outdoors.
Hydroponic gardens are considered by many to be better for the environment. This type of gardening uses much less water than traditional gardening does. The reason for this is because hydroponic gardening constantly reuses the nutrient solutions.Another environmental benefit associated with hydroponics is the fact that these plants and crops do not really need pesticides; therefore the land and air are free of this pollution. Likewise, because there is not soil needed with hydroponic gardening, there does not need to be any kind of concern about topsoil erosion.There are some who believe that hydroponic gardening is the wave of the future and will be used more and more often until it becomes the most popular type of gardening among people across the world.
It can help you produce bigger harvests of better quality fruit and vegetables, and a consistent year-round yield that you cannot equal using soil or by growing outdoors or in greenhouses using only natural light. In a hydroponic garden that uses sterile root zone media and has a clean environment, crops aren’t exposed to pathogens and diseases that live in soil. Hydroponic gardening eliminates weeds and other soil-borne problems.
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