I am in college life science and I am doing 2 experiments. One on sprouts and one on grass. My question is, how do I grow grass indoors without soil?
You can try growing them on sponges. That works well for the short term, say a few months.
I want to get started on a hydroponic system. I have the light system, pump, reservoir. I'm not looking for fantastic results now. I just want to jump in and improve as I go. I don't want to spend a fortune on meters, trace element and such (kind of defeats the purpose) but I need some info on diy nutrients for the system. Thanks.
Bill
I think you will find this guide helpful:
http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR-1151/ANR-1151.pdf
Plants are showing signs of excess nitrogen. . . dark green, curling down of the tips. Is there any way to reduce the amount of nitrogen in the water without affecting the other nutrients? All of the nutrient formulas I see include nitrogen.
The following article should help: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/understanding-nitrogen-requirements-for-plants.htm
Also, using a fertilizer with an analysis low in nitrogen should help.
I like the idea of growing your plants upside down and the benefits that come from it. Now I have grown with hydroponics, but not for long. Can you grow upside down and still use the hydroponics?
This article goes over the basics of upside down planting: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/special/containers/upside-down-gardening.htm
Theoretically, you could use a hydroponic system with upside down arrangement, if you make some provision for catching the nutrient solution that would drip from the area around the stem that emerges from the planter. You could also look into other approaches, such as aeroponic gardening. This article will tell you more: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/special/containers/hydroponic-gardening-indoors.htm
There are thousands of alternative planting methods, and if you want to try some, you can research and experiment to your heart's content. Happy Gardening.
I am setting up an indoor hydroponic system and was wondering how am I going to stake a basil plant or cilantro plant in Styrofoam? What would be the best way? My Styrofoam is 2 inches thick and I will be using 1.5 sq. rockwool, so how big will the plant get and how to hold it?
There are several ways to stake plants in a hydroponic system: most of them involve suspending a stake, twine, or screen from an overhead support. Others involve simply a stake or stakes taped to the outside of your container. You can do more research by googling "staking in hydroponics system." I can't tell you how big your plants will get because it depends so much on all your growing conditions, as well as the variety of plants you're using.
I cannot seem to find info on what the ideal water temperature should be set to in a DWC. I plan on growing lettuces and spinach. Thanks for your help.
Richard
It depends on the plant and your local conditions.
You want to keep the water between 65F - 80F, but as you are growing cold weather crops, aim for the lower end of that range to prevent bolting.
I would like to grow blueberries hydroponically. What water soluble fertilizer would you suggest? bruce hoffman
I have included several links to help you get started with this venture!
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/blueberries/growing-blueberry.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/special/containers/hydroponic-gardening-indoors.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/special/containers/growing-with-aeroponics-what-is-aeroponics.htm