We’re going to have to develop some methods and ideas together to bring this wonderful growing method to homes around us. Otherwise, this technology of hydroponic growing and it’s gigantic yields in plants goes only to the scientific types developing the urban farms. The, we’ll all keep paying higher prices for produce. And, we won’t be making the knowledge available to all and develop a culture of indoor growing. Further, methods won’t be taken the the starving poor of the world!
As things develop and evolve, there are three areas now available to the home and apartment dweller. But, we need you to develop and create more uses for wall gardens and free standing units! Think, create. For info on the gardening creating idea process, check out “how to create” at our leaders site:
http://fogponicseducation.blogspot.com/
and
use any silly thing around you:
http://noodleponics.blogspot.com/
Growing on walls could include fog, but may still rely on drip irrigation. This irrigation is effective for the wall units, and is low cost. The results are proven.
Developed methods are
1. DWC, deep water culture. This is the Home Depot 5 Gallon bucket filled with water, soaking the roots. This takes an aquarium pump and an air stone bubbling nutrients to the roots as well as oxygen (hmm, roots take in oxygen, leaves take in co2).
There is a version of this with no bubbler used for lettuce and some experiments with no bubbler in India. But, I’ve had some recent experiments with this fail, where the plant did not get the oxygen and nutrients. In fact, I’ve found with the plants I work with, some ornamentals, that the bubbles need to be a gentle flow from the stone but the stone must be centered in the bucket to get the oxygen to the roots. I have some brown plants from the no bubble process. In fact, I’m so impressed with the need for the bubble stream, that I’ll always get the “better” air stoned, and tack them on the bottom of the bucket with an aquarium air tubing holder.
2. Aeroponics: misting. This uses the same containers, and a fountain water pump and spray head sit in the solution. A simple timer goes on for a few minutes and then off. One site recommends the use of a half hour electric timer ($4) on a half hour and off a half hour, 24 hours a day. Another site recommends the electronic programmable timer ($12), on 5 minutes, off the rest of the hour. Do you have recommendation on this? Please post below!
A fountain kit can be obtained, and the “daisy” spray pattern used on the roots. Turn the water volume to gentle! Don’t harm the root hairs with a hard spray.
Keep a growing journal, click here
3. the fogponic unit we often discuss here uses the ultrasonic humidifier. A backup spray pump is added to cover the plants should the small fogger fail or clog. This extra cost and work is done because the yield is the greatest of all methods. One site says yields are on this scale:
general hydrponics including drip irrigation on soilless plants is 4 times faster than soil
areoponics is 5 times faster than soil growing
and fogponics adds 5 to 10% to that
So, plant growth is so fast and yields of lettuce, tomatoes, and orchids will follow.
Leaf lettuce, websites claim, can be harvested in 30 days, though I often struggle in days taken in germination of seeds. Tomato plants can produce year around and for years.
For garden walls in restaurants or city plazas, the wall can fill and green in in 90 days, versus soil growth of 2 years. This is very advantageous if one wants to put garden walls in a wine bar: you just can’t wait 2 years for the wall unit to fill it! Some places now sell prepared wall units, and costs will lower over time. Again, many of these will be drip irrigation, but fogponics can be developed. Will you do that?
Innovative U 