Hydroponic Gardening

I have been gardening all winter.  Fresh lettuce, kale, herbs, peas, tomatoes, and even violas freshly harvested each week.  It’s obviously too cold outside, so I have a 36-plant garden in my house!  Amazingly, these 36 plants fit into just 4 square feet of floor space.  I did this with my new hydroponics tower.

Up until the last few years hydroponics is something that was pretty complicated for the average consumer.  While I have a tiny bit more experience when it comes to gardening, it was still daunting even for me.  Nutrient mixes, pH testing, chemistry, plumbing … it was all just a bit complicated.  Now there are ready-made systems on the market that make setup and maintenance a breeze.

Aside from a starter plug of soil for the seedling, hydroponics is a soilless growing system that relies on water to carry nutrient to the root system.  While using less water than traditional gardening, it allows for faster growth and higher yields.  Using artificial lighting (LEDs), you can grow crop year-round using hydroponics.

Due to the limited space and design of most systems, the only limitation is the size of the plants.  Root crops, vining crops, and plants that produce large fruits are nearly impossible to grow hydroponically.  I mainly grow leafy greens, herbs, and compact varieties of tomatoes and peppers.

This week on Bob’s LIVE, I did a tour of my system.  We’ll definitely be revisiting it in future episodes.  You can watch the stream every Tuesday at 5 PM.