Building up your own indoor hydroponic system at home

Hydroponics is becoming a hot topic of modern times where it is possible to grow vegetables, greens, and herbs at the comfort of one’s home and without requiring soil and other traditional farming techniques. It is the technique of growing plants in water and nutritional media other than soil. There are a number of advantages of this farming technique over traditional growing methods. It demands less water and even this water can be recycled to avoid wastage. It is easy to control the nutrients that are fed for the plants and most important of all, there is no need for any pesticides to protect the plants. The yield per square foot is much higher and there is a possibility to grow plants indoors without attracting insects.

Things required to build an indoor system :

Indoor hydroponics is a very cost-effective method of growing plants and it is possible to build the system with simple household entities. Things that are required to build the indoor system are,

• Opaque containers such as a fish tank
• Nutrients in two one liter bottles. It is possible to create homemade nutrient solutions as well.
• Sponge for germination
• Medium to grow the plants, even clay pellets are fine
• Air pumps
• Air stones
• Seeds for the plants

Method:

Take the reservoir and spray it with black paint so that it does not attract light and growth of algae in the reservoir. Algae growth will hinder the growth of the plants. Take a tray that will fit the reservoir appropriately and make holes of 5 cm diameter on the tray. The drilled holes on the container cover serve as net pots. Drill a hole on the container for the air hose. Add air stones and mix the nutrients with water as per the instructions are given on the label. Generally, one part of the nutrients will be mixed with 100 parts of water. Fill the reservoir with the water and medium mixture up to the bottom of the net pot. Place a plant on to the net pot and cover the same with the clay pellets. Put everything together and your indoor hydroponics system is good to start.

Light source:

Sunlight is the number one source of light and is also available for free. But those growing plants in the indoor environment cannot afford to use it.

The fluorescent light bulb is the second choice. An 85 w bulb is more than enough for a small system to render its light source. It is also pretty cheap.

The LED bulb is the third best source. It costs a little high but is a good source of light. They also focus on a specific band of light that is required for the plant. Those investing in an artificial light should buy a timer to switch the light on and off according to the convenience. Not more than 16 hours of light is required per day by these plants.

Verdict:

Indoor farming is an effective way of yielding high-quality plants within the last budget. It is also easy and results in high quality and fresh plants for consumption.