HYDROPONICS - The Work of Water
The surprising fact about soilless gardening is that plants actually do better in water than in soil. Nutrients aren’t as readily available in soil. Plants must work harder to find water and nutrients as well as fending off pests. As a gardener using soilless methods, it is easier to determine which nutrients and the amounts necessary for plants to thrive - just simply dissolve the mineral salts in water.
It is important for any type of garderner, not just those who are using hydroponics to be knowledgeable about this fundamental subject. What nutrients are fundamental to a plants health? Individual plant species have different requirements. The main nutrients are Nitrogen (nitrates), Phosphorus (phosphates) and Potassium. The acidity of the water solution is a factor in plant health.
The Primary Nutrients
Each plant species requires different proportions of the following primary nutrients: nitrogen (chemical symbol N), phosphorus (chemical symbol P) and potassium (chemical symbol K). These nutrients are required in relatively large quantities compared to other nutrients.
In general, they play the following roles in plant development.:
- Proteins contain nitrogen. Enzymes, catalysts for biochemical actions, are proteins.
- Phosphorus is important for the overall vigor of a plant. It’s capacity for growth and reproduction.
- Potassium is involved in the movement of water within the plant. For instance, changes in water pressure, causes movement in leaf postions to face the sun. It also activates important enzymes for photosynthesis. The process of photosynthesis makes food.
Containers of fertilizer indicate the percentages of these important minerals in the following order:
Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium. For example 10-10-10 means 10% each of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium.
pH: Acidity and Alkalinity
pH refers to the concentration of Hydrogen ions: neutral is ph7; acid pH’s are less than 7; alkaline or basic pHs are greater than 7. pH affects a plant’s ability to absorb nutrients.
Each type of plant has a different range in which they grow. Generally for house plants it is a pH between 6-7. The wrong levels interfere
As an example here are the pHs of 2 common kitchen products. Vinegar, an acid has pH 2.9 and bleach, a base has pH 12.5
Water, with the proper pH, provides the mineral salts needed for house plants to thrive.