Hydroponics, a subset of hydroponics, is the art of growing plants without soil. Plants only grow with mineral solutions in aqueous solvents.
Just put; Hydroponics is the science of growing plants in water that contains all the essential nutrients they need. Specifically the nutrients they need to grow, flower and bear fruit.
Hydroponics for Beginners, a guide published by the RO-SYSTEM Review, defines the term as follows:
“Hydroponics is a method of growing plants without soil, directly in a mixture of water and nutrients through a medium such as expanded clay.”
The technique of creating nutrient films
When we hear the term “hydroponics,” we imagine plants with roots that hang directly in the water without the need for growing media. However, this is only one type of hydroponic technique. We call it Nutrient Film Technique (NFT).
Simplyhydro.com says the following about NFT:
“There are several variations of the N.F.T. It is used all over the world and it is a very popular hydroponic method.
“What most people don’t realize is that there are countless methods and variations of hydroponic gardening.”
The nutrients that people use today in hydroponic systems come from a variety of sources. For example, the by-product of duck manure is a source. The same goes for fish waste by-products. Some growers use chemical fertilizers.
Etymology of hydroponics
Etymology is the study of the history of words and the development of their structure and meaning.
The term ‘hydroponics’ with the meaning ‘process of growing plants without soil’ emerged in the English language in 1937.
It is made up of “hydro-“, which means “water” in Greek, and “-ponics”. The Greek word “ponein” means “work, work”.
Benefits of hydroponics
There are many benefits associated with growing plants in a nutrient solution mixed with water: (Data Source: The Spruce)
- Plants grow much faster – up to 20% faster than in soil.
- In areas where the soil is currently poor, hydroponics is the ideal choice.
- Yields are 20% to 25% higher than soil. Productivity, in this context, refers to agricultural output per unit area.
- It requires much less space. Plants do not need to develop an extensive root system to obtain nutrients. Therefore, they can be packed very close to each other.
- This technique uses much less water.
Hydroponics is not new
Although the word is less than a century old, we have been growing plants in aqueous solutions for a very long time.
In his book ‘Hydroponic Food Production,’ Howard M Resh writes:
“The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the floating gardens of the Aztecs of Mexico, and of the Chinese are examples of hydroponics. Records of Egyptian hieroglyphs date back several hundred years BC. describe the growth of plants in water.
In 1627, Francis Bacon’s book ‘Sylva Slvarum’ (or ‘Natural History’) was printed. In his book, Bacon wrote about growing plants in soil without soil. “Country culture” became increasingly popular after his book was released.
Hydroponic market expected to grow
A market research and report predicts that the global hydroponic market will reach $724.87 million by 2023.
In a press release, Research and Markets wrote:
“The shrinking arable land, growing population along with increasing food demand and technological advancements in hydroponics are some of the factors driving the growth of the market.”
“In addition, increased investment in research and development, increased adoption of vertical farming model will drive the growth of the market. On the other hand, high initial investment and complexity of technology are some of the limitations that hinder the growth of the market.
Forecasters say the market in Europe is likely to grow faster than anywhere else in terms of revenue. The Asia-Pacific region will also see significant growth.
