Hydroponics is the science of growing plants in a medium, other than soil, using mixtures of the essential plant nutrient elements, dissolved in water, as “plant food.”
“Hydroponics” comes from Latin and means “Working Water.” In reality, hydroponics is the growing of plants WITHOUT soil. Today, this technology is widely used to grow lush, healthy indoor plants and premium vegetables, fruits and herbs. The physiological requirements of plants can be met without the use of soil.. Plants are rooted (and thus supported) in food-safe floating, rotating trays, and nutrition is provided by water-soluble nutrients.
Years of research have determined which nutrient blends to use and their combinations affect plant growth (our hydroponics formulas). This allows for greater control over plant nutrition, and therefore, increased production at low costs in a shorter growth cycle.
The plants can grow in an ideal environment, since we can determine everything, which is normally up to “mother nature.” In a completely controlled environmental agricultural system, we control: light, temperature, water, CO2, oxygen, pH, humidity, and nutrients.
Hydroponics differs widely from conventional farming in the following ways:
The hydroponics plant in our system is grown in a floating, shallow water bed filled with nutrient rich water, rather than being planted directly into the ground. It does not matter where the greenhouse is located, because soil and water quality, and outdoor conditions are irrelevant. We control the environment for optimum results.
Plant roots are fed directly and continuously with an aqueous solution containing the correct balance of plant nutrients, which are computer-monitored and introduced in micro-doses in order to provide the perfect growing conditions. Therefore, the plant is not dependent on drawing its nutrient requirements from an often-depleted soil, or wasting energy growing roots for support in the soil and reaching down to find food. Also, the plants do not suffer from the risks of inadequate rainfall and/or excessive water waste associated with irrigation or the risk of pathogens from neighboring farm contaminants.
A tightly controlled environment is created. Plants are protected from adverse and unexpected weather conditions such as heavy rain, strong winds, hailstorms, frost, snow, hail, low temperatures, high heat and excessive sunlight. They are also protected from pests and plant diseases, thus avoiding pesticides and herbicide residues.
As a result, an uninterrupted supply of hydroponics products can be made available to the market throughout the year, and can boast “local grown” We are 6-24 hours from the store shelf, save 70%-90% in water and energy, and are clean, safe and green.
Hydroponics offers several important advantages over conventional farming techniques:
No Cultivation – in conventional farming techniques, cultivation, i.e., digging, raking, hoeing, etc. is necessary in order to aerate the soil. With hydroponics growing, these back-breaking, time-consuming and expensive tasks are unnecessary.
Low Crop Transportation – there is no need to transport crops long distances. Lettuce, herbs, other leafy greens, vine crops, or strawberries can be grown in the same place 12 months per year and supplied over shorter distances to the end-user.
No Weeds or Pests – with the use of sterile media for growing, the occurrence of “soil-born” weeds is unknown. In addition, the closed system prevents pests and disease.
Uniform Quality and Flavor – plants of a uniform high quality can be expected repeatedly from crop to crop, 12 months of the year. The nutrient feed provides the plant with its exact physiological needs during growth in a controlled and optimum environment, and consequently one can expect a perfectly formed high-quality harvest with high color and flavor.
Larger Yields – since there is no competition between individual plants for nutrients, CO2 and oxygen, it is possible to plant significantly closer to each other than in conventional field farming methods. In addition, due to the continuous and highly efficient provision of their specific nutrient requirements can growing climate, hydroponics plants reach maturity faster than their conventionally grown counterparts. From seedling to harvest is only 30 days, year around. Also, there is no crop loss due to pests and disease, and environmental damage, as is the case in field -grown crops.
With some crops, it is conservatively estimated that under optimum conditions, the hydroponic method will produce in excess of 30 times the yield expected in soil on the same footprint. It also offers products, which are consistent in their quality, appearance, color and flavor.
No Need For a Wash Process, Yielding an Extended Shelf Life – the cultivated vegetables and fruit do not require a washing process before packaging, since there is no soil, pathogens, or herbicide or pesticide residue. Therefore, they are ready to eat from the greenhouse. Hence their production cost is lowered and shelf-life is dramatically increased because the washing process adds chemicals (chlorine), cost and lowers the shelf-life. Moreover, given a longer shelf-life, distribution to remote areas is possible, making new markets available.
Environmentally-Friendly Technology – Our greenhouse system is environmentally- friendly by using less water, less land, are pesticide and herbicide-residue free, pathogen free, and can be operated using alternative energy sources, such as solar, thermal, wind and bio-fuels.
