Hydroponic gardening is a type of indoor gardening that uses no soil. Instead, plants are grown in a nutrient solution or in some type of medium such as sand or clay. There are several ways to grow plants hydroponically with a nutrient solution, these include flood and drain subirrigation and passive subirrigation for medium-grown plants. Many growers, however, favor deep water culture for the benefit of quick plant growth.

Deep water culture systems can range from small (a plastic bucket) to expansive (a large commercial greenhouse facility). The roots of the plants you wish to grow are submerged in the nutrient solution. The plant is held in the proper position through the use of a net, so that the top of the plant is not in the nutrient solution, only the roots. Other structures, such as the bucket's lid with a hole cut in the center, provides more stability for the plant to remain with the roots in the nutrient solution.

The plant roots benefit from their easy access to oxygen in this method of hydroponic gardening, which is aided through the use of aerators. One example of an aerator is an airstone, of the kind that is also used in aquariums. Another way to aerate the solution is via Recirculation Deep Water Culture, where several buckets are connected and the water is recirculated through them using nozzles that spray the solution back into the buckets, thereby oxygenating the solution. When plants are ready to reproduce, the nutrient solution level is drained in incremental stages so that the roots are gradually exposed to air.

Because the plant is receiving every nutrient it needs from the nutrient solution being used, the plants easily take up all of the nutrition that they need for maximum plant growth. This method of indoor gardening with hydroponics also hastens the time it takes for plants to reach maturity and reproduce, or produce the flowers or fruit necessary for their reproduction. The quicker the process of plant growth and maturity occurs, the sooner you can arrive at your finished product: a ripe tomato, a ripe strawberry, a mature head of lettuce, or any number of plants that thrive in this type of growing environment. The ease by which the plants can take in nutrient and oxygen resulting in quick plant growth is the primary benefit from the deep water culture method.

Of course, in order for deep water culture to work effectively, you must match the proper nutrient solution to the plants, for the fastest plant growth. Excellent lighting designed for indoor gardening is also an important factor that plays a part in plant growth. Most people who are doing indoor gardening choose HID lighting, because it uses less energy to produce full-spectrum light that is desirable for maximum plant growth at all stages of a plant's life, while providing a longer grow lamp life than incandescent or fluorescent light bulbs.

Hydroponics Articles

Information on Hydroponics

1. The basic types of grow lights
2. Benefits of Deep Water Culture - hydroponic system
3. Using aeroponics in your indoor garden
4. The different types of Hydroponics
5. The digital ballast lighting solution
6. Hydroponics Systems Overview
7. Hydroponics Basics
8. LED Grow Lights
9. Plant Nutrients
10. Deep Water Culture
11. Seed Starting
12. The Power of LED Grow Lights
13. Indoor Gardening

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