Name
Period
Answer the following questions in complete sentences after
reading the “How Hydroponics Works” article.
1. What is the definition of hydroponics?
2. Describe three benefits of using hydroponics for growing food.
3. What do plants need to grow and survive?
4. According to the article what is the only major difference between hydroponics and
regular agriculture?
5. Why is it possible for plants to grow without being in soil?
6. What is the nutrient solution and why is it important to a hydroponics system?
7. What is the medium and why is it important to a hydroponics system?
8. What is pH and why does it have to be measured?
9. Why is the use of hydroponics farming most likely going to increase in the future?
Source: http://home.howstuffworks.com/hydroponics.htm/printable
How Hydroponics Works
By Bambi Turner
INTRODUCTION
If you've ever placed a plant clipping into a glass of water in the
hopes that it will grow roots, you've practiced a form of
hydroponics. Hydroponics is a branch of agriculture where plants
are grown without the use of soil. Plants just like humans need
nutrients to survive. Nutrients are chemicals which are used by
an organism to survive or grow. The nutrients that the plants
normally get from the soil are simply dissolved into water instead.
Depending on the type of hydroponic system used, the plant's
roots are suspended in, flooded with or misted with the nutrient
solution. This way the plant gets the elements it needs for growth.
As the population of our planet gets larger the land that is available
for growing food declines. Hydroponics allows us to produce crops
in greenhouses or in multilevel buildings dedicated to agriculture.
Already crops are being produced underground, on rooftops and in
greenhouses using hydroponic methods.
Benefits of Hydroponics Systems
So why go through all the trouble of setting up a hydroponics
system? After all, people have been growing food just fine for
thousands, if not millions of years using good old-fashioned dirt.
Hydroponics offers some significant benefits over traditional
farming. First, hydroponics offers people the ability to grow food in
places where traditional agriculture simply isn't possible. In areas
with arid (very dry) climates, like Arizona and Israel, hydroponics
has been in use for decades. It is also useful in very cold
climates.
Growing food with hydroponics also offers significant
environmental benefits. Hydroponics systems use only about 10
percent of the water that soil-based agriculture does. This is
because many hydroponics systems recycle and reuse nutrient
solutions, so no water is wasted. Hydroponics also requires little
or no use of pesticides and only around 25 percent of the
fertilizers needed by plants that are grown in soil. This
represents not only a savings of money but also benefits the
environment because fewer chemicals are being released into the air. Finally, hydroponics
allows food to be grown locally so it doesn’t have to be transported as far cutting down on
greenhouse gas emissions.
Hydroponics also takes less time to grow plants than soil-based agriculture. Plants grown in
hydroponics systems have direct access to water and nutrients and don’t have to develop
large root systems to allow them to find the nutrients they need. This saves time and produces
healthier plants in about half the amount of time as traditional agriculture.
Source: http://home.howstuffworks.com/hydroponics.htm/printable
The Science Behind Hydroponics
Before we can take a look at how hydroponics works, we must first
understand how plants themselves work. Generally speaking, plants
need very little to grow. They can live on a simple blend of water,
sunlight, carbon dioxide and mineral nutrients from the soil. Notice
that soil itself is not required for for plants to grow. The plant simply
needs the minerals it gets from the soil. This is the basic idea
behind hydroponics -- all the elements required for plant growth are
the same as with traditional soil-based gardening. Hydroponics
simply takes away the need for soil.
Hydroponics Systems
Let's take a look at some parts of hydroponics systems. The most
important part of any hydroponic system is the nutrient solution
used. The nutrients solution is made up of the minerals the plant
requires that are dissolved in water. Different nutrient solutions are used depending on what
type of plants you're trying to grow and what type of system you are using.
The material that a plant lives in or on is called its medium or
substrate. The medium supports the roots of the plant. Normally,
for most plants, the medium is soil. Hydroponics growers use other
things to support the roots to prevent the plants from drowning. One
of the most popular mediums used in hydroponic gardening is rock
wool, because it is affordable and offers easy drainage. Other
popular mediums include clay, perlite, vermiculite, sand and gravel.
Anything that can support the roots of the plant can be used as a
medium.
Another critical aspect of hydroponics is the use of light. Plants require light in order to
perform photosynthesis. In areas where natural light is not available or plentiful, plant grow
lights are used instead. Finally, any successful hydroponics system must be monitored so that
pH levels are regulated. PH is a measure of how acidic or basic the growth environment is.
The pH of the system must be kept within a certain range, depending on the plant and the
medium used.
Hydroponics Growing and the Future of Agriculture
Hydroponics is the fastest growing area of agriculture, and it could very well be the future of
food production. Currently the world population is around 6 billion people. By 2050, scientists
estimate that the Earth's population will increase to 9.2 billion, while land available for food
production will decline. To feed the increasing population, hydroponics will begin replacing
traditional agriculture.
Source: http://home.howstuffworks.com/hydroponics.htm/printable