What is hydroculture?

i am looking for a place in Florida to buy hydroculture plants. any suggestions?

George,

I've been sprouting my pepper seeds in seedling mix (from the garden supply store). I've have great luck doing it this way. I use a 72 seedling tray for a 10x20 flat. Moisten the mix and follow the directions on the seed envelope. I'm pretty close to 100% germination and 100% to vegetable stage. I place the flat under flourescent light and transplant into hydro (ebb&flow, NFT, or aeroponic) after second set of leaves. So far, I have had no disease problems at all.

BTW, I've had great luck with ebb&flow and NFT (nothing easier than NFT). But my peppers grown aeroponically have outgrown all other methods (nearly double the speed of ebb&flow).

Just want to say thanks for actually replying to my post. Not many sites actually do. Mike

where can I find a web site that show me how to built a simple pvc greenhouse?

Howdy Ron,

I have read and heard that every so often it is necessary to leach the system with fresh water. I know that soil and rockwool can retain salts and other stuff that can be toxic to the plants. Is this also true of your 11 plant system when using grow rocks?
Yes grow rocks can have a build up of fertilizing salts over time.
If so how often would you suggest doing this?
I would flush the system when you change the nutrient solution. Every few weeks. An easy way to do that is fill your tank up with clean water and let it water a few dozen times. Or if you have access to a drain then unhook the pump and run the hose from the garden to the drain. Then use a water hose and run clean water from the top of each plant cup. That will flush all the salts from the rocks and out though the system to the drain.
Right now my plants are nearly a month old and very healthy, about 4 inches tall. I initially was watering 6 times daily. Moved up to 8 times daily. I am now going to increase the frequency again to 12 times daily. When the plants get a little bigger I plan on one last jump to 24 on-off a day. The plants have been very healthy and their growth rate is admirable. Have you ever tried this type of gradual increase with an indoor system?
Yes that is exactly how you do it.
This is my first attempt and I feel fortunate that it has run so smoothly. I don't want to mess up. Will the change in watering cycle shock the plants or cause them to suffocate?
That is what I like about grow rocks so much is that they hold so much oxygen between watering. One of the reasons why hydroponic growing is so much faster is because you are force feeding the plants by watering them if they want it or not. As long as your pH and PPM is correct for the plants age then you can't water to much. Most plants do need a dry out period so don't think by watering all the time will increase yields.
When I send my plant into flowering I was thinking of a conversion bulb, but I will loose 40 watts! Would you recommend that I just get a bigger HPS ballast at that time? I want the best fruit I can get and am wondering how much of a yield increase I can expect by going from a 400 MH to a 600 HPS or even from the 400 MH to a 1000 HPS.
Conversion bulbs are OK if you are on a budget but if you can afford it I would go with the 1000 HPS because theirs is no such thing as to much light when it comes to increased yield. Especially in the bud room.
Thanks for all the help you give us amateurs.
Later, Frank

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