Plants such as lettuce, herbs and other small leafy plants do very well in a simple DIY hydroponic system. Find out how to set one of these systems up and you will have no reason not to have a year-long supply of fresh crisp lettuce leaves, herbs beans, cucumber, spinach, bok choy and other delicious fresh foods.
These leafy plants grow really well in the smaller systems and because they grow so quickly you can replant lettuce within about 6 weeks. They will provide you with healthy, luscious leaves and in a very short space of time.
The set up we are describing here has 2" net cups, but if you want to grow larger plants like tomatoes you can use bigger pots even though you may use the same basic system. Of course, with bigger cups you will need to have a deeper reservoir that the one we have described.
Basically all you need to do is set up a Styrofoam platform in the top of a plastic container which will act as a reservoir.
You will need:
* A rectangle plastic box about 32 litres, which is about 6" – 8" deep preferably with sides sloping inwards to hold the foam lid, or otherwise you can fix the lid to the box so it does not sink
* A piece of 1 ½" – 2" Styrofoam sheeting, cut so that it fits just below the rim of the box
* Some 2" net cups – you will need to space these about 8" apart so buy what you need to suit the size of your plastic box
* An suitable submersible pump
The idea now is to saw holes in the Styrofoam just the size to fit the pots so that they sit flush with the foam. Fill the pots with some clay balls or Hydroton and plant your lettuce plants.
Fit the pump into the reservoir, fill the reservoir with your nutrient infused water and watch your plants grow.
Depending on where you decide to place your hydro box will depend on whether you need to purchase grow lights. If you do, make sure that you purchase good quality ones as that will produce the best healthy plants.
These leafy plants grow really well in the smaller systems and because they grow so quickly you can replant lettuce within about 6 weeks. They will provide you with healthy, luscious leaves and in a very short space of time.
The set up we are describing here has 2" net cups, but if you want to grow larger plants like tomatoes you can use bigger pots even though you may use the same basic system. Of course, with bigger cups you will need to have a deeper reservoir that the one we have described.
Basically all you need to do is set up a Styrofoam platform in the top of a plastic container which will act as a reservoir.
You will need:
* A rectangle plastic box about 32 litres, which is about 6" – 8" deep preferably with sides sloping inwards to hold the foam lid, or otherwise you can fix the lid to the box so it does not sink
* A piece of 1 ½" – 2" Styrofoam sheeting, cut so that it fits just below the rim of the box
* Some 2" net cups – you will need to space these about 8" apart so buy what you need to suit the size of your plastic box
* An suitable submersible pump
The idea now is to saw holes in the Styrofoam just the size to fit the pots so that they sit flush with the foam. Fill the pots with some clay balls or Hydroton and plant your lettuce plants.
Fit the pump into the reservoir, fill the reservoir with your nutrient infused water and watch your plants grow.
Depending on where you decide to place your hydro box will depend on whether you need to purchase grow lights. If you do, make sure that you purchase good quality ones as that will produce the best healthy plants.
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