Advantages of hydroponics over soil

3 huge advantages of Hydroponic vs Soil Growing

Introduction to hydroponic growing

There are many advantages of hydroponic growing over “traditional” soil growing. I will point the most important ones of the advantages of Hydroponic vs soil growing in this post.

The technology behind hydroponic farming has been available and even well known for a long time. In a way, even the old Egyptians used a similar technique, as they diverted the water from the river Nile and then led it back into the river.


Saving water with Hydroponic farming

Since you don’t have to water your plants regularly, growing your plants in a hydroponic system saves a lot of water. The water in most hydroponic systems needs to be completely replaced from time to time. Although, this only needs to be done once every few weeks or even once per month, depending on the specific technique you are using.

This means that you can save 70-90% of the water on growing plants with Hydroponic vs soil growing! It might not seem like a big deal, but apart from the financial benefit, there is also a huge benefit for the environment. The supply of groundwater has been decreasing steadily over the past years and the more people switch over to hydroponics, the better.

Recycled water sign - Hydroponic vs Soil Growing
Recycled water sign – Hydroponic vs Soil Growing

Faster grow cycles & higher yields

You might think plants are not “made” for water, or need soil to survive, but you’d be surprised! This really depends on how the plant has been raised. Preparing the seedlings for a hydroponic environment in advance is crucial, so they will not be shocked once you put them into your main system. 

In fact, in many cases, hydroponic farmers have reported higher yields & faster growing plants in hydroponics than in regular soil. While a regular head of lettuce takes 2-3 months for a full growing cycle in soil, hydroponics can halve this time, taking it down to around 6 weeks.


Controllable environment – Hydroponic vs Soil Growing

One of the biggest advantages of hydroponics is the highly controllable environment of the plants. You are bound to the conditions of the soil and the surroundings when growing in the ground. While there are methods to get around these soil conditions, it can be expensive and is disruptive to the surrounding environment. 

In hydroponics, however, the cycle is completely separated, making it easier to adjust environmental factors. Some of these are water PH, nutrient concentration, temperature, light levels, and many more. These factors are a lot harder to control in regular soil growing techniques. This is one of the reasons why an optimized hydroponic system is so much more productive than growing in soil.


Conclusion

In conclusion, there is really no reason why you should not start growing things hydroponically. It saves lots of water, while being more effective than traditional farming. In addition, it’s easy to adjust the condition of the plants’ environment. The only thing that one might worry about is the setup of a system like this. But even that is not a big deal. You can build a simple, small hydroponic system yourself with just a few tools for under 50 bucks!

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