Do It Yourself Hydroponics Kits

Hydroponics is growing plants without using soil.

Using hydroponics allows people in urban and suburban neighborhoods to grow gardens without using a great deal of space. Another advantage of hydroponic gardens is the ability to grow flowers and food plants all year long.



While some hydroponics systems are an elaborate mixture of pumps, growing trays and electronic timers, you can build a simple manual-feed hydroponics system at home without spending a great deal of money.

Things You'll Need

• Two large plastic storage containers, 31-1/2 inches x 17-3/8 inches x 13 inches high
• Pea gravel, 1 cubic foot
• Coconut coir potting media, two bricks
• Watering can
• Two 2-gallon size plastic buckets
• Rotary tool with 3/8 inch drill bit
• Hydroponics fertilizer, with micronutrients
• Plant seedlings

Instructions

1. Insert the drill bit into the rotary tool and drill three holes along the front of each storage container. The holes should be just above the bottom edge of the container to allow excess liquid to drain out.

2. Pour a layer of pea gravel in the bottom of each container for drainage. The gravel should be about a half-inch deep.

3. Place each brick of the coconut coir into a bucket with 1 gallon of water and allow it to expand. The coconut coir potting mix is a good choice for hydroponics because it retains moisture, nutrients and air.

4. Pour the coconut coir potting mix into the plastic containers. Each block of coir will produce about 2 gallons of potting mix and should be deep enough to give good support to your seedlings.

5. Gently rinse any potting soil off the roots of your seedlings before planting them in your hydroponic garden to protect against soil-borne diseases.

6. Plant your seedlings far enough apart so that the adult plants won't crowd each other. How far that is will be determined by what type of plants you are growing.

7. Mix the fertilizer with water according to the instructions provided and feed your plants every one or two days. Pinch a bit of the potting mix between your thumb and finger to test the moisture content. You can experiment until you get a feeding schedule that works well without overfeeding the plants.

Tips & Warnings

• You can make a tiered gravity-fed hydroponic garden with vinyl rain gutters. The top gutter drains down to feed the ones underneath it, and the bottom tier will drain into a bucket so that the nutrient mix can be reused.

• Hydroponic-grown plants are more sensitive to pH levels than plants grown in soil. An inexpensive pH test kit is available in most garden centers to help you maintain a healthy pH level in your hydroponic garden.

References

• Foothill Hydroponics: Easy Gardening With Hydroponics
• Virginia Cooperative Extension: Home Hydroponics
• University of Illinois: Hydroponic Systems

Resources

• Tree Hugger: DIY Hydro-garden
• Texas A&M University: Hydroponics as a Hobby