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Hydroponics is a method of growing plants without using soil. Most often water is used in hydroponic gardening, hence the name. Certainly, there are more technically precise explanations. However, the average gardener doesn’t actually require more knowledge than that.

Many people might wonder how hydroponic gardening is possible. It’s generally believed that plants need soil. It provides nutrition, physical support, energy and water. These are all required in order for the plant to thrive. However, it can obtain these elements from other sources as well.

Water is an absolute essential for any plant. But they don’t have to get it from soil. You’ll find that a lot of plants grow naturally in inhospitable environments such as sand and gravel, or even floating atop the water.

The energy provided by the sun’s rays and its heat are also essential to a plant. But there are other ways to provide your plants with energy apart from sun-saturated earth. The sun’s rays have the same effect on a plant’s leaves regardless of whether it’s in the ground or not. The essential process of photosynthesis occurs even when you leave the upper part of a plant exposed to sunlight. There are plants that don’t require any light whatsoever. But they still require energy to fuel their natural growth cycles.

Most commonly grown plants require some sort of support to hold them up. Planting them in soil is the most common and effective means of achieving that. This is why a plant’s roots spread out and its stems are resistant to the wind’s force. But other supporting mechanisms can achieve the same result. For example, string interwoven on a supporting frame or popsicle sticks attached to the top of a glass will work just fine.

A healthy plant also requires adequate nutrition. Potassium, nitrogen, phosophorus and some trace elements are included in this list. Normally, a plant will absorb these nutrients from the earth that surrounds it. However, they can also get these essential nutrients in other ways.

A common way of doing this is to keep the plant’s roots covered in a water-based liquid nutrient solution. There are systems that utilize a hydroponics grow tent to retain moisture. The roots are sprayed frequently with a nutrient solution that soaks them thoroughly. This practice has similarities to aeroponics, another method of soil-less gardening.

Hydroponic gardening can produce beautiful, healthy plants. There are many kinds of plants that can thrive above ground. Just make sure you provide for their needs.

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