Hello
I need some information about hydroponics. I am student of electronics. I am specially asking for automation I want to make nutrient addition system that will add nutrient solution automatically.
There are 2 basic methods to providing nutrients to plants in hydroponic growing.
1. Electric conductivity
2. Time basis method (provide nutrient in every weeks )
I want to use time basis method because my hydroponics system is very small.
can anyone tell me what is advantage of time based method over electrical conductivity ?
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abhimanyu143
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The EC method is more useful if you grow more than one kind of plant. If you are growing just tomatoes you can use the time method but you will need to remember that the nutrient percentages changes with the different stages of growth.
EC has more advantages than time based method unless you have been doing hydro awhile and you have worked out the formula through experience. Temperature and light will also affect growth so they end up affecting nutrient demands as well.
EC has more advantages than time based method unless you have been doing hydro awhile and you have worked out the formula through experience. Temperature and light will also affect growth so they end up affecting nutrient demands as well.
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abhimanyu143
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- Joined: Sat Jan 24, 2015 5:15 am
thank you very much for your reply, its school assignment , I have to use time based method, because another boy using EC method. I have to tell the advantage of time based method over EC method, basically I am not agriculture site, I did googal search . I don't understand what is advantages of time based method
On a time based method, assuming your plants grow at a predictable rate, you can schedule the feedings and there is not the constant testing that would be required if you were doing EC. Although you may have to do some testing to monitor. You can instead work out a formula based on the type of plant you are growing for the nutrient mix and the interval between feedings.
Variables you need to consider when using a set feeding schedule
The type of plant
The different stages of growth
temperature
light
volume of the system
water quality
You will have to determine the plant needs for each stage of growth before hand and work out a schedule for when the nutrients are added. Volume matters since a changing volume changes the concentration. The quality of the water to start with matters since you don't know what is in the water unless it is tested first.
The easiest way to do a time based system is to change all of the solution instead of trying to adjust and add to it. If you start with fresh water with a known analysis and volume then you can add your nutrients based on the stage of growth and pH tolerances.
The easiest one to do is lettuce. It has a low nutrient requirement and is a short crop. Tomatoes on the other hand are heavy feeders and require different nutrients concentrations at different stages of growth. They suck up water at different rates at various stages of growth and pH can fluctuate wildly.
Lettuce can be grown in a stagnant system like Kratky which does not require pumps or even an airstone. Because it is a short crop and it has a wide tolerance for temperature and pH it can be set up in a bottle and unless you have excessive evaporation issues, the lettuce should be able to grow to maturity without adding anything.
The Kratky method might be a better thing to demonstrate instead of time based nutrients. If you are doing this for a school project you may not have the time to work out the nutrient requirements and it won't be easily available. However, it is easy to find information for nutrient formulas for hydro lettuce and it is a demo you can do for your class in a relatively short time since it is a short crop.
Kratky's advantages over a traditional hydroponic system
no electricity needed- no pumps +- air stone
It is good for very small sytems. One 2 liter pop bottle and a net pot is all the equipment you need to grow one head of lettuce.
You can use standard hydroponic mixes and there are already formulas available for growing lettuce.
You can grow one head of lettuce in 40 days and not have to change the solution at all if temperature and water quality are controlled.
It is a lot cheaper to set up and run than a traditional hydroponic system.
https://foodrising.org/PDF/Three-Non- Circulating-Hydroponic-Methods-Growing-Lettuce.pdf
https://www.greenhouse.cornell.edu/crops ... ecipes.pdf
This is a video of an experiment that compared different methods. It might help you design your experiment.
https://gardenculturemagazine.com/garden ... -nutrients
OOPs! You are an electronics student. I guess you want to use electricity, so you would have to go with working out a nutrient plan.
Variables you need to consider when using a set feeding schedule
The type of plant
The different stages of growth
temperature
light
volume of the system
water quality
You will have to determine the plant needs for each stage of growth before hand and work out a schedule for when the nutrients are added. Volume matters since a changing volume changes the concentration. The quality of the water to start with matters since you don't know what is in the water unless it is tested first.
The easiest way to do a time based system is to change all of the solution instead of trying to adjust and add to it. If you start with fresh water with a known analysis and volume then you can add your nutrients based on the stage of growth and pH tolerances.
The easiest one to do is lettuce. It has a low nutrient requirement and is a short crop. Tomatoes on the other hand are heavy feeders and require different nutrients concentrations at different stages of growth. They suck up water at different rates at various stages of growth and pH can fluctuate wildly.
Lettuce can be grown in a stagnant system like Kratky which does not require pumps or even an airstone. Because it is a short crop and it has a wide tolerance for temperature and pH it can be set up in a bottle and unless you have excessive evaporation issues, the lettuce should be able to grow to maturity without adding anything.
The Kratky method might be a better thing to demonstrate instead of time based nutrients. If you are doing this for a school project you may not have the time to work out the nutrient requirements and it won't be easily available. However, it is easy to find information for nutrient formulas for hydro lettuce and it is a demo you can do for your class in a relatively short time since it is a short crop.
Kratky's advantages over a traditional hydroponic system
no electricity needed- no pumps +- air stone
It is good for very small sytems. One 2 liter pop bottle and a net pot is all the equipment you need to grow one head of lettuce.
You can use standard hydroponic mixes and there are already formulas available for growing lettuce.
You can grow one head of lettuce in 40 days and not have to change the solution at all if temperature and water quality are controlled.
It is a lot cheaper to set up and run than a traditional hydroponic system.
https://foodrising.org/PDF/Three-Non- Circulating-Hydroponic-Methods-Growing-Lettuce.pdf
https://www.greenhouse.cornell.edu/crops ... ecipes.pdf
This is a video of an experiment that compared different methods. It might help you design your experiment.
https://gardenculturemagazine.com/garden ... -nutrients
OOPs! You are an electronics student. I guess you want to use electricity, so you would have to go with working out a nutrient plan.