What is Hydroculture?

Hydroculture is the method of growing plants without soil. You have most likely heard about Hydroponics, an automated method of growing plants in water, mostly related to the production of food. Hydroculture, related to hydroponics but functioning quite differently, is the low-end of growing plants in water. It is also referred to as passive hydroponics, which means that it lacks all the automation commonly associated with hydroponics. For more information: About Hydroculture The Equipment Used The hydroculture system consists of five basic parts: • outer pot (for holding the water reservoir) • culture pot (inner growing pot) • growing medium (expanded, fired clay pellets) • water level indicator • nutrient (fertilizer) Outer Pot The outer pot (container) is a closed water reservoir that can be any size, shape or colour and is available in many different forms: ceramic, plastic, stone, glass, terracotta, etc. Any closed planter or container can be used as an outer pot as long as its ...  more

Hydroculture is a way of growing many different types of plants without using any sort of soil at all. Hydroculture is a form of hydroponics, and the two main styles are sometimes referred to as passive hydroponics or active hydroponics. Hydroculture has a number of benefits over traditional soil-based agriculture, especially for growing house plants, and many people are turning to hydroculture to help them keep better care of the plants in their home. Most hydroculture is done using some sort of aggregate, which is highly absorbent, and nutrients which are added to the aggregate. The most common form of aggregate are expanded clay pebbles, which has been fired to have a porous and open inner structure, and a hard outer shell. These pebbles absorb a great deal of water, and are fairly light and easily transported. Just like soil, these clay pebbles can absorb both water and nutrients that you add to them, and the plants in turn can gather the water and nutrients from the pebbles. The ...  more

Sometimes, hydroculture is called the passive hydroponics. It is like the little brother of hydroponics – with smaller containers, simpler solution, and a cheaper and less complicated system. While hydroculture likes hydroponics, can be used for growing vegetables that we can buy in supermarkets, hydroculture is more for houseplants and for the fun of indoor gardening. In hydroculture, pebbles, rather than soil, hold up the plant and its root system. The reservoir pot is filled to a pre-determined level with a water nutrient solution. The roots grow out around the pebbles. Once a plant is setup, we periodically re-fill the reservoir with nutrient solution. Back to main page - Hydroculture - Clean, Easy, and Simple!  more

Hydroculture is a method of growing plants without the use of soil. With the method I use, and detail on this page, plants are grown in an absorbent aggregate and nutrients. Some of the advantages of houseplants grown in hydroculture are the water reservoir makes it easy to see when the plant requires water, the aggregate is open therefore allowing air to circulate around the roots, and the reservoir coupled with using absorbent aggregate helps create humidity around the plant. This method of hydroculture is sometimes referred to as 'passive hydroponics'. There is another method, which uses nutrient solution, called 'active hydroponics' or often referred to just as hydroponics. This system often uses a form of nutrient delivery system to deliver the nutrients to the roots. I will only be detailing the method of houseplant hydroculture I use on this page, however there are other web sites which detail active hydroponics and also various other methods of hydroculture. The word "hydro" ...  more

In hydroculture, pebbles rather than dirt hold up the plant's stem and roots. The reservoir pot is filled to a pre-determined level with a water nutrient solution. The roots grow out around the pebbles. Once a plant is setup, you periodically re-fill the reservoir with nutrient solution. Hydroculture is the little brother of hydroponics. In hydroponics, bigger containers, more involved water systems, and complex solutions are combined to grow vegetables that we buy in the supermarket. Houseplants will grow very nicely in a simpler, more passive version of the hydroponics process, which is called hydroculture.  more