Why red and blue LED grow lights never took off
Anyone who has been growing plants for a while has probably seen a chart showing the absorption profile of chlorophylls A and B, as shown in the image below. From…
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In-depth books to learn about hydroponics at an advanced level
Growing plants without soil requires a lot of knowledge. As a hydroponic grower, it is now your duty to provide the plant with the needed chemical and environmental conditions that…
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Six things you need to know before using plant hormones
Plant hormones are small molecules with no nutritional value that are used as chemical signaler within plants. A hormone will trigger a chemical signaling cascade that will cause the plant…
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Keeping plants short: Synthetic gibberellin inhibitors
Plants grow both vertically and horizontally. A plant will develop branches along its stem – expanding horizontally – and the stem will grow towards the sun, making the plant taller.…
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Keeping plants short: Why is it important?
Plants have evolved to grow vertically – to reach more sunlight – and horizontally – to increase their surface area and capture more sunlight. However, vertical growth is almost always…
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Using calcium sulfate in hydroponics
Calcium is a very important element in plant nutrition and can be supplied to plants through a wide variety of different salts. However, only a handful of these resources are…
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Average yields per acre of hydroponic crops
I constantly talk about yield in hydroponics and how a variety of different techniques, additives and methodologies can be used to make plants more productive. However, what is the average…
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Three ways to judge the quality of powdered hydroponic nutrient products
Commercial hydroponic nutrients are often available as liquid concentrates. These offer a very reproducible experience for the user, with very high homogeneity and easiness of application. However, one big drawback…
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How to control algae in a hydroponic crop
Microscopic algae can be a very annoying problem in a hydroponic crop. As photosynthetic organisms they can cover all exposed surfaces that get wet with hydroponic nutrient solution and can…
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Can you use regular soil fertilizers in hydroponics?
If you have just started your journey into hydroponics you’re probably wondering why you need to spend your money in hydroponic specific nutrients when there are so many cheaply available…
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