Differences between labels and actual composition values in commercial hydroponic fertilizers
Whenever I am hired to duplicate a company’s fertilizer regime based on commercial products, I always emphasize that I cannot use the labels of the products as a reference because…
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Five common mistakes people make when formulating hydroponic nutrients
It is not very difficult to create a basic DIY hydroponic formulation; the raw salts are available at a very low cost, and the target concentrations for the different nutrients…
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Practical use of ion selective electrodes in hydroponics
The achievement of adequate ion concentrations in nutrient solutions, media and plant tissue is key to success in hydroponics. It is therefore important to measure them, so that proper values…
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Inner leaf tipburn in hydroponic lettuce
The most common problem I get contacted for by hydroponic lettuce growers is the appearance of inner leaf tipburn within their plants. During the past 10 years I have consulted…
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The effect of Seaweed/Kelp extracts in plants
Few bio-stimulants are more popularly used than seaweed/kelp extracts. These are used by many growers to increase plant quality and yields, in particular, extracts from the Ascophyllum nodosum species are…
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Characterizing hydroponic stock nutrient solutions
I’ve written several articles in the past about how to characterize concentrated hydroponic nutrient solutions using simple yet highly accurate small scale methods. I have now released a video showing…
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Why are different hydroponic formulations required for different situations?
Hydroponic growers tend to have very different experiences with nutrient solutions. It is not uncommon to find a grower who “swears” by product A and another who says product A…
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How tap water affects your hydroponic nutrient formulation
Tap water is often the most reliable source of water for hydroponic growers. However, especially in the North America and Europe, tap water can contain a significant amount of dissolved…
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How to deal with nutrient solution waste in hydroponics
Hydroponic nutrients contain a wide array of chemicals that are fundamentally contaminating to water sources and can heavily contribute to eutrophication. Both run-to-waste and recirculating systems eventually generate significant amounts…
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Factors limiting the life of a recirculating hydroponic nutrient solution
Hydroponic systems that use recirculating nutrient solutions can be more efficient in terms of water and nutrient usage. However, despite how good the management of a solution is, there are…
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