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Hydroponics and Water Conservation for a Garden
What do Hydroponics have to do with
Water Conservation?
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Why Growing Hydroponically
Conserves Water
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With hydroponics, watering is done
individually and directly with each plant. Instead of
dispersing large volumes of water to a whole row of plants,
both water and "nutrient" water are applied directly to the
source - the root.
This controlled process enables the use of far less water
because each individual plant does not use much water.
All or most of the water is used by the plants, and there's
no wasted water.
No matter which method or tool is used for watering and
irrigation, the watering process can be controlled to use
only the needed amount of water. Whether using the
drip method, misting or spraying, the water volumes can be
controlled and directed to the roots of the plants.
The water used in hydroponics is
normally recycled using a water collection system, and the
gardener is able to recycle some of the water after
use. This recycling process conserves a tremendous
amount of water because new water doesn't have to be applied
for each session.
Hydroponic plants don't use soil, but
instead use either rocks, granite or some other form of
support for the roots. Some are even suspended in air
with no support cushion around the roots. This enables the
root of the plant to absorb all of the water applied.
Soil absorbs a tremendous amount of water, therefore, higher
volumes of water are needed to provide the actual plant with
enough water to survive.
It takes much less water to get the necessary water supply
to the plants when planting the hydroponics way.
Plants grown in the soil near other
plants are constantly competing for the water source.
When two or more plants are located only feet or inches away
from one another, the water source gets pulled toward both
plants. The plants are often strained from trying to
force the water to their own root, while also lacking water
if the other plant wins out. This is a tug-of-war that
can be avoided while using hydroponics.
Hydroponic planting allows you to apply the water to one
plant at a time, and the plants are not sharing the same
soil (no soil at all is used). The plants don't have to
strain to get water because the right amount of water is
applied to each plant separately. This saves water
because there's not a continual need to accommodate the
plant who "lost the battle!"
During comparison tests,
hydroponically grown plants used over eight times less water
than plants grown in soil. This is a tremendous
difference, and on a large scale, could potentially
save literally tons of water each year.
Water conservation is probably one of the most sensible
reasons to grow hydroponically, especially if you're
planting a large garden. It helps to reduce water
costs while also reducing the waste of water in
communities. You can grow more using less water with
hydroponics.
About the Author
Article written by Candice Pardue,
web
content and brochure writer.
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here to license an article
like this for your website or publication.
Disclaimer: You should
find some valuable tips about conserving water in home
gardening on these pages, But, Simple Home Decor does not
insure success in finding hydroponic material by reading
this website. Always check with your home and garden decor
experts before attempting a conservation garden.
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