The first time I tried hydroponics, I did everything right except the beginning. I bought the bucket, the air pump, the light, the nutrients — then I dropped soil-grown lettuce seedlings straight into net cups and watched them sulk for three weeks. Half of them rotted at the crown. The other half sat there doing … Read more >>
My first hydroponic system was a 5-gallon bucket on a laundry room shelf in February. I filled it with water, dropped in a pepper seedling, and waited. Three months later, I had one sad, hand-pollinated pepper the size of a golf ball. Meanwhile, the lettuce I’d stuck in a leftover jar on the windowsill had … Read more >>
The first time I grew basil in a countertop hydroponic setup, I loved the clean look and quick harvests. Then summer arrived, and my raised-bed tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers took off with almost no daily attention beyond watering and checking for pests. That experience taught me something important: asking “is hydroponic better than soil?” does … Read more >>
A sunny kitchen window and a few pots can only take you so far. In my Zone 6 backyard, I still love growing vegetables in the soil, but I set up a small indoor hydroponic garden every winter when the beds are frozen solid. My favorite starter setup sits on a utility shelf near a … Read more >>
The first hydroponic herbs I grew sat on a sunny kitchen counter after my outdoor basil got battered by a week of hard summer rain. I loved seeing the roots in water, but I also learned quickly that plain water and a pretty jar do not keep plants growing for long. A hydroponic pot gives … Read more >>
A backyard vegetable patch is wonderful until a week of hard rain compacts the soil, slugs chew the lettuce, and a surprise heat wave makes your spinach bolt. I still grow plenty in beds, but I love having a small hydroponic setup indoors where I can pick crisp greens even when my Zone 6 garden … Read more >>
A backyard vegetable bed teaches you patience fast. One week your peppers look perfect, and the next week a heat wave dries the soil faster than expected. Hydroponics removes the soil from the equation, but it replaces it with water, nutrients, light, and a few details that need steady attention. If growing cannabis is legal … Read more >>
