Hydroponic Systems
Hydroponic is not just hydroponic. There are many very different system techniques that have their individual advantageous and disadvantageous [46]. No matter if as slim a possible, high quality materials, or as quiet as realizable – regarding the physical implementation it should be mentioned, that every technique can be adapted to your personal visual desires. Nevertheless, regarding technical concerns the probably most important differences are about the capability to grow specific or multiple classes of plants as herbs, greens and fruiting crops [5]. Hence, you will not only learn in this chapter how the individual hydroponic subsystems function, but also which crops are best suited to grow with them.
On the contrary to most other hydroponic literature out there, this chapter only distinguishes between 4 techniques, therefore conflating several subsystems.
Deep Water Culture (DWC)
DWC techniques (also called Kratky method when used without pump) use a floating raft as direct plant support. In order to provide additional oxygen to the plants' roots, an air pump may be installed in the nutrient solution reservoir below.
- Nutrient Solution Reservoir
- Air Pump
- Air Extruders
- Raft (floating)
- Plants (germinated in stone wool similar and secured in such as net cups)
Nutrient Film Technique (NFT)
NFT uses slightly inclined channels, in which the plants' roots will receive sufficient nutrients, water and oxygen. The nutrient solution is provided via water pump from the reservoir.
- Nutrient Solution Reservoir
- Water Pump
- Nutrient Film along the tube
- Plants (germinated in stone wool or similar and secured in such as net cups)
Mediabed
Mediabed systems (which may be differentiated into Wicking, Drip, Ebb & Flow or Dutch Bucket systems) use a non-soil substrate to support the plants and to deliver a good environment regarding growing conditions. The nutrient solution is provided via water pump, even though there are many different options (like ebb&flow, drip, etc.) to run the cycles.
- Nutrient Solution Reservoir
- Water Pump
- Nutrient Solution Provision
- Substrate
- Plants (germinated on pads or directly in the substrate)
Aero- and Fogponic
Aero- and Fogponic systems use nozzles/ultrasonic transducers to provide a mist/fog of nutrient solution to the plants' roots, enabling perfect growing conditions. But this technique is also the most sensitive of them all, requiring experience and maintaining skills to provide stable growing conditions.
- Nutrient Solution Reservoir
- Water Pump
- Nozzles/Ultrasonic transducer
- Plant support
- Plants (directly germinated in the support)
Hydroponic Techniques were derived from [5, 8, 26] There are many more feature to distinguish them from each other, but this differentiation was used to deliver a broad overview. Furthermore, this separation is sufficient to derive recommendations later on.
Link to References