Hydroponic Vegetable production Essays

Hydroponic Vegetable production Essays Hydroponic Vegetable production Essay Hydroponic Vegetable production Essay Hydroponico Vegetable OProduction0 BY CYF Hydroponics has often been thought of as the future of growing, what many people do not realize is that the concept has been around for a very long time and already has been applied to agriculture. Hydroponics is not Just for flowers; in fact with its growing popularity in the past decade hydroponics has begun to be used for commercial vegetable production around the world. It is attracting to farmers because it presents them with a way to grow in areas and times they might not have been able to otherwise. This can mean that soil quality is not a factor and that the armers can have more control over their own microclimate within a greenhouse. Hydroponics suggests that anyone anywhere can grow his or her own high quality produce under limited conditions. Hydroponics is a method of growing plants without soil. It is the fastest growing sector of agriculture, and it could very well dominate food production in the future. Hydroponics id defined as the science of growing or the production of plants in nutrient rich solutions or moist inert material instead of soil. Hydroponics comes from Latin, the word hydro meaning water, and ponos meaning labor, hydroponics s water working. It is important to know that water alone is not enough to support plants growth. Traditionally soil gives plants anchorage for their root systems and supports vertical growth, it is a source of nutrients, fresh organic matter, and has water holding capabilities. Hydroponics must use fertilizers in their ionic form and supply plants with their essential minerals and nutrients through a nutrient solution. Artificial anchorage is used such as stakes or trellising. One benefit is that it is a more sterile environment than the soil. Soil can contain many toxins and pollutants as well s undesirable insect life and disease pathogens. With hydroponics it is likely that a recall, like the one we had a few years back on spinach that became contaminated with e-coli, would be entirely avoided. Farmers growing hydroponic crops and researchers see many benefits to this method. Higher yields are common and a higher yield per square foot is a given because plants can be grown densely and in vertical or upright ways. Produce from a hydroponic greenhouse is often of very high quality because it has not been subject to the stresses brought on by outside weather conditions and does not bear scars of amage cause by outside factors. It is easier to protect crops from pests and supplement the sun and increase production. Universities and research facilities for medicine and even NASA study hydroponic methods and use them for control experiments. Facilities can have a fully controlled indoor environment where they can research different affects by introducing variables, or like NASA study possibilities for one day growing plants in outer space or even on the moon. Hydroponics has been around for a long time but has began to take a strong foothold only in this past decade or so. It is a common misconception that NASA invented hydroponics; this is false. The first record of anything resembling hydroponics is by Sir Francis Bacon back in 1627 in his book Sylva sylvarum printed the year after his death in which he introduces a concept he called water culture. Water culture became a popular research technique. In 1699 John Woodward published his water culture experiments on spearmint in which he made the conclusion that plants grew better in unfiltered water. By the 1800s we knew that the reason for this is that there are essential nutrients that plants require for growth and ome are found in minerals present in unfiltered water. 1859-65 German botanists Julius von Sachs and Wilhelm Knop developed techniques of soil-less cultivation using nutrient solutions. The growth of plants without soil became known as solution culture, which is a technique that we still use today. In 1929, at the University of California in Berkeley, professor William Frederick Gericke began to publicly promote what he first termed aquaculture. Gericke created a stir by growing vine tomatoes twenty-five feet high in his backyard without the use of soil. William Gericke coined he modern day term Hydroponics in 1937 because aquaculture was already used to refer to aquatic organisms. He was reluctant at first to share his secrets and did not publish any details on his experiments until after he retired from UC Berkeley in 1940. During WWII in a place called Wake Island vegetables were grown hydroponically to feed to passengers on Pan American Airlines when they stopped at this refueling station. Wake Island is a rocky atoll; which has no soil on it in which to grow and it would have been too expensive to airlift in fresh vegetables. Disney orld opened an exhibit called The Land Pavilion in 1982 in their famous EPCOT center, which features a variety of hydroponic growing techniques. Nowadays hydroponics is not Just limited to researchers it has become available to the average citizen and is only beginning to be applied to agriculture in a much broader spectrum this past decade. The benefits of greenhouse hydroponic production are many. In controlled environment the farmer can have control over temperature, humidity, water, nutrients, C02 levels, and even light periods. One main benefit is that no soil is equired, that means there is nothing to till and much labor is eliminated from the growing process. Growing can be done regardless of soil quality and composition. A huge benefit is that water can stay in the system and be reused. Even though water is the main carrier of nutrients hydro systems are able to deliver Just the right amount of water and can reduce waste. Water can be re-circulated in the system and water use is typically 50-90% less than that used for soil crops which are subject to leaching and drainage capabilities. Plant roots can drown hydro takes this into ccount by using highly oxygenated water and preventing anaerobic conditions. So has complete control over nutrition and nutrition costs are lower and applications are more effective and efficient. Plants can absorb the nutrients much faster when they are suspended in water instead of clinging to soil particles. Yields are usually higher and of better quality with more stable results. Because hydro can be grown very densely and even vertically on shelves farmers are able to grow a larger number of plants in a much smaller area. Land use is reduced greatly and allows for farms to e closer to urban areas where they have a shorter distance to travel from harvest to local markets and kitchens. Many hydroponic researchers boast that produce harvested is of higher nutritional value and considered fresher because some crops, like lettuce, can be harvested with roots and remain fresh longer. Pests and disease are easier to contain and get rid of in controlled environments and the sterile environment allows for use of Integrated Pests Management programs that focus on biological controls and reduce the use of harmful pesticides. Disadvantages of hydroponic farming can be the loss ofa buffer, soil, any failure n the system , equipment failure, power outage, can lead to very quick death or damage of an entire crop. Pathogens can breed in these high moisture environments and young plants are susceptible to verticillium wilt and can die from dampening-off. In extreme environments water temperatures must be monitored and controlled so that you dont have any freezing or cooking of your roots. It is much easier and less expensive to heat or warm water in the system than to keep it cool. In desert regions enclosed systems are preferred to prevent loss of water through evaporation. The most common disadvantage is the extremely high cost of start-up and equipment. Since hydroponics is a growing technology the USDA and other organizations often have grants available for farmers working in hydroponics. In 2012 Living Water Farms was the recipient of one of the USDAs Value Added Producer Grants which are awarded to sustainable business ideas. Crop choice is taken into consideration because of the costs involved and certain limitation. Commonly lettuce is probably the vegetable most often grown hydroponically because it is quick and easy. Farmers can go from planting to arvesting a lettuce crop in as little as 30-45 days that allows them to get about 10 harvests out in one year. Tomatoes are another huge hydro crop, some of the largest North American Hydroponic farms focus on tomatoes production, from beefsteak, to vine ripe and cherry. Euro Fresh Farms in Arizona harvest approximately 250,000 tomatoes daily in mid summer. Euro Fresh Farms are also certified pesticide residue free and practice land and water conservation, solar panels are integrated into the design of the greenhouses to further reduce energy costs and the companys carbon footprint. After harvest, excess plant material is composted and waste is reduced. Euro Fresh Farms are not organic but they boast a ten plus year history of contamination free produce and claim to be better than organic because they dont use animal fertilizers which can contain food borne illness like e-coli and salmonella. The other crop they grow besides tomatoes are cucumbers. They are certified by the North American Greenhouse Hothouse Vegetable Growers, and dont use any GMOs. Locally Kennys Strawberry Farm is a great place to visit to see hydroponics working to produce fresh strawberries. The Temecula Valley farm has a u-pick hydro ground away from the reach of rodents and soil borne pathogens. They claim to be all natural and have heartier and healthier strawberries which are not picked until they reach ideal ripeness and redness. Their motto is we grow em You pick em where you can have a family outing and pick strawberries without ever getting dirty. Hydroponic farms in general tend to be smaller, because of costs and provide local markets and restaurants. Most are family businesses that practice sustainability and conservation. They produce a variety of vegetables and herbs, even feed for ivestock. Around the world hydroponics are already being used. There are huge hydro-lettuce fields in Japan, Germany, Pakistan, Australia, and places like the Philippines. Countries like Pakistan are reducing their need for imported produce and are actually beginning to export produce themselves. In the past their soil was considered useless for cultivation, but with hydroponics they are a growing success. In Conclusion, hydroponics is indeed a growing industry and I suspect that as our land gets more populated and developed we will see a rise in this industry. It can be sustainable and health conscience. You can grow more in a small area so it is welcoming to smaller property owners and perfect for urban areas. With each technological advance we get more precision out of every crop. 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