Hydroponics Advantages – Disadvantages

Cathy Isom gives us the pros and cons of Hydroponics, and why we shouldn’t do away with soil just yet.  That’s coming up on This Land of Ours.

While there are plenty of advantages of Hydroponic farming, especially for anyone living in small spaces and wanting to grow their own veggies indoors, there are certainly a few disadvantages, as well.

Hydroponic systems do have an initial set up cost larger than growing in soil. The systems are reliant on electricity, which makes them susceptible to power failures. Putting plants at risk of dying. Plus, if not run on renewable energy, hydroponic pumps are another pull on the grid. Managing a hydroponics system, repairing pumps and monitoring solutions, can also be time-consuming. Much more so than relying on quality soils and rain.

For those of us more in-tuned to the natural ways of doing things. Modern hydroponics also has questionable nutritional aspects.

Growing in quality soils means that plants are given access to not only the nutrients necessary to make them grow. But, they are also supplied with micro nutrients and trace elements that are vital for keeping plants and people healthy. Questions have arisen as to whether nutrient solutions can supply all these needs.

Also, many common crops, potatoes, corn, squash, root veggies, grains, are not well-suited for hydroponic systems. They are more geared to lettuces, tomatoes, and other water-hungry, relatively small bushes.

I’m Cathy Isom…