Aeroponics
• Inside the Box, Outside the Box
• Greener than Green
• Your Plants Will Love You
Aeroponics – Free Your Plants, Free Yourself
Can’t find a patch of soil to cultivate? In nature, lack of soil does not hinder some plants from living full and healthy lives. Epiphytes (certain orchids, for instance) thrive with roots dangling in humid air. Since 1942, scientists have perfected aeroponic growing—cultivating of plants without soil or other rooting medium. Reduced dependence on scarce resources, reduced waste, and an increased output are all benefits of your aeroponics garden.
The first, simple aeroponics were ambitious, resulting in the successful cultivation of fruit trees. By the 1950s, the term “aeroponics” had been coined, and experiments with tomatoes and coffee were bearing fruit. In 1983, consumers could purchase the first commercial indoor aeroponics system. Today, your possibilities range from homemade aeroponics gardens to high-end aeroponics supplies.
Inside the Box, Outside the Box
Aeroponic gardens consist of a frame, allowing leaves or canopy to grow upward and roots to expand downward, and a system for delivering nutrient-rich water vapor to the roots. Plants spend approximately 99.98% of their time exposed to air and .02% of their time in contact with a hydro-atomize nutrient solution. Typically, ultrasonic nebulizers or misters deliver your aeroponics watering, providing the ideal size water droplet. Vertical aeroponics allow you to cultivate crops in narrow areas and utilize corners and other wasted indoor urban space.
Greener than Green
Since your aerogarden depends on contact between plant roots and water, it is technically a form of hydroponic gardening, but consider the difference: no medium, and no need to flush the system means less work and fewer expenses for you. Indoor aeroponics gardening requires less water and less energy than hydro growing. If water conservation is a priority, consider: the typical aeroponic system uses 10% as much water as a conventional garden, and some systems only use 5% as much water!
Your Plants Will Love You
How do plants feel about aeroponics? Pretty happy! Without soil or medium to hinder natural growth, aeroponic gardening allows for maximum root expansion, along with 100% access to CO2. Your plants respond to this kind treatment with high density growth—more garden in less space.
Aeroponic growing also reduces, and sometimes even eliminates, pathology. A mostly-closed system prevents the introduction of disease, and the structure of your aeroponic supplies make it easy to remove sick plants and keep the infection from spreading. How healthy will your root systems be? Sterile environments and hardier plants mean makes cloning simple. With an aerogarden, you can propagate cuttings from plants that were once considered unclonable. And no medium means no transplant shock!
