Soilless Gardening 02 PDF

02 April 2013 w w w. s o i l l e s s g a r d e n i n g - i n d i a .
c o m
Dedicated to the Soilless Gardening Industry of India
Hydroponics,
Change The way you grow
an Agriculture Revolution
by Plant Genome Sciences
read in this issue:
Hydroponics, What Can You Grow? Herbs and Salads
MISSION
"It is our Mission to take Hydroponics,
as a technology, to every Indian
household by reducing the barriers to
entry for all. It is our dream to see
every home and land owner adopt
this technique in India in the next
fifteen years".
VISION
Our vision is to see India as a power in
the field of horticulture. To wipe the
woes of every farmer in India in the
next twenty years by providing
cutting edge technology. We want
every Indian Farmer to say it with
pride "I am proud to be a farmer!"
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES OFFERED
CONTACT INFORMATION:
1. Training in Simplified and Commercial Hydroponics

2. Consultancy Services and installation of Urban Roof Top Hydroponic Gardens
3. Consultancy Services for Agronomy
4. Turnkey Installation of Commercial Hydroponics Greenhouses
5. Turnkey installation of Large scale Hydroponic Animal Fodder Systems (5-100 Tons/day)
6. Supply of world class Hydroponic Nutrients
7. Supply of Simplified Hydroponics Hobby Kits
8. Supply of Coco Peat for Commercial Growers (RHP Quality)
9. Supply and Installation of Simple Backyard Greenhouses
10. Water Analysis Facilities
102 Saptagiri Meadows, 24th Main

JP Nagar 5th Phase
Bangalore 560078
Karnataka State, India
Mobile: 00 91 99022 11684
00 91 78294 48677
E-mail: coo@petbharoproject.co.in
ceo@petbharoproject.co.in
urbanprojects@petbharoproject.co.in
editorial
Indian and Worldwide Manufacturers,

Distributors, Resellers and End-users of
Hydroponics Products,
In this issue of Soilless Gardening India you will read about the top five
reasons to grow indoors, learn to grow strawberries and tomatoes, and
stumble upon the latest news from leading manufacturers to the training of
farmers.
While we are committed to soilless gardening, we will not limit ourselves
to this field only. We will go beyond it; we will touch base with the world
of greenhouses, equipment, and existing expos through out the world.
However, as Indias very own industrial magazine, we ask you, the
readers, for both input and questions. Our goal is to help Indias new
industry grow quickly, and implement achievements from all over the
world. In doing so, we ask you to contact us with any questions whether
it be specific techniques, how tos, product information or even general
inquiries. We will answer your questions via e-mail and publish those that
are relevant in the June issue of Soilless Gardening India.
We hope you enjoy this months issue!
Aditya Chaudhary Publisher

publisher@soillessgardening-india.com
Sandesh Shingote Co-founder
editor@soillessgardening-india.com
Soilless Gardening India Magazine April'13 | C
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36
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Hydroponics,
Hydroponics,
Change
Change The
The way
way you
you grow
grow
an
an Agriculture
Agriculture Revolution
Revolution
by
by Plant
Plant Genome
Genome Sciences
Sciences
16
42
08
contents
Issue 02, April 2013
news&events
02 APRIL 2013 w w w. s o i l l e s s g a r d e n i n g - i n d i a . c o m
Dedicated to the Soilless Gardening Industry of India
HYDROPONICS,
CHANGE The WAY YOU GROW
an Agriculture Revolution
by Plant Genome Sciences
04
05
06
09
14
Grow Box Initiates the Release of the SuperStar by SuperCloset

Training in Hydroponics for Farmers
On a Revitalizing Note
Vertical Farms Growing in Urban Areas
A Kitchen Garden in Your Room
cover story
16
Hydroponics, Change the Way You Grow an Agriculture

Revolution by Plant Genome Sciences
read in this issue:
General Hydroponics pages
<Publisher:
Aditya Chaudhary
publisher@soillessgardening-india.com
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< Co-founder:
Sandesh Shingote
sandesh@soillessgardening-india.com
soilless technologies 101
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Mr. R Venkatesh
editor@soillessgardening-india.com
<Graphic design and prepress: PublishEast Ltd.
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webmaster@soillessgardening-india.com
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Hydroponics Herbs...It Hasn't All Gone to Pot

5 Reasons to Grow Indoors
Growing Tomatoes With HydroponicsThe Family Farm Way!
Growing Strawberries With Hydroponics
Horticulture Perlite and its Application in Hydroponics
<Representative:
Ms. Mona
support-asia@soillessgardening-india.com
questions & answers
<Technical Editor
Ms. Bekir
support@soillessgardening-india.com
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47
Printed & Published by Aditya
Printed at Puspak Printers

203-204, DSIDC Complex
Okhala Indusrial Area
New Delhi
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What is Aquaponics and What are its Benefits? Asked by Suraj

I Have a Small Hydroponic Rose Garden on My Terrace. My Roses Have
Black Spots and All the Leaves Have Fallen OffI Will Be Treating for
Black Spots This Weekend and Was Wondering if I Can Prune Again.
How far Down Should I Prune? Asked by Metro Farmer
What is Hydroponics Farming and How Does One Start Hydroponic
Farming? How Much Area and Investment is Required to Start? Asked
by Neeraj
Contact information:
Soilless Gardening India Magazine

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Advanced Nutrients
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GHE
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Greentech India
13,15 HydronponEast Expo

IFC
Hydroponic Greenhouse Technologies India private Ltd.

Soilless Gardening India Magazine April'13 | 3
news&events
PR Web | USA
Grow Box Initiates the Release of

the SuperStar by SuperCloset
The SuperStar boasts a complete
vegetative/flowering chamber that
holds up to 16 plants in two distinct
reservoirs that are ideal for growing
plants up to 3 feet tall. Utilizing the
patented SuperPonics watering
system, each reservoir can hold up
to 8 gallons of nutrient rich water and
is incredibly easy to maintain. The
SuperStar ships standard with a 150w
Full Spectrum High Pressure Sodium
lighting system that is perfect for
fruiting and flowering plants. The 150
watt lighting system is suspended by
a yo-yo system, allowing the lighting
system to always be positioned at
the ideal height above your plant's
canopy. The system can be upgraded
to the 250W lighting system that will
support both metal halide and highpressure sodium bulbs. In addition,
the air filtration system is complete
with a dual carbon filter system.
These carbon filters completely
negate any odor coming from the
grow box. Finally the SuperStar is
professionally assembled with every
component imaginable, nutrients,
timers, and growing medium. The
airflow in the SuperStar is top notch
and boasts No corner plants left
alone SuperCloset claims its the
only cabinet designed with real cross
airflow, properly air-cooled lights, and
internal circulation fan.
Go to http://www.supercloset.com for
more information about the SuperStar
and their other award winning grow
boxes and grow cabinet hydroponic
systems.
| Soilless Gardening India Magazine April'13
About SuperCloset:
SuperCloset takes the guesswork out of growing through
manufacturing the most innovative and customer friendly
hydroponic systems and turnkey grow box units. After 10
years SuperCloset continues to lead the horizontal and vertical
growing industry with its commitment to excellent products
and world-class customer service.

www.prweb.com
news&events
The Hindu | INDIA
Training in Hydroponics for

Farmers
About 100 proactive farmers
were trained on using
hydroponics to grow plants
with water as base, without soil
to grow fodder. Fodder grown in
about a month can be harvested
in seven days with much higher
protein content through this
technology, Head of the Krishi
Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Namakkal,
Dr. B. Mohan told The Hindu.
Technology
The programme was organized
by the KVK and a Maharashtrabased private firm that is
promoting the technology. He
said that this technology has
been successfully put to use
by the University of Agricultural
Sciences Dharwad, Karnataka.
In Tamil Nadu a farmer in
Chennai has implemented it to
produce fodder for his goats.
Hydroponics retains 21 percent
protein in fodder unlike protein loss
(due to dissolving in sunlight) when
it is grown in the field. It takes
more than eight months for a goat
to reach full weight but protein-rich
fodder grown hydroponically helps
goats reach the same weight in
about four months. This is a boon
for farmers who have very small
space to reap big returns quicker,
Dr. Mohan added.
P.B. Upase who heads the Sales
and Marketing division of a firm
that is promoting
this technology said
that a kilogram of
seed can produce
eight kilos of fodder
is seven days using
this technology.
He said that only
about 250 sq.
ft. is required to
grow a tonne of
fodder every day,
irrespective of
changes in the
climatic conditions.
of greens and vegetables for

human consumption.
Seven racks
The setup has seven racks
one for each day. The track
in the lowest level is taken to
the next on the following day
to facilitate growth with the
conditions that support it on
that day in that level. It has
sprinklers to water the plants
and maintain the temperature
at 24 degree Celsius, UV lights
and machines to dispense
carbon dioxide and ozone.
A kilogram of seed requires
about 80 litres of water to
grow in soil. But hydroponics
requires only two to three litres
in seven days. It is ideal for
areas deprived of rainfall and
very poor groundwater sources.
With a few modifications the
machine could also be used
to cultivate a few varieties
Handling the technology is

also easier and cost effective
compared to the traditional
mode of growing fodder. One
labourer can harvest one tonne
in two hours every day, and it
can be directly used to feed
cattle. This fodder can be used
as 75 percent of the feed of
goats and cows to gain weight
and to yield more milk that is
thicker and of better quality,
cost efficiently, he noted.
Zonal Project Director of the
Indian Council of Agricultural
Research Dr. S. Prabhu
Kumar, Head of the KVK in
the University of Dharwad Dr.
Jitendrakumar Jilli, Dr. Mohan
and Mr. Upase addressed
farmers and also clarified their
queries.

www.thehindu.com
news&events
The Hindu | INDIA
On a Revitalizing Note
Armed with an alternative

farming method that cuts
down on water consumption
and costs, farmers in
Haryanas Karnal district
are enhancing productivity
Farmers in Haryana have started
looking for a way to check the
ever increasing rate of lowering
of the groundwater table. For
this they are adopting not only
a new, less water requiring way
of growing paddy but are also
showing interest in exploring less
water-consuming alternatives
that could possibly replace
paddy.
Kalvehri village is only eight
km from its district headquarter
Karnal. The village comprises
nearly a thousand households, of
which around 60 per cent do not
own cultivable land. They work
as agricultural labourer either
within the village or in nearby
villages. Or else they go out to
adjoining cities and towns to
earn their daily wages. Around
one-third of the households own
land ranging from half an acre
to five acres and around five
per cent households own lands
ranging 30 acres and above.
Previously, the land in the village
was water-logged; farmers recall
how the water was pumped
out carrying it away through
canals. Dr. Baldev Raj Kamboj,
in-charge, Haryana Hub, Cereal

Systems Initiative for South
Asia (CSISA) housed in Central
Soil Salinity Research Institute,
Karnal, explains that paddy was
the only crop that could be grown
in the given situation and thus
it found favour with farmers. He
adds that because of excess
water at the time of harvesting
paddy crop, the sowing of wheat
gets delayed often. This affects
wheat productivity and farmers
income.
The farmers admit that they
took advantage of abundant
water and expanded the paddy
cultivation. But with consequent
lowering of water tables, they
had to go in for tube-wells. With
the increase in the number of
tube-wells and their runninghours, groundwater level went
further down. Today the level
has gone down to 250 feet.
Worried at the declining water
level and spike in cost of
production, the farmers started
participating in meetings held at
Karnal to discuss the problems
emerging in agriculture.
Agricultural scientists told them
that the crisis was mainly due
to deteriorating soil health and
that they needed to follow zerotill farming method. The farmers
were advised to leave residue
from previous crop within the
field. To combat the problem of
lowering water table, they were

asked to bring changes in paddywheat production cycle.
When a young farmer Harpreet
Singh decided to try out the
suggested method, he found that
the fellow farmers were unwilling
to join him and even ridiculed his
decision. Earlier, Harpreet, like
other farmers of the area, used
the method of deep ploughing
and puddling in standing water
for preparing paddy fields. For
wheat and other crops also, they
practised deep ploughing as
they considered it good for the
soil health. They also felt that it
would help in controlling harmful
insects and weeds.
Shifting from the age-old method,
Harpreet instead of removing
and burning the crop residue
started leaving it in the field.
He stopped ploughing the field;
got his fields laser-levelled to
check the water ponding in any
part of the fields; started placing
seeds and fertiliser in his crop
residue-carrying fields with
the help of specially designed
Happy Seeder. In adopting
this new method, the soil was
least disturbed that helped in
modifying soil structure and
would go a long way in improving
soil health.
Earlier Harpreet had to irrigate
his paddy fields for a total
news&events
of 32 hours whereas now he

can manage it with 21 hours.
Tensiometers are installed
in his fields that provide
details on timing and amount
of irrigation to further bring
precision in water application.
He did not raise nursery for
paddy transplantation but
went for direct seeded rice.
He used weedicides and
insecticides/pesticides for
controlling weeds and insects/
pests. He understands that
with improvement in soil health
there would be lesser need of
fertiliser and residue, mulch
and permanent crop cover
would help in controlling weeds
thereby eventually reducing the
herbicide use to the minimum.
In agriculture a major difficulty in
raising crop and getting potential
production is the availability
of proper growing period with
appropriate temperature and
other climatic conditions so as
to carry out timely agricultural
operations. Farmers are
now contemplating that after
harvesting wheat if they plan for
maize instead of paddy, they
may get additional 40 days of
growing period in which they
can possibly take pulses and
vegetables. This may help them
come out of the wheat-paddy
cycle and help them introduce
crop rotation which is a must for
maintaining soil productivity.
Farmers following conventional

agriculture are also getting
attracted towards this new
method in view of reduced cost
on ploughing and irrigation and
they can foresee reduction in
cost on fertilizers and chemicals
progressively with improvement
in soil health and productivity.
The change in farmers
perception was expressed by
farmer Raj Kumar, Because
of programs like MGNREGA,
the in-migration of labour has
become uncertain. Thus farmers
see their future in this new way
of doing agriculture.
Farmers realized the significance
of Harpreets efforts when the
State Agricultural Secretary,

Haryana, visited his fields and
appreciated his hard work. The
State government awarded him
for initiating the much-needed
changes in agriculture.
Confronted by myriad problems
in carrying out agriculture,
farmers appreciate the
necessity of support from the
agricultural scientific community.
Dr. Kamboj, who is playing
a proactive role in bringing
changes in agricultural trend
among Haryana farmers,
emphasises on the need for
agricultural scientists to work
closely with farmers to bring
desired changes in agriculture.
news&events
Vertical Farms
Growing in Urban Areas
ertical farms are highly

automated farming
complexes placed within
specially constructed multi-story
buildings. Similar multi-leveled
farms are supposed to be built
in the downtown areas of big
cities to provide citizens with
tested and diverse food. They
might also serve as a living
decoration for the city (that is
why their design is not the last
priority on the list), will raise
urban resilience rate and what
is most important of all would
normalize eco-systems damaged
by agriculture.
What causes the necessity
of such farms? The Earth
population (as for October 31,
2011) is around 7 billion people.
It is believed that in the following
50 years this number may rise
to 10 billion. To feed such a
"crowd" (taking into consideration
that around 80% of cultivated
land are in use and of these
15% are severely damaged by
decades of barbarous agriculture
methods) is a task of extreme
difficulty. In that sense the
future lack of territory suitable
for agriculture forces people to
consider other ways. One of
the ways is to move agriculture
into cities and this includes
building vertical farms that must
be effective and at the same
time sustainable and have small
construction costs.
The advantages of
vertical farms:
The logistical costs and

atmosphere emissions are
considerably lowered.
1) They turn the cities into foodgrowing centers, allowing to use

urban conditions, that before
were not suitable for such a task.
8) They may introduce new jobs

in the cities.
2) The sun and wind as

energy sources would provide
independence in terms of energy.
9) The possibility of placing green

gardens, vertical hydroponic
and aeroponic batches for plant
and cereals growing, fish-pools,
animal farms.
3) They are independent systems

of water collection and purifying,
2 and waste recycling, which
also use biomass energy.
4) They are flexible structures with
the ability to install extra modules.
5) They represent the possibility
to gather crops all the year
around. The products are
ecologically friendly (without
herbicides, pesticides and
fertilizers). The cases of the
loss of crops due to weather
instability, draughts, floods,
pests are not possible. The
threat of some infectious
diseases common for agriculture
is considerably lowered.
10) This farms can stabilize the

economic crisis in the third world
countries.
11) It can release the
considerable area of land, that
can be restored as forests, that
will in turn considerably lower
2 levels in the atmosphere.
Vertical Farms and
Hybrid-Buildings
Projects:
Today there are several projects
of vertical farms from which we
can review the following:
Plantagon Vertical Farm
6) Treatment of plants and

animals becomes easier as
well as crops gathering, quality
control and supervising of
biological safety of products.
This project developed by

Swedish-American company
Plantagon is a spherical dome
that has a spiral platform inside
on which the plants are grown.
7) The usage of agricultural

machinery is out of question.
According to Plantagon's
statement, this farm allows to
news&events
set-up an eco-friendly production

with clean air and water inside
the city, that will cut expenses
and pollution, will provide
shipping of food directly to
the consumer and exclude the
transportation. According to the
calculation of its constructors,
the effectiveness and the
productivity of Plantagon will
add to its self-financing due to
sales of products produced in it.
The launch of the first vertical
farm is planned in the next three
years.
The project is supposed to have

132 floors and 28 fields for
growing cereals, vegetables and
fruits, also a milking farm and
a meat farm are planned. The
building will use the energy of
the sun and wind. The architects
provided place for flats, offices
and laboratories as well.
Circular Symbiosis
Tower Vertical Farm
Dragonfly Vertical
Farm
This project was proposed by

South Korean architects Lee
Dongjin, Park Jinkyu and Lee
Jeongwoo. It is supposed to be a
part of a skyline for future cities.
The person behind the project

is a Belgian architect Vincent
Callebaut. The farm was named
Dragonfly because of its shape.
The giant dragonfly wings closed
together with the height of 600
meters. The construction site
will be on the Roosevelt Island,
which is located in the central
part of New-York.
This skyscraper is made of

platforms, placed as a spiral
around the constituting nucleus
of the building. The platforms are
designed for growing plants for
cattle and cows are supposed to
roam there freely. It is planned
that bigger animals for the first
30 days abide on the first level
(cows and horses prefer the
news&events
upper parts of the plants), then it

is transferred to the next level and
the first level being filled by smaller
cattle (sheep can eat the plants
down to the root). This building
also eliminates the problem of the
necessity of shepherds presence.
This project is a winner of 2011
Skyscraper Competition.
Living Tower Vertical
Farm
This project was developed be Paris
studio SOA architects. This is 30
stories high hybrid-building, that
besides gardens situated on each
of the floors accommodate 130
flats on first 15 floors, 9,000 square
meters of offices, a trade center with
a territory of 7,000 square meters
a library and even a daycare. It is
planned to install two wind-powered
turbines on the roof of a complex
and solar panels on the walls.
The architects propose to grow the
following types of plants: tomatoes
with a supposed value of 63000
kilograms a year, garden strawberry
(9,324 kilograms a year), salad
(20,000 kilograms a year).
10
news&events
uses the electricity produced

be sun-panels of a hybridbuilding, vegetables for sale
that were grown there on
hydroponic and aeroponic
systems and rain-water
collected from the roof of a
building.
The parts of the building are
curved in a special way, to
create several huge perimeters
that would be accessible for
sun and wind. For additional
illumination the used oil is
supposed to fuel the engine,
which would produce energy
for luminous lamps.
R4 Apartments HighRise Farm-House
For creating this project
Singaporean Surbana
International Consultants
company received the main prize
Skyrise Greenery Awards 2010
awarded for creating eco-friendly
buildings, as well as Skyrise
Greenery Awards a prize for
achievements in the so-called
Green-Construction provided
by the Singaporean University of
Architecture.
R4 Appartaments is a hybrid
building project accommodating
a house-section and a vertical
farm. It is planned to be
constructed near the typical area
for Singapore where BusinessBuildings are situated near
houses. In this type of system
the house-section receives
heat from Business-Center
and fertilize the vegetables
with a compost acquired after
decomposition of food waste,
and Business-Center in turn
news&events
Pyramid Vertical Farm

The persons behind the project
are professors of the Columbian
University (US) Eric Ellingsen
and Dickson Dessompier. This is
a full-circle ecosystem capable
of producing even poultry and
fish, and at the same time re-use
its own waste. The Pyramid
farm includes the system for
controlling air-pressure and
warmth, which creates clean
water and nitrogen out of the
waste-dump for powering the
equipment and lighting.
Is there anything that is not
captured by human imagination!?
Lately the majority of cities
are suffering from the lack of
green areas. The last remaining
trees and flower-beds are being
replaced by more profitable

parking lots and terraces. Our
cities are being poisoned with
exhaust gas and smog to such
extent, that people simply lack
air It is not a wonder that
large cities are facing a new
phenomenon called realization
(the migration from urban
areas into the countryside).
The appearance of innovative
projects like the ones weve
mentioned brings some hope
for the cities. We hope that
those projects would make
the cities look more alive.
Also, it is important that those
projects wouldnt become some
extravagant artifacts attracting
tourists, but will represent
successful and profitable
projects, fulfilling all tasks. Well,
we shall see!

Sources: www.ru.wikipedia.org | www.verticalfarm.ru | www.terion.info
12
Expo center Tishinka, Tishinskaya square, house number 1, building 1
Expo Subject:
Flowers and Hydroponics

Leading HYDROPONIC Companies
Meet in Moscow, Russia!
Visit http://hydroponeast.com/en/ for more details
news&events
The Times of India | INDIA
A Kitchen Garden in Your Room
kitchen garden inside

your room? Yes,
that's what the new
concept of 'vertical
landless farming'
promises where you can grow
tomatoes, chillies and small
plants inside rooms and
without any hassles too.
New York-based Britta Riley, a
woman artist and technologist
has devised this system for
people living in apartments.
Using discarded plastic bottles
to grow plants, Riley claims her
technology can produce over
25 kinds of in-house plants.
The garden set up was
demonstrated at Deutsche
Bank pavilion at the ongoing
Indo-German Urban Mela (fair)
in Indraprastha Park in Delhi.
The device is attracting many
curious visitors.
"It is called the window farms
hydroponic farming system,"
a volunteer said while
showcasing the system.
The plastic bottles have clay
balls inside which help the
plants stand erect. The bottles,
one placed on top of the
other, are housed in a long
transparent plastic container
with a tall 'reservoir' at the
bottom. The reservoir is filled
14
with water mixed with liquid

nutrients for the plants, and
tubes leading from it connect
to the plastic bottles containing
the plants.
A pump periodically shoots up
the water from the reservoir,
which then trickles down from
bottle-to-bottle bathing the
roots along the way. Water and
nutrients that are not absorbed
collect in the reservoir and are
pumped through again at the
next cycle.
Once you sow the seeds it
takes one to two weeks to turn
into plants, the volunteer said.
For imitating sunlight, red, green

and blue bulbs used in aquariums
are placed around the setup.
The system is useful for people
who would like to grow their own
vegetables, the volunteer said.
It is a low-cost system that allows
city dwellers to grow vegetable
and other plants in a typical
apartment window year-round,
said the volunteer.
The Deutsche Bank pavilion
has introduced other interesting
systems too like a Solar
Impulse Aircraft that uses solar
energy to fly.
Expo center Tishinka, Tishinskaya square, house number 1, building 1
Expo Subject:
Flowers and Hydroponics
Leading HYDROPONIC Companies

Meet in Moscow, Russia!
The ONLY
HYDROPONICS expo
in Russia
The venue of local
and international
hydroponic and
hydroponics
flower gardening
companies
The meeting place
for hydroponic
enthusiasts
from Russia and CIS
countries.
HydroponEast Expo is the only specialized event in

Russia and CIS countries, which attracts numerous
local and international companies active in the field
of hydroponics supplies, solutions and growing.
Thousands of industry experts as well as hydroponic
enthusiasts visit the expo.
HydroponEast Expos are:
an excellent platform to network with industry peers
a venue to meet local buyers and international
suppliers of hydroponic equipment and products
a place to learn about new products as well as
growing techniques and methods
a useful marketing and educational tool
a place to meet and interact with industry experts.
Visit http://hydroponeast.com/en/ for more details
cover story
Hydroponics,
change the way
you grow
ydroponics
is simply
growing plants
without soil.
In a typical
hydroponic system, the plant
roots are immersed in a nutrientrich solution or the solution
continually flows past the
roots. This nutrient solution
is comprised of a precise mix
of water soluble fertilizers
that provide a balanced diet
of elements to the plants.
Hydroponic systems may be
as simple as a glass of water
filled with pebbles and water
containing fertilizer or as
complex as a large greenhouse
structure containing beds of clay
pellets/troughs filled with medium
like Coco peat, Rockwool or
Perlite that are periodically
supplied with nutrient solution.
Hydroponic methods are known
for producing very high quality
crops in high volume. Plant
Genome Sciences encourages
farmers to take up this smarter
way of cultivation which
significantly increases crop
yield compared to conventional
cultivation practice.
16
Plant Genome Sciences Pvt.

Ltd is a supplier of Advanced
Nutrients, Canada products
and aims to be a leading Asian
marketer of plant nutrients,
hydroponics equipment,
soil conditioning agents and
greenhouse structures. The
Indian division is set up with
a vision to provide quality
plant nutrients, innovative
technological know-how and allinclusive end-to-end solutions to
the evolving agriculture industry
in Asia, Africa and the Middle
East. Our company believes
that research, development and
application of knowledge will
assist, enhance and sustain our
agricultural industries and protect
our environment. As pioneers
in the field of hydroponics, the
products are developed through
extensive and rigorous testing
by our team of world-class
research scientists. Our products
are specifically engineered and
formulated to work based on
plants genetic make-up, and we
are one of the few companies
who can completely understand
and comprehend the need for
high-yielding and fast-growing
plants. Our team of scientists in

plant nutrition and soil science
has manufactured the finest
line of organic fertilizers and
soil conditioning agents that
improve plant nutrient uptake,
organic beneficial bacteria's that
restore the natural balance of
soil, and rooting and flowering
formulas that will never harm the
environment.
We are committed to bringing
a revolution in the field of
agriculture in India through
innovative and scientific
techniques like hydroponics
and technologically advanced
hydroponic equipment and
supplies.
India with its diverse ecological
conditions is one of the
largest producers of fruits and
vegetables. Still, agriculture in
the growing region faces the
daunting task of reducing the
mounting demand supply gap
and significantly improving
productivity. You see there are
major problems with the Indian
AG industry. Traditional farming
techniques that are being still
cover story
an Agriculture
Revolution by Plant
Genome Sciences
used here today (i.e. a bull
to pull the tiller, seeding and
fertilizing acres by hand, relying
on the elements for adequate
light and nutrients, etc.) and the
burden on traditional farmers
has become too great.
We are for innovative,
sustainable agricultural
practices that establish four
key components for modern
AG: farm efficiency, food
safety, food security, and
environmental sustainability.
receive greater output per square

meter, use less water, land,
and energy, and have a higher
crop turnover for higher ROI
and more money in his pocket.
Our aim is to encourage farmers
to adopt new crop varieties,
efficient agricultural practices &
technology adoption, become an
integral part in the restructuring
of the Asian, Middle Eastern &
Global Agricultural Industry by
removing the burden on farmers

through focus on reshaping
traditional farming practices by
infusing life into the industry
through hydroponics farming and
utilization of new technology.
The Team has leveraged their
expertise and experience to
provide the AG industry with
leadership, innovation and
cutting edge technology.
This is a system ready for a

change. Our hope is to use
our brand, products, and
technologies to provide enough
education and information to
create a shift in the mind-set
of the traditional farmers; to
change into commercially viable
methods of growing crops; more
economical, efficient and with
a guaranteed return of profits.
Hydroponics & Aeroponics
are the answer for India. We
call it Controlled Environment
Agriculture because a farmer
can grow food at a fractional
cost to traditional farming,
cover story
Strengths
Industry Firsts
We are the Hydroponics

industries thought leader
and innovator
20 years of experience
in hydroponics products and
services
Global presence with
manufacturing in US, Canada,
Bulgaria & soon in India
International distribution
with products available in
70+ countries
Proprietary blends of
quality micro and macro
nutrients, amino acids,
hormones, expensive
chelates, plant growth
regulators, vitamins,
enzymes, yeast, yeast
extracts, organics,
carbohydrates, microbes,
beneficial bacteria and
beneficial fungi
First to do testing on the types of plants you grow and in the types of
gardens you grow in.
First and still the only Hydroponics company to have an all-out real
PhD staffed research team with well over 30 scientists
First to develop and deploy a self-adjusting pH line of base nutrients and
supplements farmers wont have to balance or adjust nutrients pH ever again
First to invent and use beneficial microbes to balance and maintain pH
First to use 100% chelated micronutrients giving farmers full protection
over an ultra-wide pH range
First to use chelated macro nutrients
First to use a new class of pH buffering technologies
First to invent pH activated and balancing molecular technologies
First to do daily tissue samples in relevant garden settings
First to create patented engineered fertilizer programs
First to give you beneficial bacteria and fungi
First to use standardized reverse osmosis water tuning in all
manufacturing facilities and labs.
pH-Perfect Technology: No More Balancing Your pH And PPM Ever Again!
Proven Bigger Yields
Potent, Easy Mix & Use Formulas
New, Powerful, Flower Blooming Formulas
Formulas That Work Together For Your Biggest Yields
A Driving Push That Flowers Your Plants To Their True Genetic Potential
18
cover story
Our Company & Fertilizer

Technology
Our mix of products and services are unmatched in India. Plant
Genome Sciences Pvt Ltd. is based in Mumbai, India. But, our
global network across the US, Canada, Europe and Eastern
Europe affords us the flexibility to provide end to end solutions.
We can lead Indian hydroponics industry into a new era with
cooperation from the US, Canada and India on a level that is
unmatched.
cover story
Future of Hydroponics in India

Hydroponics is fairly a novel
farming technology for
Indian farmers. It is a flexible
technology, apt for both
developing countries, like India,
and high-tech space stations.
Hydroponic technology efficiently
generates crops in desert,
infertile lands, in mountainous
regions, on city rooftops and
concrete schoolyards. In
highly populated areas, where
skyrocketing land prices have
evicted traditional agriculture,
hydroponics can provide locally
grown high-value crops such
as fresh salad greens, herbs
and cut flowers. This technique
is also ideal for growing wide
range of plants especially fruit
bearing crops, such as tomatoes,
cucumbers, peppers and leafy
vegetables.
Like manufacturing, agriculture
tends to move toward highertechnology, more capitalintensive solutions to problems.
Hydroponics is highly productive
and fit for automation.
20
The economic prospects for

hydroponics CEA may improve
if governmental bodies are
determined that there are desirable
effects of hydroponics that merit
subsidy for the public good. Such
beneficial effects may include the
conservation of water in regions
of scarcity or food production in
antagonistic environments.
This technique can be used
anywhere in all agro-climatic
zones, and hydroponic fruits
and vegetables have higher
nutritional value and tastes
better than soil grown crops.
If optimum growing conditions
and nutritional requirements are
applied, combined with effective
horticultural management, this
agriculture system can offer
alternative means of food
production. For popularization of
hydroponics in our country, it is
very important to provide scientific
proven technology of hydroponics
to gardeners and create mass
awareness in potential areas at
national level.
See how Advanced Nutrients can help you:
GROW. BIGGER. FASTER.
B
r
e
u
d
g
s
g
i
B ger Yields
g
i
B
Visit advancednutrients.com/ph-perfect to
find the most scientifically advanced nutrients
and hardware on the planet. Whatever you need
to take your growing to the next level, weve
researched and developed it to run laps around
the industry standard.
General Hydroponics pages
Hydroponics,
what can you grow?

Herbs and Salads
Noucetta Kehdi GHE
his is why, especially

in hydroponics where
growth is faster, good
nutrition and adequate
temperature, humidity,
ventilation, and luminosity in
the right proportions, will help
you obtain healthy plants. In
the event of instability of these
factors, pests and disease will
attack your crops: aphids, thrips,
caterpillars, etc. Also, quite
common in lettuce production, is
mildew due to high dampness,
and tip burns, due to deficiency
of calcium transport in the plant.
So again good aeration and
proper temperature and humidity
will help you avoid a wide range
of problems.
Hydroponics family and
community farms are developing
everywhere, in cities and
countryside. Home growing is
rapidly developing too. Auto
production is becoming a good
alternative for gardeners who
like to know where their food
is coming from, what is in it,
22
Genovese basil in a small urban garden
and how fresh it is. Knowing that

lettuce is listed among the dirty
dozen list of fruit and vegetables
with the highest pesticide residues
in them, there is nothing that beats
picking your own home grown fresh
greens, and designing your own
salad mixes just before sitting at
the dinner table!
Hydroponics exists in the

Russian Federation since many
years now. The first operations
used NFT systems, but not all
were successful. We visited a
few of them in the Perm area,
some with important setbacks.
They badly needed technical
expertise. We offered them
aero-hydroponics and the AeroFlos, we guided

and advised them until they reached high yields
and vigorous crops. Indeed General Hydroponics
was founded in California in 1976. For more
than 30 years we studied and researched plant
nutrition and all methods of hydroponics growing
systems. In our greenhouses we grew more than
600 different varieties of plants (see youtube.
com visit the GHE greenhouse). Our product
line is sold in Russia since 2005. With the help
of Floragrow (http://www.floragrow.ru) e obtained
official registration and authorization for Flora
Series, the only high-tech nutrient to be authorized
in the Federation.
Herb garden in an AquaFarm
Today we are happy to assist you with your family
farm and urban garden projects, and to guide
you towards complete success. We will also use
these pages in Hydroponeast to regularly offer you
plant growth recipes for different types of crops.
For all question, comment or information, contact
Floragrow at: support@floragrow.ru or contact
GHE directly at tech@eurohydro.com.
Young butterhead lettuce in an AeroFlo
Flora Series is the only high-tech nutrient to be

authorized for sale in the Russian Federation
Hydroponics
Herbs...
Hydroponics.com | CANADA
work a lot of trade shows

demonstrating hydroponic
equipment and growing
methods for the general
public. Though I have
a wonderful array of fresh
herbs, flowers and vegetables
flourishing in hydroponic
gardens, inevitably people will
approach me with a nudge and
a wink and whisper "that's what
they use to grow marijuana...
isnt it?" Well yes, I've heard
rumors! I'm sure when Health
Minister Allan Rock issued a
call to all pot growers to send
in their resumes for trials that
could lead to the legalization
of marijuana for medical
purposes all the applicants
will be growing hydroponically.
Those pot growers must know
something!
Hydroponics from the Latin
'water working', is simply
growing plants without soil. As
far back as the ancient Hanging
Gardens of Babylon herbs have
been grown hydroponically. In
fact, Canada is second only
to Holland for commercial
glasshouse hydroponic food
production. A large percentage
24
of the vegetables and herbs

available at your supermarket
have been grown hydroponically.
Farmers have opted for this
horticulture technique because
they are able to obtain a much
higher yield per square foot
and plants are healthier and
therefore resistant to diseases
and pests.
All minerals that a plant
requires for growth are
absorbed by the plant's root
system directly from the
nutrient solution in a hydroponic
garden. All the elements in the
solution are used, eliminating
waste. In soil, bacteria have
to break down the dirt into
basic elements of nitrogen,
phosphorous and potassium
as well as trace elements. Soil
loses it's nutritional value very
quickly.
In hydroponics natural
preventative pest control
is encouraged. Introducing
predator insects into the healthy
garden before the possibility
of infestation ensurese a pest
free crop, making insecticides
unnecessary.
Companion planting is also

promoted, especially when
growing outdoors. One
hydroponic garden is able to
support many different varieties
of plants at a time. Some
plants protect each other from
insect infestations while others
provide shad for their friends.
Still others just like each
other and grow better if they
are neighbours. For example,
coriander Coriandrum sativum
and anise Pimpinella anisum
are good friends but they don't
get along well with fennel
Foeniculum vulgare.
A study conducted by Plant
Research Technologies Inc., an
independent analytical laboratory
in California, recently reported
a dramatic increase in both the
vitamin and mineral content of
hydroponic versus soil-grown
produce. Through years of
research determining which
elements and their combinations
affect plant growth, scientists
have perfected hydroponic
formulas. This has allowed
for greater control over plant
nutrition and therefore increased
production.
It Hasn't All Gone to Pot
Soilless cultivation
of medicinal and
culinary herbs has
proven very successful
commercially. It offers
the capacity to provide
optimal conditions
for plant growth and
development, and thus
to obtain high-quality,
ecologically clean
medicinal matter. .
The National Academy
of Sciences of the
Republic of America
determined in a
recent study that the
biologically active
compounds and yeilds
were significantly
higher in most plants
grown hydroponically.
The study was
conducted in open-air
hydroponics, under
climatic conditions of
Ararat Valley, Armenia.
26
Species
Medical
matter
Technique of
Cultivation
Harvest
t/ha
Content of biologically
active compounds, %
Aloe
Aloe arborescens
Fresh
shoots
Hydroponics
100120
Soil
Hydroponics
3040
120
Soil
Hydroponics
2540
160
Anthraglycosides
1.13
1.16
Solasodin
1.17
1.16
Tanning matter, catechin
267 mg %
245 mg %
Cumulative alkaloids
1.2
0.50.9
Cumulative flavonoides
1.32
0.74
Extractive matters
46.1
43.7
Cumulative flavooides
0.66
0.57
Morphine
0.73
0.63
Essential oil
0.41
0.23
Nightshade
Fresh
Solanum lacinatum shoots
Kalanchoe
Fresh
Kalanchoe pinnata shoots
Cathrantus
Catharantus
roseus
Dry shoots
Soil
Hydroponics
59
5.0
Motherwort
Leonurus
quinquelobatus
Dry shoots
Soil
Hydroponics
1.151.7
3.54
Java tea
Orthosiphon
stamineus
Dry shoots
Soil
Hydroponics
2.03.0
8.9
Bur marigold
Bidens tripartite
Dry shoots
Soil
Hydroponics
1.0
85105
Soil
Hydroponics
6070
1.6-1.8
Soil
Hydroponics
0.7
2.5
Soil
1.2
Opium poppy
Papaver
somniferum
Boll with
seeds
Valerian
Dry root
Valeriana officinalis
A similar study was conducted

on the quality and productivity of
essential oils. The rose geranium
Pelagronium roseum was among
the valuable aromatic plants
that were cultivated in Armenia.
Yields of 117138 tonnes of
geranium green material and
137149 kg. of essential oil
can be obtained from a single
hectare of hydroponic surface
with balanced hydroponic
plant food. By contrast the
soil crop gave figures of 21
tons per hectare and 23 kg/ha
respectively.
Many schools are teaching
and growing hydroponically.
Children enjoy setting up and
maintaining their gardens. They
find it very rewarding bringing
a plant to life and nurturing it to
maturity. Unfortunately, children
are out of school during most
of our outdoor growing season.
Hydroponics indoors, provides
the perfect opportunity for kids
to learn about plant growth and
development.
Hydroponic gardening indoors

has become very popular with
home hobbyists for both culinary
and medicinal herb cultivation.
The gardener virtually controls
the environment simulating ideal
growing conditions. Each plant
receives exactly what it requires
for optimal growth. Lighting,
nutrition, temperature, air
quality, pH can all be controlled
by you, the grower.
Not long ago it was very
difficult to achieve satisfactory
results growing indoors.
Fluorescent tubes were the
only supplemental light source
available and did not supply
an adequate amount of light
for plant growth. Technological
breakthrough and scientific
research have shed bright
light on indoor horticulture by
producing the metal halide
lamp. Reasonably priced, the
metal halide lamp simulates
sunlight for strong, healthy
vegetative growth.
The delicate fragrance and

soft textures of an attractive
hydroponic herb garden will
bring charm and grace to any
location. A sunny window with
a southern or western exposure
should make it possible to grow
a satisfactory crop. However,
using supplemental metal halide
lights will speed growth, enhance
flavor, color and fragrance.
Easily grown and maintained,
hydroponics is the perfect
environment for herbs to flourish
indoors. You will be delighted
with the results and simplicity of
hydroponic gardening.
To start your seedlings use a
basic nursery tray and dome
with inexpensive rock wool
starter cubes, available at any
hydroponic retail outlet. Cover
and keep in a dark, warm place
until seedlings appear. Place
in a sunny window or under
fluorescent lights until the
secondary leaves form. They are
now ready to transplant into your
hydroponic garden.
The most common method used

for windowsills and small areas
is deep-water culture. Seedlings
are inserted into a mesh basket
filled with a growing medium
such as clay pellets. The plant
roots are suspended over a
container filled with nutrient
solution and a small aquarium
air pump provides oxygen to the
root system. For larger scale
herb production ebb and flow
trots are ideal. Mesh pots or rock
wool cubes are used to anchor
plants on a ribbed plastic tray.
The tray is then flooded with
nutrient solution from a reservoir
and immediately drained back
into the reservoir. This is done 2
or 34 times a day. This system
makes it easy to cultivate many
plants in minimal space.
28
Premixed nutrient concentrate

provides the exact balance of
required minerals, just add the
recommended amount to the
container of water. Solutions are
topped up for about 30 days then
replaced because the plants use
nutrition in different proportions.
A hydroponic garden can

produce an impressive number
of herbs in a very small area.
Salad greens can be added to
your garden for a fresh harvest
all year long. There is no
backbreaking weeding or tilling
and no pesticides.
In hydroponics it is necessary
to determine the pH or acidity
of your solution. This is easily
accomplished by adding a drop
of tester to 2 ml of solution and
checking the colour against
a chart. Desirable readings
range from 5.5 to 6.5. pH
may be easily adjusted up or
down to achieve the desired
reading. These products are
inexpensive and available at
retail hydroponic stores.
A wonderful book, which is an

easy stem-by stem guide to
hydroponics, is:
Hydroponics for the Home
Gardener by Stewart Kenyon.
Mr. Kenyon has an entire chapter
dedicated to recipes using herbs,
contributed by chefs who use
hydroponic systems in their
kitchens.

www.hydroponics.com
Directory of companies working in the field of hydroponics Your guide to find partners.
Please send your order to : sales@hydroponeast.com
5 Reasons to
Grow Indoors
ardening is migrating.
What does this mean?
In short, that the future
of gardening will look
far different from the
gardening world of today. Fewer
and fewer people will grow their
food outdoors, more opting to be
the masters of their food supply
using controlled indoor gardens.
Our gardens are on the move.
Every year the world population
increases. And every year the
quality of our food seems to go
down, while the prices steadily
rise. This puts the average
person in a precarious position
and to feed his family, he must
get creative. Hell go comparison
shopping, hell avoid grocery
stores in favor of farmers
markets, or hell wait for bargain
sales. As always, there will be
a percentage of people in the
future who decide to take matters
into their own hands and will
grow their own foods as a way to
avoid the bigger expenses of the
grocery store.
And these entrepreneurial
types are more likely to grow
indoors. Why? In short, its
more efficient and effective.
With more people growing
30
indoors its natural for people

to start learning more about
gardening and figuring out what
works best for them. The smart
people will figure out that they will
only be able to grow outdoors(and
save money on food) during the
summer months. The savvy ones
will rapidly realize they must find
another way. And the sharpest of
the bunch will realize that growing
indoors is the best choice for
these five reasons:
You can grow all

year round
There is no rain, wind, or snow
to hinder your gardening. Indoor
growing allows you to control all the
elements and grow your plants 365
days a year if you decide to do so.
Money saved
The great benefit of growing your
own is that you won't be at the
mercy of rising food costs. You can
produce what you need to eat and
you can even get in on the action
and provide food for you neighbors,
and make some money selling food
to them at the same time.
Choice
You can choose all the
different varieties and favorite
vegetables and fruits you
like. You can grow some
strawberries, tomatoes,
etc. No longer will you be
limited to the choices of big
agriculture. (Hint: they often
pick the cheapest to produce
varieties, which are rarely the
most delicious) Its exciting to
see all the possibilities.
Excitement
For those who never thought
gardening could be exciting I
ask you to give it a try. Youll
be hooked. Especially once
you see how things grow
and change. And when you
harness the suns energy
and rays to create food youll
feel an immense satisfaction.
Doing it yourself is much
cooler than going to the store
and handing cash over the
register. Thats just too easy!
Quality
As you grow your own
fruits and vegetables and
having the control on all the
elements youll know 100%
that they wont be poisoned
by pesticides or herbicides.
Its completely clean and
fresh because youll control
what goes into your plants..
This one point alone makes
it worth it to grow your
own food. Because CEOs,
shareholders, and WallStreet often drive agricultural
companies to chase evershrinking profits, and this
means that the end-product(your

food) is compromised. We are
the ones who have to eat this
food, and knowing what was put
in it during the whole growing
process gives you peace of mind.
So start the process now of
creating a space in your home
to grow indoors. Do a little bit of
reading, and youll discover there
are resources everywhere on
how to grow indoors. Good luck!
About Global
Garden Friends
Global Garden Friends is a
company dedicated to creating
uniform, organized, and optimal
gardening systems that works
WITH your plants, not against
them. Global Garden Friends is
a young company incorporated
in 2009 but is full of potential
and possibilities. Their first and
flagship product is the Ultimate
Plant Cage. Their latest hot
seller is the Ultimate Plant Clip.
Let the good times grow!

Site: www.globalgardenfriends.com

Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/globalgardenfriends
Growing Tomatoes
With Hydroponics
n warm countries like

ours (South West of
France), we generally do
not recommend growing
tomatoes indoors. For us
here, it is best to grow tomatoes
outside, in soil or in hydro, during
the right season, and under the
sunlight.
But this is not always possible.
There are times when growing
tomatoes indoor, under artificial
light, may be an option. When
it is generally cold outside,
with very long fall and winter
seasons, and little sunlight most
of the year, people crave for
anything fresh, a young lettuce
or a juicy pepper ! This is
when growing tomatoes indoors
makes sense.
How to start?
Most important when you pick
a plant to grow, is to choose
the right variety, one that
corresponds to your taste, but
also one that will grow correctly
in your own environment. Do
not forget, genetics is a very
important factor, so choosing the
right variety is a major parameter
for success, wherever you are.
Sow the seeds in a tray
of loam mixed with perlite
and vermiculite, so that the
32
Greenhouse in Southern France Tomatoes grown in an Ecogrower
substrate remains light and

easy to separate from the
roots during transplanting.
When you see 3 sets of
real leaves, it is time to
transplant. Wash the soil off
the roots gently in lukewarm
water preferably, and make
sure not to damage the
young roots and rootlets.
Place each plant in a plastic
net pot with clay pebbles,
and in your hydroponic
growing system.
Feeding
program for
tomatoes
Use Flora Series:
Flora Series is our star product.
It is the most reliable of all
nutrients, recognized worldwide
for its quality and consistency.
You will find it in most countries,
in any up-to-date garden store.
the family farm way!

Flora Series is a highly
concentrated liquid nutrient,
complete and flexible, that
allows you to adapt your feeding
program to your plants life cycle.
We offer feeding programs for
different plants on our website.
They are a good indication
to start with (go to http://
ru.eurohydro.com/various.html /
Flora Series all plants).
As a supplement, use any
supplement in our line. There
are many depending on the
application you are looking for.
In the feeding chart below we
priviledged Diamond Nectar**.
How to make the nutritive

solution?
pH control allows you to secure
mineral salts availability in the
nutritive solution. To know more,
go to http://ru.eurohydro.com/ and download our catalog: page 45

shows an interesting table on pH levels and nutrition. Before adding
Flora Series to your water, check its pH. Adjust as needed with
your pH regulators (pH Down and pH Up) . Then add FloraGro*,
FloraMicro* and FloraBloom* and check pH again to remain in
the wanted range. EC tells you the amount of dissolved salts in
your nutritive solution. The following measures are in ml/10 l. It is
important to know the quality of your water. If your water is hard,
use Flora Micro hard water to guarantee your plants with optimal
nutrition availability.
ml / 10 pH
EC
FloraGro
FloraMicro
FloraBloom Diamond
Nectar**
pH
Seedlings
0.3 0.6
2,5
2,5
2,5
20
5.5
Vegetative 1.4 1.8
20
25
12,5
20
Flowering
& fruiting
20
25
15,5
1.9 2.5
6.5
* Shake well before using. Our nutrients are highly concentrated, do not mix undiluted. To avoid salt
precipitation, always rinse your measuring cup between each Flora component.
** Diamond Nectar increases the nutrient uptake capacity of plants, and results in better diet. DN and
other products in our line are pending certification by Russian administration.
How to manage the rest

of your growing area?
As with all indoor growing areas, using soil or
hydroponics, it is important to keep your grow
room clean, maintain it at the right temperature
(for tomatoes it should be around 25 to 30C),
with humidity level around 65%. Use ventilators
to prevent the formation of hot air stagnation, and
consequently fungi, moulds, and pests of all kinds.
Use prevention as often as you can, this will keep
your plants healthy.
One of the main difficulties growing tomatoes indoors
is the lighting situation. To make sure you give your
tomatoes all the light they need, use a strong bulb,
minimum 600 W and, if necessary, use vertical
fluorescents lights to bring light also from the side.
Follow up
Here are photos of the TriSystem in our greenhouse in Fleurance (France), during
most of the 2012 summer season. They were taken week after week, to show you the
plants progression. We used, as we most often do: Flora Series, Diamond Nectar, and
our pH Regulators.
We started the TriSystem on April 20th. In the front AeroFlo chamber, we planted
lettuce, and in the next, basil, parsley and coriander. In the third row, equivalent to the
DPS Aero systems, we planted a chili pepper on the left, garden cress in the middle,
and a Lebanese bell chile. In the back row, equivalent to the DPS Hydro pots, we
planted 3 different varieties of tomatoes: a black cherry left, a French St Pierre in the
middle, and a Red Cherry to the right. Here is the red cherry.
34
April 20th
May 14th
June 05
July 9
August 29
Endless fresh tomatoes every day from June till September

Visit our blog on http://www.ghe-blog.com to follow our latest information
Growing
Strawberries
With Hydroponics
trawberry (garden
strawberry or hautbois
strawberry, lat. Fragria
moschta) is a
perennial plant (Fragria
genus, Rosaceae family) 1535
cm in height. The stem is
upright, fuzzy with large ternate
leaves of light-green color. The
blossom clusters are corymbose,
consisting of 512 flowers
resting on short hoary pedicles.
The flowers are unisexual with
five petals, white with double
perianth. The root system is
fibrous. It is located near the
ground surface in two layers: the
upper one near the base of the
cornicles, the lower layer goes
deeper. The upper perennial part
of strawberry is a short stem and
its life span is 5 or more years.
The thing that we usually call
berry in strawberry, in truth
is carpophore (false berry) on
which surface there are multiple
small conical fruits (nuts),
which possess sweet flavor and
distinctive aroma.
Depending on variety and
external conditions, the
strawberry carpophores contain
from 4 to 10% sugar, as well
as citric, malic, chinic, salycilic
36
and phosphoric acids. During

ripening the berry produces
succinic acids and the
traces of shikimic and
glycolic acids, vitamin
C (47120 mg),
pectic substances,
anthocyanins, carotin,
volatile oil, the traces
of vitamin B, flavonoids,
potassium salts, iron salts,
calcium and phosphoric
salts. The strawberries are
low-calories (36.9 kcal per
100 gr).
The strawberry is a natural
medicine chest for multiple
occasions. For content of vitamin
C the strawberry is second
only to black currant. Everyday
consumption of strawberry
significantly improves ones
condition and health, since it is
strengthening immune system
and defending the organism
from viruses. It can be used as a
prophylactic drug against flu and
cold as it possesses strong antiinflammatory and antimicrobial
qualities. The strawberry is
used in cases of digestive,
kidney, respiratory illnesses,
salt metabolism dysfunction,
anaemia. It is even drives away
the bad breath.
Fresh fruits can be eaten or

used in confectioners production
(for wines and liquors). The
aroma is used in cosmetics. The
folk medicine recommends the
tincture of fruits and leaves as
a diuretic and diaphoretic agent
during cold and anemia.
The varieties of
strawberries
There are multiple varieties of
strawberries. Every year due
to efforts of selectionists new
varieties appear. The earlyterm varieties are: Alpha,
Kishinevskaya Rannyaya
(Kishinevs Early), Biryulevskaya

Rannyaya (Biryulevos Early),
Krasavitsa Zagoria (Zagories
Beauty). There are more
varieties of middle-term type:
Vityaz (Knight), Pavlovskaya
Krasavitsa (The Beauty of
Pavlovsk), Festivalnaya
(Festive), Lakomaya (Tasty) and
others. The late-term varieties
are: Borovitskaya, Zenit (Zenith),
Saksonka, Leningradskaya
Pozdnyaya (Leningrads Late),
Bogota. The most known
varieties are: Victoria, Mashenka,
Polka, Zenga Zengana and
others. The most productive
and perspective varieties
are Pavlovchanka, Roksana,
Krasavitsa Zagoria, Desnyanka,
and Granatovaya (Pomegranate).
For all the year round
hydroponic growth ever-bearing
varieties are being used. They
produce fruits practically during
the whole year. Those varieties
are: Yellow Wonder, Mount
Everest, Fresco. The earliest
to bear fruits is the Queen
Elizabeth variety. The Dutch
varieties are: Elvira, Vima Zanta,
Gigantella Maxima, Corona.
All varieties of strawberries are
loved by both children and adults.
The strawberry is one of the

first berries during the season,
notable for its early bearing and
high productivity.
The growth of plants starts at
temperatures +23. The
blooming starts 2 or 3 weeks
after starting of leaves growing.
The complete period of blooming
lasts 2025 days. Due to
nonsimultaneous expansion
of flower stalks the period of
blooming and ripening is being
prolonged. During winters with little
or no snow the strawberry plants
are often getting frozen. Roots
die first (at temperatures about
10), then the upper part (at
temperatures about 15, 18).
The Strawberries Grown

on AeroGarden System
After melting of snow at

temperatures down to 5, 7
the strawberries can die out
completely.
The strawberries are successfully
grown via hydroponics. Which
hydroponic method is the best
depends on placing and number
of plants.
Ebb and Flow systems are
working well when there are
multiple plants. But this system is
stationary and must be well-tuned.
Deep Water Culture is not

the best choice. The strawberry
isnt a water loving plant and
therefore problems may occur
during growing. The plants are
growing and bear fruits, but the
tempo of growing and production
volumes are not the best ones.
The root system in this method is
more often subjected to diseases.
And moreover it is not easy to
keep control of proper amount
of nutrients in the solution and
proper pH level during the whole
vegetation period.
Nutrient Film Technique
systems provide strawberries
with nutrients from the solution
continuously circulating through
plastic tanks. The solution flows
at the bottom of the tank like a
thin film layer. The solution is
moved through pipes or hoses
by a water pump from the main
tank containing already prepared
solution. The plants are being
placed in small pots, the bottom
of the pots doesnt touch the
nutrient layer. As the plants grow,
the roots are being submerged
into nutrient solution receiving all
necessary substances enriched
with oxygen.
Drip System. This is when the
plants are placed on substrate
(peat mixes. coir or mineral wool)
and a nutrient solution is being
directed to an under-root zone
38
The Strawberries Grown on N.F.T.
through dripping system with

a water pump. The substrate
wrapped in light-proof film is
placed on a plate, which serves
as a collector for excess of
nutrient solution. To save the
space and for its optimal use it is
possible to place bags or tanks
with substrate vertically. The
strawberries are being planted
in tiers or the varieties which
have a tendency to bear fruits
on daughter rosettes are being
used. While growing vertically,
you can plant from 60 to 100
plants on a square meter. That
depends on a variety and a type
of equipment used.
Whatever hydroponic system you
are using it must be remembered
that the roots of this plant do not
like ample and long drowning.
They shouldnt be left in stagnant
solution since this might be a
death to the plant.
For proper development one grown

plant must have a 3 litre tank. This
way plants can be placed in one
tank (1015 liters are needed for
34 plants. On square meter can
host 1822 plants. The distance
between plants is 2030 cm, the
varieties must be planted with
bigger intervals, compact varieties
can be planted 1015 cm from
each other.
The strawberries are grown on
hard air-proof substrate (clayite,
large perlite, gravel, large bank
sand). Vermiculite and perlite
mixes are also widely used
in combination with dripping
irrigation.
In systems with clayite and
dripping irrigation the solution
is provided for 15 minutes each
one and a half hour. The nutrient
solution should never get on a
plant!
The volume of nutrients in

solution for professional
strawberry growing depends on
the growth period and the time of
the year. The amateurs can use
universal nutrient solution.
The pH level of nutrient solution
must be between 1.8 and 2.2.
While growing strawberries one
must keep correct temperature
regime. Plants health and
productivity depends on its
precision. It is recommended to
Strawberry Solution Fiormulation

Macro-elements
pH
Ca ++ Mg ++
Na +
K+
5,86,2 200
50
NH4 +
NO3 -
PO4 - SO4 =
Cl -
100 4
76
45
Micro-elements
Fe
Mn
Cu
Zn
Mo
0,5
0,05
0,5
0,5
0,05
The Strawberries Grown on a Drip System; Vertical Hydroponic Systems for Strawberries
keep the temperature at 1618

during the night, and at 2425
during the day. From the
beginning of growth till blooming
the following temperatures are
necessary: for early varieties
18.023.5, for medium
varieties 22.327.6, for late
varieties 25.535.3. The
humidity must be at 6575%.
It should be noted that in
greenhouses there is a need for
illumination of plants from 12 to
18 hours a day. The illumination
intensity is 60000 lumens and
higher.
The dates of ripening and other
parameters can be controlled
by correcting the growing
conditions.
The strawberries are grown from
seeds or from canticles with
rosettes.
Growing from seeds. Small
perlite, coir-soil and sand can be
used as substrates. The pots are
filled by substrate about 1012
cm. The seeds are sown above
the substrate without pushing
them in. Then everything is
covered with film and put into
shadowy place. The temperature
must be around 2224. Two
or three times a day the pots are
opened for 510 minutes. The
humidity must be checked and
40
if necessary the pots must be

watered with syringe.
For a better germination and
better germination percentage
stratification of seeds is often
used.
When 2 or 3 true leaves appear,
the plants are being placed in pairs
in pots 1315 cm in diameter.
The strawberries are planted up to
the base of the leaves, then they
are shadowed for several days and
then are put under light.
The sprouts are being treated
with a faint solution of fungicide
to prevent fungus and bacterial
infections.
When 5 or 6 fully developed true
leaves appear, the strawberry
plants are to be planted into
permanent place.
Growing from rosettes. A canticle
should be taken with a rosette that
has minimum 2 open leaves. Then
it is placed on a plate with water.
When the rosette will produce welldeveloped roots, the canticle must
be cut from the mother plant and
put into permanent vessel.
On one mother plant around 5
canticles might be left each with
three rosettes. From one plant
one might get 15 well-developed
rosettes. The canticles appear
when the daylight lasts more

than 12 hours with a temperature
at 1622.
Pollination can be done manually
of with a help of bees or
bumblebees:
Manually with a use of soft
brush for pollen. The pollination
is made 2 or 3 times a day. This
way a flower cannot be pollinated
evenly that is why berries might
grow formless. Also it is possible
without tearing flowers from
a plant put them together on
flower to flower basis. That is
more reliable way.
With a help of bees or
bumblebees. In this case several
families of those insects are
being purchased (the number
depends on the volume of
pollination). The bumblebee
hives are put inside the
greenhouses during blooming
period.
To receive better volumes of
production the first flowers
(blossom clusters) must be cut.
Flower stalk is cut near the
base with a sharp object. On
the next 4 or 5 stalks only 3 or 5
berries must be left. This wont
let weaken the plant and the
berries would be larger. As soon
as the berry gets ripened it must
be gathered otherwise it will
slow the development of others.
To raise the productivity all the

canticles might be cut.
The second year for the plant is
the most productive. The fourth
year shows a serious decline.
Thats why all the plants must
be renewed every 3 years, using
rosettes from existing plants.
Also for speeding up and raising
the production the strawberries
can be nourished with carbon
dioxide.
The strawberries are being
picked two or three times a
week, sorted and packed for
transportation. For transporting
at long distances the berries
are picked while not completely
ripened and still rigid. The
berries are considered ready for
picking when they acquire color
specific for particular variety.
The productivity depends on
variety and the conditions of
growing. For non-ever-bearing
varieties, one plant can produce
about 15 berries a season. The
large-berries varieties produce
berries up to 100 grams. It can
be that 15 100 = 1500 gr or
1.5 kilos of berries. The smallberries varieties produce berries
that weight 4 gr. The everbearing varieties when treated
correctly can produce up to 1000
berries a season!
To form flower buds a plant

needs a rest period, which
lasts 1 or 2 months. For everbearing varieties it is enough to
have 1 month of a rest which
can be during autumn. For this
the irrigation is shortened by
a week, and after a week the
temperature must be lowered
down to 14, all the leaves
must be cut, the irrigation and
illumination stopped. After
another week the roots are
ready to be stored. The roots
are stored at the temperatures
of 0, +2.
It is next to impossible to
achieve ample production if
the strawberry is damaged be
pests and diseases. The most
frequent attackers among pests
are: strawberry crown girdler,
strawberry mite, red spider,
strawberry nematode, wireworm
(the larvae of Elateridae

bug), slugs, snails, slaters,
centipedes, red ants; among
diseases: powdery mildew, gray
rot (blossom blight), black rot,
celery late blight, leaf blotch,
and brown strawberry blotch.
Most difficulties and expenses
are connected with picking. With
hydroponic growing the picking is
not much of a difficulty since the
trays are positioned at a specific
level and that makes labor more
effective.
The possibility of easy collection
of berries and packing with the
following shipment considerably
lessens the labor expenses,
guarantees long preservation of
berries and raises the profitability
of the company.

gidroponika.com | hydo.ru | sad-vo.ru
Horticulture Perlite
and its Application
in Hydroponics
Aylin Nedzhib
here is a wide range of

growing and propagation
mediums applicable
in hydroponics from
rockwool, expanded
clay aggregate, coir, pumice to
vermiculite, sand, gravel, brick
shards, polystyrene packing
peanuts, wood fibre and perlite.
Each of them have their own
unique features and benefits.
The choice of growing medium is
largely dependable on the type
of hydroponic system used. If
for example, aeroponics is used,
the growing medium need not
retain water. However, the ideal
hydroponic medium for most
systems should hold equal parts
oxygen and water. This allows
the plants to have access to both
the water and oxygen.
Although, hydroponic growing
itself means growing plants in
water without any soil, still there
are a relatively small number of
aquatic plants that can be grown
successfully only in water. Plants
grown hydroponically require the
same conditions for successful
growth as plants grown by other
methods. Plant root systems
require water, nutrients and air for
growth as optimum growth requires
careful control of these three
components. This is the balance
that has to be achieved and the
42
current hydroponic technology is

trying to find the optimum decision
for perfect results.
Perlite is a unique volcanic
mineral, which expands from
four to twenty times its original
volume when it is quickly
heated to a temperature of
approximately 16001700
degrees Celcium. This expansion
is due to the presence of two
to six percent combined water
in the crude perlite rock which
causes the perlite to pop in
a manner similar to that of
popcorn. When expanded, each
granular, snow-white particle of
perlite is sterile with a neutral pH
and contains many tiny, closed
cells or bubbles. The surface
of each particle is covered with
tiny cavities which provide an
extremely large surface area.
These surfaces hold moisture
and nutrients and make them
available to plant roots.
Horticultural perlite has a long
enviable record of performance
as a propagation and growing
medium throughout the world. Due
to its low density and relatively
low price, many commercial
applications for perlite have
developed. In horticulture, perlite
can be used as a soil amendment
or alone as a medium for
hydroponics or for starting cuttings.

When used as an amendment it
has high permeability , low water
retention and helps prevent soil
compaction.
Typical ingredient
breakdown in perlite:
7075% silicon dioxide: SiO2
1215% aluminum oxide: Al2O3
34% sodium oxide: Na2O
35% potassium oxide: K2O
0.52% iron oxide: Fe2O3
0.20.7% magnesium oxide: MgO
0.51.5% calcium oxide: CaO
35% loss on ignition (chemical
/ combined water)
Applications:
Perlite is used as a
component of soilless growing
mixture where it provides
aeration and optimum moisture
retention for superior plant
growth.
It is used also for rooting
cutting.
Perlite is proved to be an
outstanding media when used in
hydroponic systems.
Horticulture perlite has a
neutral pH and is sterile.
Its light weight makes it ideal
for use in container growing.
It is successfully applied
also as a carrier for fertilizer,
herbicides and pesticides, as
well as for pelletizing seeds.

Horticultural perlite is as
useful to the home gardener
as it is to the commercial
grower. It is used with equal
success in greenhouse growing,
landscaping applications and in
the home in house plants.
Expanded perlite is physically
stable and chemically inert. The
porous nature of the cellular
granules ensures a product that
is light to handle, holds large
quantities of readily available
moisture and has a strong capillary
attraction for water. Since it is free
draining, it is also well aerated.
Perlite is inexpensive and is a
very good growing medium. It
doesn't retain too much water
and is very porous, allowing the
plant to get a good mix of water
and oxygen. Some people like to
mix it with vermiculite which gives
the mixture more water retention.
In addition, because of the
physical shape of each particle,
air passages are formed which
provide optimum aeration and
drainage. Due to the fact perlite
is sterile, it is free of disease,
seeds, and insects. Its neutral
pH, negligible nutrient content
and a complete freedom from
pests, pathogens and weed
seeds combine to make this

an ideal rooting medium for
hydroponic culture.
In horticultural applications, perlite
is used throughout the world as
a component of soilless growing
mixes where it provides aeration
and optimum moisture retention
for superior plant growth. For
rooting cuttings, 100% perlite is
used. Studies have shown that
outstanding yields are achieved
with perlite hydroponic systems.
Other benefits of horticultural
perlite are its neutral pH and the
fact that it is sterile and weed-free.
In addition, its light weight makes it
ideal for use in container growing.
Other horticultural applications for
perlite are as a carrier for fertilizer,
herbicides and pesticides and
for pelletizing seed. Horticultural
perlite is as useful to the home
gardener as it is to the commercial
grower. It is used with equal
success in greenhouse growing,
landscaping applications and in the
home in house plants.
Extensive studies and testing
over a period of years has
documented the unique capillary
action of perlite. Research has
proved that crops produced in
perlite are about 7% healthier
and more porous compared
to other commonly available
growing medium; thus water is

absorbed very quickly by this
medium. Also, any excess water
added by the grower simply stays
in the reservoir, and the grower
can easily determine if they have
under-watered or over-watered
their plants. This way problems
due to under watering (drying
of plants) or over watering
(decaying of plants) can both be
avoided with the use of perlite.
Perlite as a growing medium
is physically very stable. It is
inert and therefore there are no
drastic effects of temperature
change, alteration in humidity or
pH levels or any other physical
factor. Also, perlite is sterile and
weeds free. This makes it ideal
for use in container growing.
Perlite is an excellent medium
to grow root cuttings as
it encourages faster root
development, reduces risk
of damping off, avoids water
logging, and provides an optimum
balance of air and water. With
perlite, the chances of damaging
the roots while transplanting is
minimized. Seed germination is
also quicker in perlite because
of its extensively flexible nature.
Perlite improves the texture
of heavy silt or clay soils by
increasing aeration and drainage.
It also minimizes the tendency to

cap over germinating seeds, and
lasts for many years.
Because of all these benefits,
perlite is fast replacing rockwool
in hydroponic farming. It is been
widely used to grow hydroponic
tomatoes, cabbage, pepper,
lettuce, roses, olives, berries, and
many other fruits, vegetables, and
flowering plants. Perlite can be
used by small scale hobbyists as
well as for large scale commercial
growers. Due to its versatility
hydroponics experts predict that
perlite will soon become the
preferred growth medium.
College researchers from the
West Scotland were the pioneers
with their breakthrough in
this field as they developed a
hydroponic growing system that
offers a number of significant
benefits over other hydroponic
growing systems. It had been
always a problem with existing
hydroponic growing systems
which were not good enough in
providing the optimum air and
water ratio to plant root systems.
A similar problem was difficulty
in maintaining the concern water/
nutrient level for superior growth.
After numerous trials and
research, horticultural perlite
44
was found to provide the best

results in so far as yield of fruit
and ease of maintenance was
took into consideration.
All these resulted in the
development of a hydroponic
growing system that takes
advantage of perlites outstanding
capillary property that carefully
and automatically meters nutrient
rich water to a plant roots while
providing optimum air for superior
plant development.
With this growing system bags
of horticulture perlite are laid
horizontally on the greenhouse
floor and holes are cut to accept
seedlings. Seedlings are inserted
and nutrientrich water is
introduced to each plant with a
drip irrigation system. A reservoir
of this nutrientrich water is
allowed to collect in the bottom
of the bag. The natural capillary
action of the horticultural perlite
draws a controlled amount of
water up into the root zone. One
of the advantages with perlite
is that the root zone does not
dry out nor does it become
waterlogged as it can happen
with other media.
Because of this unique feature,
plants need to be watered only
a few times a day as opposed to
other media which may require

as 20 watering daily.
Some practical clues for

growing with perlite:
How to use perlite ?
Perlite can be different sizes and
it is recommendable to choose
pretty fine size for smaller seeds.
Its a usual practice for many
growers to mix perlite with peat
for seed starting.
How much to cover?

The planting depth mainly
depends on the seeds. If the
seeds need a shallow planting
depth (1/8 to 1/4 inch) they
usually want light to germinate.
On the other hand smaller seeds
usually need to be closer to the
surface, some really tiny seeds
just gets sprinkled on the surface
and perhaps lightly pressed onto
the soil for good contact.
Larger seeds that get planted
like 1/2 inch to 1 inch deep want
dark to germinate. It probably
would help those seeds to place
cardboard over the top of the
tray. A little space between the
top of the starter mix and the
cardboard is required so that
when they germinate, they are
not squished. Once the seedlings

containers then you can let them
get bigger before putting them
out on their own.
emerge, the cardboard should be

removed.
The most important part for seed
starting is keeping the correct
amount of moisture. Make sure
your perlite or seed starting mix
is moist before you plant your
seeds, trying to water it after
you plant your seeds could
wash your seeds away. This
is why those seed starting kits
often come with a plastic dome
that you remove or prop open
once the seedlings emerge. The
cardboard will also help with
the moisture. You don't want
your seeds to rot or drown but
they can't germinate without
some moisture. Until the plants
emerge, they won't be using
any water so the only water you
should be adding is to make up
for evaporation. The best way
to moisten it would either be
misting with a spray bottle or
if the tray has drainage holes,
you might be able to bottom
water by placing it in another
try without holes that has water
in it and then lifting it out and
letting it drain. The hardest part
of growing seedlings is keeping
them moist but not waterlogged.
You don't need liquid fertilizer
until after the seeds germinate.
Small seedlings need very
weak fertilizer at first. You can

slowly strengthen the fertilizer
as the plants grow. If you are
using strictly perlite, you might
consider a hydroponic nutrient
as your fertilizer, but something
more like a potting soil or peat
based seed starting mix might
support enough soil bacteria that
would make using regular liquid
fertilizer acceptable.
At what stage can you

transplant?
That will vary depending on
1-what type of plant, 2-the
starter container, 3-where you
are transplanting too, 4-your
desire to manually care for
seedlings in captivity.
Many people will transplant
as soon as the first or second
set of true leaves emerge (the
first leaves you see when the
seedling comes up are not true
leaves but the next set will be.)
Other people will say transplant
when the seedlings are 4" or
6" tall. It kind of depends on
what you start them in, how
crowded they are. If your seed
tray is simply an egg carton,
you probably have to transplant
pretty quickly since the seedlings
will outgrow the space. If you
have them planted in larger
Also, the location you are

planning to put them in after
transplant will affect how big you
will want them. It can be difficult
for a really tiny transplant to
survive in some environments like
places where there is competition
from other plants or careless
gardeners who might pull a small
seedling, thinking it is a weed.
Finally, your own time to be
taking careful care of seedlings
in small non-soil containing
containers. Small containers
with little seedlings need regular
attention or they could dry out
and waste your effort. Even in a
location with automatic sprayers,
you are gambling by leaving
seedlings unattended for too
long. What if the settings are
off and things get too wet or
too dry? The sooner the plants
get situated into their long term
arrangements, the less attention
they will require from you
provided the settle in well.
To summarize all the advantages
of horticultural perlite one can
conclude that it characteristic
provides more constant moisture
status around the roots at all times
irrespective of weather or stage of
root growth. Then ensures more
even watering throughout the
growing area. There is also less
likelihood of over-watering with
horticultural perlite. Perlite culture
avoids wastage of water and
nutrients. Last but not least the
use of perlite eliminates the need
to grade growing floors accurately,
as well as avoids waste of water
and nutrients.
questions & answers
Question
What is Aquaponics and

what are its benefits?
Asked by Suraj
Answers
quaponics is a sustainable food production system that combines a traditional

aquaculture (raising aquatic animals such as snails, fish, crayfish or prawns
in tanks) with hydroponics (cultivating plants in water) in a symbiotic
environment. We may say that aquaponics is a new farming technology which
applies the process of symbiotic relationship between the fish and the plants.
This is teamwork, since the waste materials of the plants are being fed to the fish while,
at the same time; the waste of the fish is used to fertilize the plants and vegetables.
This is one of the best systems used nowadays and it is very remarkable due to the
fact that the plants are the one responsible in making and supplying clean water for the
fish, which is very beneficial for its existence. On the other hand the fish is helping by
giving proper nutrients to the plant beds or commonly known as Grow Beds. As existing
hydroponic and aquaculture farming techniques form the basis for all aquaponics
systems, the size, complexity, and types of foods grown in an aquaponics system can
vary as much as any system found in either distinct farming discipline
46
This farming technique is usually made up of a tank with various fish of your choice
with existing grow beds used specifically for vegetable farming or production. It is
also fitted to raise and grow some ornamental fish as well as some native fish. This
new farming technique is really amazing because once the cycle starts, and the
water in the tank remain clean and clear and stays PH balanced all throughout. The
water is being recycled and only a very minimal amount is being added in order to
replace the water that evaporated and was used by the vegetables. Positive bacteria
break down the ammonia waste from the fish to produce nitrogen, which aids in the
development of plants. The filtered water then travels to the growing bed, only to
leave that location, returning to the fish tank. This is basically a self-sustaining eco
and environment friendly system that really works amazingly.
I have a small hydroponic rose garden on

my terrace. My roses have black spots and
all the leaves have fallen off
I will be treating for black spots this weekend and
was wondering if I can prune again. How far down
should I prune?
Question
questions & answers
Asked by Metro Farmer
And, again a bit later, after they are leafing out to remove dead branches
from the winter. That's about it, except for clipping flower heads. With block
spots, you'll need to spray with a rose fungicide every 7 to 10 days through
the moist, early summer period. Also, be sure to remove all infected leaves
and branches and sterilize your pruning shears if you move from plant to
plant. And remember; never water your roses from above.
Answers
he best time of year to trim our rose bushes is in the early spring.
I have seen some people just shear their roses about half way
down and leave it at that. The problem with doing this is that you
have not removed old dead wood, or suckers, or cleaned out built
up debris, and in time, I think, you compromise the health of your
plants and the quality of your flowers. So skip the short cuts, and prune
your roses properly and you'll be rewarded with really gorgeous flowers.
The basic rules to keep in mind are using clean, sharp tools. Begin pruning
from the base of the plant, to open the center to light and air circulation.
Make your cuts at a 45-degree angle, about 1/4 inch above a bud that
is facing toward the outside of the plant. Make sure it is a clean cut (not
ragged). Remove all broken, dead, dying or diseased wood and cut until
the inside of the cane is white. Remove any weak or twiggy branches
thinner than a pencil.
questions & answers
Question
What is hydroponics farming

and how does one start
hydroponic farming?
How Much Area and Investment is
Required to Start?
Answers
Asked by
Neeraj
ydroponics is a method of growing plants without soil. Instead of having their

roots supported and nourished by soil, the plants are grown using mineral
nutrient solutions, in water, without soil. Terrestrial plants may be grown with
their roots in the mineral nutrient solution only or in an inert medium, such as
perlite, gravel, mineral wool, and expanded clay or coconut husk.
There are many different forms and ways to start hydroponics farming. You can choose
any, depending on your requirement. Hydroponic farming can even be started from the
terrace of your home with very minimal investment.
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02 April 2013 w w w. s o i l l e s s g a r d e n i n g - i n d i a .

Dedicated to the Soilless Gardening Industry of India

Hydroponics, What Can You Grow? Herbs and Salads

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES OFFERED

1. Training in Simplified and Commercial Hydroponics

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Indian and Worldwide Manufacturers,

We hope you enjoy this months issue!

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Dedicated to the Soilless Gardening Industry of India

Grow Box Initiates the Release of the SuperStar by SuperCloset

Hydroponics, Change the Way You Grow an Agriculture

read in this issue:

Hydroponics, What Can You Grow? Herbs and Salads

General Hydroponics pages

Hydroponics, What Can You Grow? Herbs and Salads

soilless technologies 101

Hydroponics Herbs...It Hasn't All Gone to Pot

questions & answers

Printed & Published by Aditya

Printed at Puspak Printers

What is Aquaponics and What are its Benefits? Asked by Suraj

Soilless Gardening India Magazine

13,15 HydronponEast Expo

Hydroponic Greenhouse Technologies India private Ltd.

Grow Box Initiates the Release of

| Soilless Gardening India Magazine April'13

Training in Hydroponics for

of greens and vegetables for

Handling the technology is

Soilless Gardening India Magazine April'13 | 5

Armed with an alternative

| Soilless Gardening India Magazine April'13

in-charge, Haryana Hub, Cereal

lowering water table, they were

of 32 hours whereas now he

Farmers following conventional

State Agricultural Secretary,

Soilless Gardening India Magazine April'13 | 7

ertical farms are highly

| Soilless Gardening India Magazine April'13

The logistical costs and

1) They turn the cities into foodgrowing centers, allowing to use

8) They may introduce new jobs

2) The sun and wind as

9) The possibility of placing green

3) They are independent systems

10) This farms can stabilize the

6) Treatment of plants and

This project developed by

7) The usage of agricultural

set-up an eco-friendly production

The project is supposed to have

This project was proposed by

The person behind the project

This skyscraper is made of

Soilless Gardening India Magazine April'13 | 9

Vertical Farms Growing in Urban Areas

upper parts of the plants), then it

| Soilless Gardening India Magazine April'13

uses the electricity produced

Vertical Farms Growing in Urban Areas

Pyramid Vertical Farm