GREEN HYDROFONIC FODDER

What is Hydroponics?

Hydroponics is defined as the growth of plants using water in the absence of soil WITH or WITHOUT THE
USE OF A NUTRIENT SOLUTION in soil-less media.

What other grains apart from barley can be used?

Maize, sorghum, wheat, millet and oats can all be used. We recommend barley and Wheat due to
their superior protein content of 23% and 19% respectively. Maize has a crude protein of 6% while

Sorghum and millet have 12% and 11% respectively

Does hydroponics have any risk?

Anything good does not lack a risk.

The major risk in Hydroponics is the invasion by molds, fungi and water-borne diseases. If these are
found in your hydroponic system, they may attack and destroy your whole crop since most of

the time water is recycled in most hydroponic systems.

Hygiene and Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) eliminate the possibility of such.

How long does hydroponic barley/wheat fodder take to mature?

Normally, hydroponic fodder takes 6-7days to mature though poultry consume barley/wheat fodder
that’s 4days old.

Before using barley seeds for growing animal fodder, do you need to soak them in bleach solution?

You do NOT need to soak the seeds in 10% bleach solution to rid off molds and fungi as many propose.
Barley sprouts will not grow moldy when the shelves and trays have a good slope.

What kind of structure is used for hydroponic farming?

The kind of structure required for various plants depends on the climatic region.

50% netted structures have been observed to do well in regions along the Tropics.

Temperate regions require a greenhouse or even glass for lighting purposes

Which kind of livestock can be fed on hydroponic fodder?

They include: Cows, Goats, Sheep, Horses, Pigs, Rabbits, Chicken, Quails, Turkey, Geese, and Ducks.

When feeding the above mentioned livestock, do you feed them on hydroponic fodder ONLY?

Ruminants (Cows, Goats, Sheep, and Horses) require a supplement of dry matter in their diet to avoid
bloating.
Rabbits and Pigs (Non-ruminants) can be fed on 50% fodder to make it economical for commercial
farming.

Poultry such as quails, Kuroiler and Indigenous (Kienyeji) chicken can be fed on hydroponic fodder as
half of their daily feed requirement. Layers and Broilers (Exotic) can be fed on hydroponic

fodder only as a third of their daily feed requirements.

When growing other plants such as lettuce, strawberries, tomatoes and capsicums, what media is used
in place of soil?

There are various kind of media used in hydroponic farming. They include: Rice husks, Sawdust, gravel,
volcanic rock such as pumice, peat, sapropel, coco peat, rockwool, etc.

We love Pumice. It is easily available, light in weight and porous.

Do you require a nutrient solution when growing hydroponic barley fodder?

A nutrient solution is not required to grow barley fodder as it is normally harvested after 7days of
germination. Any seed has all the nutrients required to germinate for the first 7days. Again, barley

fodder has a crude protein of 23%-35% depending on the seeds variety and size. The mentioned range
of crude protein meets all livestock protein requirements.

Why do you need a nutrient solution when growing hydroponic vegetables, herbs, fruits and �owers?

Use of a nutrient solution is recommended since the soil which harbors nutrients required for plant
growth has been eliminated.

The soil also contains a lot of contamination such as weeds, pests, diseases, moulds, fungi and other
things which compete with your crops.

A nutrient solution is therefore required to substitute for the nutrients which would have otherwise
been provided by the soil.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Sprouting Grains for Chickens: Fodder for

Thought
BENEFITS OF SPROUTI NG:

The best review I found of the nutritional benefits of sprouts can be found here
(http://foddersolutions.net

/fodderforums/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Benefits- of-sprouts-for-feed.pdf), but a summary of

some of the benefits includes:
Year-round access to fresh greens regardless of the weather

or outside growing conditions. Entertainment for bored chickens

Makes the vitamins, minerals and proteins in the grains more bioavailable to the chickens. Think of
grains as a nutrition packet wrapped in protective packaging. When eaten as-is with the seed packaging
in place, the grain is prevented from being fully utilized nutritionally.

Sprouting removes that packaging, freeing up the good stuff to break down and transform into even
better stuff. Sprouting improves the enzyme content, making it more easily digested than grains; after
sprouting, a grain becomes 40-50% more digestible to the bird, which means that they are getting more
nutrition and fiber

than from the same amount of unsprouted grain Sprouts are loaded with chlorophyll and beta-
carotene, resulting in darker yolks and arguably, more nutritious

eggs.

Always use clean containers and clean, fresh water. Sprouting can be done on the kitchen counter. No
special lighting necessary.

THE PROCESS (blink and you’ll miss it)

1. In a large bowl, cover the grains with fresh water and soak a minimum of 8 hours to a maximum of
24 hours. (I soak mine overnight)

2. Create holes in the chosen container that are small enough that the grain doesn’t fall through them.

3. At the end of the soaking period, drain grains well and spread them to ¼”- ½ inch deep in chosen
container.

4. Place container over a second, slightly larger container to allow the water to drain off the grains fully.

5. The sprouts should be watered and then drained fully twice each day for six days. By day six, the
sprouted grains are ready to be fed to the flock.