How to Start a Hydroponic Garden

HydroGardens are becoming increasingly popular, thanks to their convenient and efficient approach to home gardening. If you’re a keen gardener with limited space, you’re probably familiar with HydroGardens and may even be considering them to grow more plants inside your home. If you’re new to smart gardens, however, Mr Fothergill’s ‘How do I start a hydroponic garden?’ for beginners guide should help you out. 

What Is a Hydroponic Garden?

Hydro gardening is a highly efficient means of growing produce without needing soil. It was previously used primarily for commercial farming but is now far more common in home gardens across the world. Hydroponic systems manage to offer plants absolutely everything they require to survive year-round, including water, nutrients, and light. They may appeal to you because of their compact size, low water usage, ease of use and environmental benefits.

Choosing Your HydroGarden

There is quite a selection of hydroponic gardens currently on the market, each offering has different levels of automation, light strength and growing media quality.

To choose one that is right for you, consider:

• Maintenance - units that include fertiliser in their growing media and have large water reservoirs are lower maintenance.
• Light height - taller light heights allow you a wider selection of flower seeds, vegetable seeds and fruit seeds to grow.
• Light strength - more powerful light wattages translate to faster growth, so pick a high wattage if you will be harvesting regularly!
• Style and budget - choose a unit that suits your space and fits your budget

Here at Mr Fothergill’s, we have a brilliant range of HydroGardens that make gardening truly simple. Take a look at our variety today for a better idea of what best suits your growing needs!

Choosing Your Location

Choosing the right location for your HydroGarden to thrive once you get it home is important. The ideal location can have some indirect sunlight or no sunlight at all, but it is best to avoid direct sunlight as the grow light will provide the plants with all that they need.

You also want to avoid drafts and cold or hot areas, such as near air conditioners or hot appliances, as this will stress your plants.

It will need to be near a power point so you can power the grow lights, but since it is an electrical appliance, avoid wet areas where water could splash on the unit.

Preparing Your Water

As you can imagine, water is vital to knowing how to start a hydroponic garden! We’d recommend checking the water’s pH level, ensuring it sits at around a level of 6-6.5. You may also want to add a nutrient solution to your water, ensuring that your plants aren’t missing out on any of the good stuff hanging about in soils when growing outside!

Be sure to follow the instructions that come with your hydroponics kit, as some growing mediums come with built-in fertiliser, so do not require additional supplementation.

Sowing Your Seeds

Before sowing your seeds, soak your growing medium in water to prepare them for the seeds’ arrival. Next, scatter your seeds and nestle them in the growing media, being sure not to overpopulate your garden. Don’t forget to keep them moist during the germination period.

Don’t be afraid to start off simple! HydroGardens are a fantastic way to introduce the whole family to gardening. With quick results and few responsibilities, the little ones will be curious gardeners before you can say hydroponic garden! Get them started with some lettuce seeds or sow some simple herb seeds to introduce a pop of flavour to the kitchen. If you're looking for more variety, there is a whole bunch of wonderful hydroponic seed varieties you can grow in your hydroponic home garden.

Let Your HydroGarden Do its Thing

Plug in your system, and be sure to keep your HydroGarden topped up with water. Set the timer on your garden’s light to keep your seeds warm and well-lit for the necessary duration each day. 

Now, we wait! Your personal HydroGarden will be bursting with greenery before you know it.