Hydroponic nutrient solution - improving the vitality of your garden plants

 Hydroponics can be defined as the growing of plants in water containing nutrients. Examples of this type of hydroponic system include NFT systems and deepwater floating systems where the plant roots are placed in a hydroponic food liquid. Another definition of hydroponics is growing plants in the absence of soil. According to this definition, growing plants in a soilless medium (potting soil) or other types of aggregate media (such as sand, gravel, and coconut rolls) is considered a hydroponic system. Here, we use hydroponic food liquid to denote growing plants without soil.

Without the 17 essential nutrients, plants cannot function properly. These nutrients are needed for processes that are essential for plant growth and development to take place. Magnesium, for example, is a key component of chlorophyll. Chlorophyll is a pigment that is used to capture energy from the light needed for photosynthesis. It also reflects green wavelengths, which is the reason why most plants are green in color.

Magnesium is the center of the chlorophyll molecule. Table 1 lists the roles of essential nutrients in plants.
Essential nutrients can be broadly divided into macronutrients and micronutrients. Both macronutrients and micronutrients are essential for plant growth and development. Macronutrients include carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, sulfur, calcium, and magnesium. Micronutrients include iron, manganese, zinc, boron, molybdenum, chlorine, copper, and nickel. The difference between macronutrients and micronutrients is the amount required by the plant. Macronutrients are required in higher amounts than micronutrients. Table 1 shows the approximate amounts of essential plant nutrients.

Plants obtain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen from air and water. The remaining nutrients come from the soil or, in the case of hydroponics, from nutrient solutions or general hydroponics nutrients.

In practice, hydroponics is a little more complex. Many plants are usually watered through a drip irrigation system which is fed by a pump in a nutrient storage tank. hydroponic nutrients may be wasted, but it is cheaper and potentially less contaminating to recirculate the hydroponic food solution through a tank below the plant which flows back into the storage tank.

Generally, hydroponic nutrients can be made from straightforward chemicals such as potassium nitrate and magnesium sulfate or can be purchased ready-made. As plants remove water, the hydroponic nutrients become stronger and become so concentrated or 'salty' that the roots may be damaged. This can be assessed by testing the conductivity of the solution with a conductivity meter and adding water as needed.

However, even if changes in the nutrient balance are carefully monitored, every fortnight or so it is recommended that the solution is discarded and refilled. The discarded solution can be poured over the garden soil as a fertilizer.

https://www.amazon.com/Bloom-Grow-Micro-Liquid-Nutrients-dp-B09V536Z1R/dp/B09V536Z1R/ref=dp_ob_title_garden