What is the difference between seed you use for hydroponic plants and regular plants that grow in dirt?
I got this “Space Aged” Tomato and Green pepper kit. I had to sprout the plants in a sponge like medium then plant them in a pot full of inert matter like sand. I ended up using potting soil instead. Will this hurt them? They seem to be growing OK. Should I cut back the amount of fertilizer I give it now or just keep up like the directions say? Also I had sprouted two tomato plants that got the roots got stuck together, is it OK for them to grow together in the same pot now?
Okay, here we go.
There is nothing wrong with hydroponics. I have seen the kind of kits you’re talking about and they are not real “hydroponic” systems…but they still work.
Hydroponic systems use (often) either free flowing water or sand as a medium. The reason they use sand is because it is more coarse than dirt and therefore can be filtered easily through a cycled water system.
Secondly, the primary growth of a plant (the mass it acquires as it grows) comes from 2 sources: Water and air…NOT soil. The plant pulls in carbon from the air and that is used to create it’s primary structure (hence it being a carbon based life form.) As long as it gets the trace mineral elements it needs from the soil (and the fertilizer content is not so high it becomes toxic to the plant) it should be fine.
Thirdly, if two or more plants grow too close together, the “worst thing that happens is that they actually merge and form what is called (in botany terms) a “sport”. This happens all the time and doesn’t hurt the plants at all, even though some sports might look weird.
Fourth, the seeds may or may not have been genetically altered. That’s not a big deal. Many companies are now making seeds that sprout only once so that the purchaser has to buy new seed the next year and can’t re-use the seed from plants that have germinated that year. Big deal…no problem. Foe a home-grower, seed is cheap. But if you want to avoid this, next time buy “heirloom” variety seeds. These are widely varied races of plants (yes, the term race or “land race” applies here instead of species) and then you can re-use your favorite seeds year after year.
Fifth, the only thing a green pepper is would be an unripe pepper. Peppers will change color from green to yellow, orange, red, or purple (some are even white) if allowed to ripen fully. The reason green peppers became popular was for mass shipping purposes so that the growers could pick them while unripe and they would last longer when shipped and sold in supermarkets. Once you have nice green peppers, let them sit on the vine longer. They will ripen into different colors and become MUCH sweeter and less bitter.
Sixth up: Organics is a load of crap. While originally it stood for people using heirloom varietals and eco-friendly growing processes, it has become nothing more than a marketing ploy. Yes, there are some very good organic products, but for the most part it’s all a bunch of hype that shouldn’t be taken seriously at all. Organic food does not 1) taste better, 2) provide health benefits, or 3) establish eco-friendly crops. That is dependent on the genetic strains of the food your growing and the techniques you choose to use. Nothing more.
Finally…why in the hell do people keep using the term “space aged”? The space age ended almost 50 years ago.
Ch. 2 Grow Tent Assembly Part II
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