2022

INVESTIGATORY PROJECT
STUDY OF HYDROPONIC GROWTH RATE
ISHANA KHAN
ISHANA KHAN
CLASS 12 B
ROLL NO 13
Contents
Page no.

1. Acknowledgement 3
2. Introduction 4
3. Why hydroponics/soil-less culture? 5
4. What is hydroponics? 7
5. History 8
6. Basic requirements of hydroponics 10
7. Classification 12
8. Nutrient film technique(nft) 13
9. Nursery techniques for hydroponic 16
10. Nutrient supply 19
11. Nursery period 21
12. Electrical conductivity(ec) 22
13. Preparation of nutrient solution …. 24
14. Crops to grow with hydroponics 28
15. Insect pest and disease damage 30
16. Harvesting, grading, storage and marketing 31
17. Advantages 33
18. Limitations 35
19. Bibliography 36
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

In the completion of the project successfully, there have been many

situations where help from my parents and friends were indispensable,
and for that I would like to thank them from the bottom of my heart.

I would certainly never be able to have completed my project without the

valuable guidance of Ms. Tanushree Ma’am, our biology teacher and Ms.
Shreyoshi Ma’am, our biology teacher. Their advice is what helped me
decide a project and what motivated me to complete it.
 INTRODUCTION

Figure 1

Further, continuous cultivation of crops has

resulted in poor soil fertility, which in turn
has reduced the opportunities for natural
soil fertility build up by microbes. This
situation has led to poor yield and quality. In
addition, conventional crop growing in soil
(Open Field Agriculture) is difficult as it
involves large space, lot of labour and large
volume of water. And in some places like
metropolitan areas, soil is not available for
crop growing. Another serious
problem experienced since of late is
the difficulty to hire labour for
conventional open field agriculture.
 WHY HYDROPONICS/SOIL-LESS CULTURE?

Hydroponics or soil-less culture is a

system of growing plants which helps
reduce s o m e o f t h e a b o v e -
mentioned problems
experienced in conventional crop
Figure 2 cultivation. S o i l i s u s u al l y t h e
m o s t a v a i la b l e growing medium
and plants normally grow in it. It provides
anchorage, nutrients, air, water, etc.
for successful plant growth. Modification of
a soil an alternate growing medium tends to be
expensive. However, soils do pose serious
limitations for plant growth, at times. Presence of
disease-causing organisms and
nematodes, unsuitable soil
r e a c t i o n , unfavourable soil compaction, poor
drainage, degradation due to erosion, etc. are
some of them. Hydroponics offers
opportunities to provide optimal conditions for
plant growth and t h e r e f o r e , h i g he r y i e l d s
c a n b e o bt a i n e d compared to open field
agriculture. Hydroponics or soil less culture offers
a means of control over soil-borne diseases and
pests, which is especially desirable in the tropics
where the life cycles of these organisms
continues uninterrupted and so does the threat
o f i n f e s t a ti o n . T h u s , t h e c o s t l y a n d
t i m e - c o n su m i n g t a s k s o f s o i l
s t e r i l i za t io n , s o i l a m e l i o r a t i o n , e t c .
c a n b e a v o i d e d w i t h hydroponics
system of cultivation. It offers a clean working
environment and thus hiring labour is easy.
 WHAT IS HYDROPONICS?
Hydroponics or soil-less culture is a t e c h n o l o g y
f o r g r o w in g p l a n t s i n n u t r i e n t solutions
that supply all nutrient elements needed for
optimum plant growth with or without the use
of an inert medium such as gravel, vermiculite,
rockwool, peat moss, sawdust, coir dust, coconut
fibre, etc. to provide mechanical support.

Figure 3
 HISTORY
H y d r o p o n ic s w a s p ra c t i c e d ma n y centuries
ago in Amazon, Babylon, Egypt, China and India
where ancient men used dissolved manure to grow
cucumber, watermelons and other vegetables
in sandy riverbeds. The “hanging harden of
Babylon” and the Aztec’s floating farms were
actually prototypes of
hydroponic systems. Later, when
p l a n t physiologists started to grow plants with
specific nutrients for experimental purposes, they
gave the name “nutriculture.” I n t e r e s t i n
p r a c t i c a l a p p l i c a ti o n o f “nutriculture”
developed in 1925 when the green house
industry expressed interest in its use. Green
house soils had to be replaced f r e q u e n t l y to
o v e r c o me p r o b l e ms o f s o i l structure,
fertility and pests. As a result, researchers
became interested in the potential use of
nutriculture to replace conventional soil culture.
In 1929, Dr. William F. Gericke of the University of
California succeeded in growing t o m a t o v i n e s
of 7.5 m height in n u t r i e nt
solutions. He named this new production
system “hydroponics” a word derived from
Greek to reflect the importance of
‘Hydros’( w a t e r ) a n d ‘ P o n o s ’ ( w o r k i n g ) .
T h u s , hydroponics broke the laboratory bounds
and entered the world of practical
horticulture. The term hydroponics originally
meant nutrient solution culture. However, crop
growing in inert solid media using nutrient
solution is also included in hydroponics in broad
sense. During 1960s and 70s, commercial
hydroponics farms were developed in Abu
Dhabi, Arizona, Belgium, California, Denmark,
German, Holland, Iran, Italy, Japan, Russian-
Federation and other countries. During 1980s,
many automated and computerized
hydroponics farms were established around the
world. Home hydroponics kits became popular
during 1990s.

Figure 4
 Basic Requirements of Hydroponics
Soils naturally maintain the temperature and
aeration needed for root growth. When the
soil is poor, plant growth and yield decline
also due to unsuitable aeration and
temperature. Plant cultivation is impossible
under ill drained condition due to
these conditions. Soil adjusts itself to provide
suitable conditions for plant growth. It is
called the buffer action of the soils. Plants also
absorb nutrients released through natural
mineralization. I n a s o l u t i o n o r i n e r t
m e d i u m , maintenance of acidity or alkalinity
(pH) and electrical conductivity (Ec) in suitable
ranges for plant root system is called buffer
action.
This requirement must be artificially maintained
in hydroponics. In any hydroponics system the
following basic requirements must be
maintained at optimum levels.
❖ Buffer action of water or the
intermedium used.
❖ The nutrient solution or the fertilizer mixture
used must contain all micro and macro
 elements necessary for plant growth and
development.
❖ Buffer action of the nutrient solution m u s t
be in the suitable range so that
plant root system or the inert medium is not
affected.
❖ The temperature and aeration of the inert
medium or the nutrient solution is suitable for
plant root system.
 CLASSIFICATION
The term hydroponics originally meant nutrient
solution culture with no supporting medium.
However, plant growing in solid media for anchorage
using nutrient solution is also included in
hydroponics. This technique is
called aggregate system. Hydroponics
systems are further categorized as open (i.e., once
the nutrient solution is delivered to the plant
roots, it is not reused) or closed (i.e., surplus
solution is recovered, replenished and recycled).
Current hydroponics systems of cultivation can
be classified according to the techniques
employed. A hydroponic technique refers to the
method of applying nutrient solution to the
plant roots.
Large numbers of hydroponic
techniques are available. However, consider
following factors in selecting a technique.
▪ Space and other resources available
▪ Expected productivity
▪ Availability of suitable growing medium
▪ Expected quality of the produce – colour,
appearance, free from pesticides, etc.
 NUTRIENT FILM TECHNIQUE
NFT is a true hydroponics system where the
plant roots are directly exposed to nutrient
solution. A thin film (0.5 mm) of nutrient solution
flows through channels. The main features of a
NFT system are shown below.

Figure 5

The channel is made of flexible sheet. The

seedlings with little growing medium are placed
at the center of the sheet and both edges are
drawn to the base of the seedlings and clipped
 Figure 6

together (Figure 6) to prevent evaporation and

to exclude light. The cross-section of the channel
is shown in figure 7. The growing medium
absorbs nutrient solution for young plants and
when the plants grow the roots form a mat in the
channels.

Figure 7

The maximum length of the channel is 5-10 m and

is placed at a slope drop of 1 in 50 to 1 in 75. The
nutrient solution is pumped to the higher end of
each channel and flows by gravity to the lower end
wetting the root mat. At lower end of the channels
nutrient solution gets collected and flows to the
nutrient solution tank. The solution is
monitored for
salt concentration before recycling. Some
growers replace the nutrient solution every
week with fresh solution. Adjust the flow rate of
the nutrient solution to 2-3 litres per minute
depending on the length of the channel. Provide
enough support for tall growing plants in
this technique.
In practice, it is very difficult to maintain a very thin film
of nutrient solution and therefore, this
technique has undergone several
modifications.
 NURSERY TECHNIQUES FOR
HYDROPONICS

As in open field a g r i c u l t u r e ,
production of vigorous seedlings or
p l a n t i n g material of high
y i e l d i n g varieties is an essential step of
hydroponics/soil-l e s s culture, to
o b t a i n economic yields.

➢Nursery Medium
The growing medium must provide satisfactory
conditions for seed germination and to raise pest
and disease-free seedlings. A material that is friable,
moderately fertile, well d r a i n e d y e t h a ve
s u f f i c i e n t w a t e r h o ld i n g capacity and good
aeration and free of pest s a n d d i s e a se
c a u s i n g o r g a n i s m s m u s t b e selected as
medium for seed germination or rooting the
planting materials. The following materials can be
used as medium to raise seedlings or to root
planting materials.
- Old coir-dust
- Carbonized rice husk
- Fine sand or fine sand and old coir dust mixture
- Rockwool, Peat, perlite or vermiculite, etc.
Sterilize the medium before use. For coir-dust, add
hydrated lime to bring its pH to neutral. For a
05kg coir-dust block, about100-
250 g hydrated lime is needed.

Figure 8

 NURSERY TRAY/CONTAINERS

Figure 9
❖ Use a container that provides the
suitable condition for seed germination and
according to crop and cultivation method.
❖ Individual containers / Growing blocks
paper pots, plastic pots, clay pots, Styrofoam
pots, coconut fibre pots, rockwool blocks,
sponge blocks.

Figure 10
 NUTRIENT SUPPLY
Nutrient supply is not necessary until the
emergence of first two true leaves. Until such
time apply only clean water. However, when
they unfold, nutrient supply must
b e g i n gradually as the growing medium
contains very little plant nutrients. The fertilizer
mixture meant hydroponics plants could also be
used for nursery plants. Diluted nutrient
solution can be applied every day or
nutrient solution prepared by dissolving 10 g
of Albert’s mixture in 10 litre of water can
applied every other day.
At the early stage, place the trays or pots in
shallow containers that is filled with nutrient
solution in such a way that the trays or pots
’lower portion is submerged in the solution. The
nutrient solution will reach the media through the
holes at the bottom of the pots or nursery trays
by capillary action. Vegetative parts for
propagation planted in individual containers or
trays are also placed in shallow nutrient solution
containers as seedling trays.

Figure 11
The nutrient solution can also be applied directly
to nursery pots after seed germination
or sprouting of planting materials. When
applying nutrient solution directly to nursery
pots,
• place the pots or trays on a flat plane and pour
solution so that it does not come into direct
contact with the small plant;
• at the early stage apply 5-10 ml solution once
a day; and
• when plants grow, 10-25 ml a day once or
twice till establishment.

Once the seedlings or planting

materials reach the correct size for planting,
they can be planted with the
m e d i u m . Vegetative parts can sometimes be
directly established in the hydroponics system.
 NURSERY PERIOD
The nursery period varies with the crops:
Tomato 3-4 weeks (2-3 true leaves
stage)
Cabbage 4-5 weeks (3-4 true leaves
stage)
Salad Cucumber 3 weeks (3-4 true leaves
stage)
Lettuce 2-3 weeks
Bell pepper 4-5 weeks

Select vigorous seedlings with the

characteristics for the variety concerned for
establishment in hydroponics. Also, tissue-
cultured plants can be established
i n hydroponics.
 ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY(EC)
The electrical conductivity indicates the strength of
nutrient solution, as measured by an Ec
meter. The unit for measuring Ec is ds/ m. A
limitation of Ec is that it indicates only the total
concentration of the solution and not the
individual nutrient components.
The ideal Ec range for hydroponics is between 1.5
and 2.5 ds/m.
Higher Ec will prevent nutrient absorption due
to osmotic pressure and lower Ec severely affect
plant health and yield.

Figure 12

When plants take up nutrients and water from

the solution, the total salt concentration., the
Ec of the solution changes. If the Ec is higher
than the recommended range, freshwater must
be added to reduce it. If it is lower, add nutrients
to raise it.
 PREPERATION OF NUTRIENT SOLUTION
AND FERTILIZER MIXTURE

Figure 13

❖ Preparation of nutrient solution:

Though hydroponic growers can
formulate their own fertilizer mixtures to prepare
nutrient solutions using completely water-
soluble nutrients salts, a few
formulations are available in the market to
choose. It is important to avoid any formulations that
contain impurities like sand, clay or silt. Such
impurities do not supply any nutrients, but they
are harmful as they can block the delivery tubes.
Also avoid any formulation that has insoluble or
less soluble salts. In hydroponics, the nutrients
must be available in solution in ionic form for
plant absorption. If they are found a s s a l t s ,
p l a n t s w i l l s u f f e r f r o m n u t r i e n t deficiency
symptoms. Although urea is completely soluble in
water, it cannot be used in hydroponics, as it does
not break into ionic form in the solution as it does
in soils. Some fertilizer salts react with each other
to produce insoluble precipitations. For example,
ammonium sulphate and potassium chloride form
less soluble potassium sulphate in
the tank. Phosphate fertilizers act
problematic in the presence of high calcium a n d
magnesium concentrations, causing
precipitation of low soluble
p h o s p h a t e s . Therefore, select fertilizers that
are compatible with each other. The
t a b l e 1 i n d i c a t e s compatibility of some salts
Fertilizer Mixtures for Hydroponic.
Table 1: Compatibility chart for some soluble fertilizers

C: compatible, can be mixed in the solution

L: Limited compatibility, mix at the time of use or
some precautions must be taken
X: Incompatible, do not mix

❖ Fertilizer mixture:
The tables 2 and 3 give nutrient salt contents
of two hydroponics formulations. These
fertilizer mixtures are not suitable as foliar
spray as the EDTA iron (iron chelate) does not
disintegrate easily on plant surface and
therefore, can be harmful to consumers.

Table 3

Table 2
 CROPS TO BE GROWN WITH
HYDROPONICS
A variety of crops can be grown using
hydroponics/soil-less culture. However, priority
must be given to high-value crops depending on
the market situation.
Leafy vegetables - Lettuce, Head
lettuce, Kang Kong, Gotukola
V e ge t a b le s - T o m a t o, E g g P l a n t ,
G r e e n bean,beet, Winged bean, Capsicum,Bell
pepper, Cabbage,Cauliflower,cucumbers,
melons, radish
Fodder crops-
Sorghum, Alphalfa, Barley,
Bermudagrass, Carpet grass
C e r e a l s -
R i c e , M a i z e
Condiments-Parsley, Mint,
O r e g a n o , Sweet basil
Fruit crops -Strawberry,
Flower/ornamental crops - Anthurium, marigold,
Coleus, roses, carnations, orchids,
chrysanthemums
 M e d i c i n al c r o p s - A l o e v e ra

Figure 14
 INSECT PEST AND DISEASE DAMAGE
In hydroponics, soil borne diseases are virtually
eliminated. Certain common pests and diseases
however, can affect these plants. Vigilance and
early identification are important i n
controlling such problems. Keep the
environment of the hydroponics plants clean and
adopt correct cultural practices such as supply of
well-balanced nutrients to maintain the
plants healthy. Pests and diseases less
affect healthy plants. Always start the
cultivation with healthy seedlings/planting
materials.
Adopt Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
strategies recommended for vegetables. If
necessary apply recommended chemicals to
control insect pests or diseases and always
strictly adhere to recommended pre-harvest
intervals.
 HARVESTING, GRADING, STORAGE AND
MARKETING
❖ HARVESTING:
Harvesting at correct maturity will reduce post-
harvest loses. One must know the age of the
fruits or plants to correctly identify maturity.
Reports on crops may be maintained for this
purpose. Harvest fruits by cutting with a sharp
knife with minimum damage to fruits and plant
stem.

❖ GRADING:
When the harvest is in fruit form, discard
odd shaped, damaged, or spotted fruits and
grade according to their sizes into large,
medium and small size groups. It may be
suitably labelled to indicate its quality (for
example, free of pesticides

❖ STORAGE: After grading, most vegetables

must be stored in cool dry place. Storing
 in large plastic containers with large holes for
aerations advisable.

❖ MARKETING:
Depending on the market requirement, produce
can be sold in small packing. They can
be suitably labelled. The packing must have
aeration holes.

Figure 15
 ADVANTAGES
• Land is not necessary. It can be practiced
e v e n i n u ps t a i r s , o p e n s p a c e s an d i n
protected structures.
• Clean working environment. The grower will not
have any direct contact with soil.
• Low drudgery. No need of making beds,
weeding, watering, etc.
• Continuous cultivation is possible.
• No soil borne diseases or
n e m a t o d e damage.
• Off-season production is possible.
• Vegetable cultivation can be done with
leisure sense.
• Many plants were found to give yield early in
hydroponics system.
• Higher yields possible with
c o r r e c t management practices.
• Easy to hire labour as hydroponics system is
more attractive and easier than cultivation in soil.
• No need of electricity, pumps, etc. for then
on-circulating systems of solution culture.
• Possibility of growing a wide variety of
vegetable and flower crops
i n c l u d i n g Anthurium, marigolds, etc.
• Water wastage is reduced to minimum.
• Possible to grow plants and rooted cuttings
free from soil particles for export.
 LIMITATIONS
• Higher initial capital expenditure. This will be
further high if the soil-less culture is
combined with controlled
e n v i r o n men t agriculture.
• High degree of management skills
is necessary for solution
preparation, maintenance of pH
and Ec, nutrient deficiency
judgment and correction,
ensuring aeration, maintenance
of favorable condition inside
p r o t e c t e d structures, etc.
• Considering the significantly high cost, the
soil-less culture is limited to high value crops of
the area of cultivation.
• A large-scale cultivator may have
t o purchase instruments to measure pH and
Ec of the nutrient solution.
• Energy inputs are necessary to run the
system.
• Yields were found to decrease
w h e n temperature of the solution rises
during warm
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

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