Hydroponics - My first Attempt

Hydroponics - My first Attempt At Kratky System

Before I set up my hydroponics system at the farm I wanted to try my hand at it. To understand it better and make all the mistakes I needed to make while my investments were small. And so started my small experiment in what I call my green-home-lab.

I started from scratch, which meant, starting all the way from sowing and germinating seeds organically, to setting up my system. You can read all about the method I followed for seed germination in my blog by following the link above. For my experiment, I used Jalapaneo and tomato seedlings which I grew from seed.

Kratky system is one of the simplest hydroponic methods of growing food. This involves growing plants in still clean water by adding organic nutrients in intervals and aerating the water at regular intervals. Here is a step-by-step process of setting up your first Kratky system

Step 1
Get online or hop to your nearest gardening equipment store and get your self some net cups, cocopeat, hydroponics nutrients, and small clay balls - these would be needed to support the plant as it grows.

Step 2
Preparing the container to grow your plants. You could use a mason jar or old pet bottles. Select the jar in such a way that your net cup fits well at its mouth. The net cup shouldn't slip into the jar nor should it stand out above the jar. The rim of the net cup should sit firmly on the rim of your mason jar's mouth. Incase you are using pet bottles, carefully cut the top of the bottle so that the net cup sits on its rim well. See the image below to help you get an idea.
Now cover the outer surface of your container with silver foil so that no sunlight can reach the roots once you have planted your sapling. This is important because if sunlight starts getting to the water it can promote the growth of harmful bacteria and algae which would lead to root-rot and eventually decaying of your plant.

Once this is done your container is ready to be used

Container Preparation For Kratky System - Hydroponics 

Step 3 
Once your seedling has grown two to three true leaves it is ready to be transplanted. Add a few clay balls to the base of the net cup then add in your seedling and pack the sides with a bit of coco peat and clay balls. Now you fill your Kratky container prepared earlier with RO water and add in the nutrients as per the instructions on the nutrient box's cover. The nutrients ware mainly NPK mix and Epsom salt. Next, gently place the net cup with the plant on to the month of your jar.

And that its. Place the jar either under LED lights or at a place where you don't have strong sunlight. Ensure you aerate the water using a simple aquarium air pump every day for at least 20 - 30 minutes (if not more)

A few things to be cautious about ....ensure water stays clean. If you see the water clouding or the roots turning a dirt brown it means there is some bacterial activity on. Change the water immediately.
And if needed clip the brown roots.
The root system should be healthy and white

That’s how I set up my Kratky system and now I have healthy Jalapeños and tomato plants