Tuesday, October 27, 2009

General Hydroponics Growing And Disease Prevention

Though hydroponics has many advantages over traditional soil growing, plants grown hydroponically are still subject to the same kind of diseases of soil-based plants. One of the biggest factors that determine your success in general hydroponics growing may very well be what steps you take to make sure your plants stay uninfected. If you take the following measures, your odds of having to deal with an epidemic in your grow room will decrease dramatically.

Keep Your Grow Room Clean - Old trimmings that are lying on the floor or in the cracks of your growing medium can be an invitation to disease. Make sure you follow up every pruning session by clearing away all the removed foliage. You should also make sure to thoroughly clean out or completely replace your growing medium after every growing season.

Isopropyl alcohol should be a regular presence in your gardening closet. Regularly wipe down your tools, tubing, and containers. This will kill off any nasty bacterial or viral diseases before they get chance to ruin your plants.

Handle Plants With Care - Much like open wounds on a person can become easily infected because of the easier access that bacteria have to the body, cuts and scrapes on your plants can also make your plants more easily fall ill. Even very clean, intentional cuts that are conducted in general hydroponics growing can make your plants more prone to disease. Regularly examine your plants for cuts and cover them up with a pruning cleanup substance.

Contain small problems before they become large problems - If you notice one of your plants developing the symptoms of a bacterial or viral disease, quickly quarantine that plant. It may seem like a pain to have to go through the steps necessary to transfer that plant to a new grow area, but it will probably save you a lot of hassle if you can prevent the infection of the entire crop.

Keep all Soil Out - General hydroponics growing is typically more disease free than traditional growing, because many of the worst plant diseases lurk in the soil. But soil can sometimes still find its way into your grow trays, so make sure you take steps to eliminate all dirt. When transferring a plant from a soil garden to your hydroponic system, rinse the roots thoroughly. You should also perhaps use a bit of organic fungicide on all outside plants before introducing them to your garden to reduce the chances of fungal infection.

Keep an Eye on Bugs - Bugs don't just wreck your system by feeding off of your plants, they can also be carriers of nasty diseases. Learn to identify the signs of a bug infestation early, and handle it before it gets out of control.

Stick to the Basics - The things that you do to increase the size of you buds, improve the flavor of your vegetables, and increase your yields are the exact same thing that will help prevent disease. Keeping your nutrient solution's pH well regulated, making sure your plant receives optimal nutrients, and keeping an eye on the heat and humidity will not just be a boon come harvest time, they will also boost the collective immune system of your crop.



Sunday, September 6, 2009

General Hydroponics

General Hydroponics was established in 1970's by a group of innovative scientists, engineers and technicians with a view to take forward the revolutionary concept of Hydroponics. Today General hydroponics is a leading name in the hydroponics field. They have factories all over North America and Europe. Hydroponic cultivation by NASA on the International Space Station is done with assistance from General Hydroponics.

Hydroponics is an innovative technique for soil-less cultivation of plants in nutrient rich solutions. Hydroponics has some typical advantages over the conventional methods like the plants are healthier and grow mature early. They require less space and even if the gardener is out for a long time the plants don't suffer. Hydroponics consume less space and water.

General Hydroponics products are used for hi-tech gardening, commercial crop production and for agricultural experiments in laboratories and Universities across the globe. The scientist and nutritionists at General Hydroponics are currently developing new hydroponic systems and perfecting nutrient formulas. These techniques and nutrient formulae will enhance yield, flavor and vitamin & mineral content in food crops. The Farm Division at General Hydroponics is testing many varieties of plants for growth rate, yield, flavor, nutrition, appearance, shelf life and hydroponic viability. Various techniques for growing top-quality crops of higher nutritional value are in experimental stages.

Three basic hydroponics techniques are used by General Hydroponics. In the first one, called nutrient film technique, roots of plants are suspended in nutrient mixture containing trough. The second one called aeroponics includes suspension of plants in mist and nutrients are supplied through an air pump. The third technique is aggregate system. The roots of plants are placed between inert materials like clay pebbles or foam chips dipped in nutrient solution. Since hydroponics are not grown in soil they rely on nutrient solution mixed in water for their growth. Standard fertilizers are simply inadequate for them. Thus specially formulated fertilizers like General Hydroponics Nutrients are used for them. These are hydroponic fertilizer mixtures used under pH buffer of pH range 5 to 6. The nutrient mixture is changed every two weeks and during this time only more water is added to the plant. This is so because if the concentration of nutrient solution rises above a certain level this might burn the plant roots. General Hydroponics Nutrients are reliable, adaptable and pH buffered hydroponic nutrients. NASA uses their Flora-Series for space flight experiments.



General Hydroponics Growing And Disease Prevention

Though hydroponics has many advantages over traditional soil growing, plants grown hydroponically are still subject to the same kind of diseases of soil-based plants. One of the biggest factors that determine your success in general hydroponics growing may very well be what steps you take to make sure your plants stay uninfected. If you take the following measures, your odds of having to deal with an epidemic in your grow room will decrease dramatically.

Keep Your Grow Room Clean - Old trimmings that are lying on the floor or in the cracks of your growing medium can be an invitation to disease. Make sure you follow up every pruning session by clearing away all the removed foliage. You should also make sure to thoroughly clean out or completely replace your growing medium after every growing season.

Isopropyl alcohol should be a regular presence in your gardening closet. Regularly wipe down your tools, tubing, and containers. This will kill off any nasty bacterial or viral diseases before they get chance to ruin your plants.

Handle Plants With Care - Much like open wounds on a person can become easily infected because of the easier access that bacteria have to the body, cuts and scrapes on your plants can also make your plants more easily fall ill. Even very clean, intentional cuts that are conducted in general hydroponics growing can make your plants more prone to disease. Regularly examine your plants for cuts and cover them up with a pruning cleanup substance.

Contain small problems before they become large problems - If you notice one of your plants developing the symptoms of a bacterial or viral disease, quickly quarantine that plant. It may seem like a pain to have to go through the steps necessary to transfer that plant to a new grow area, but it will probably save you a lot of hassle if you can prevent the infection of the entire crop.

Keep all Soil Out - General hydroponics growing is typically more disease free than traditional growing, because many of the worst plant diseases lurk in the soil. But soil can sometimes still find its way into your grow trays, so make sure you take steps to eliminate all dirt. When transferring a plant from a soil garden to your hydroponic system, rinse the roots thoroughly. You should also perhaps use a bit of organic fungicide on all outside plants before introducing them to your garden to reduce the chances of fungal infection.

Keep an Eye on Bugs - Bugs don't just wreck your system by feeding off of your plants, they can also be carriers of nasty diseases. Learn to identify the signs of a bug infestation early, and handle it before it gets out of control.

Stick to the Basics - The things that you do to increase the size of you buds, improve the flavor of your vegetables, and increase your yields are the exact same thing that will help prevent disease. Keeping your nutrient solution's pH well regulated, making sure your plant receives optimal nutrients, and keeping an eye on the heat and humidity will not just be a boon come harvest time, they will also boost the collective immune system of your crop.



Hydroponic Gardens "Grow" Crazy With General Hydroponics Nutrients

General Hydroponics Inc. is one of the more venerable players in the field, having been around since the 1970s. General Hydroponics nutrients have the distinction of being the first such fertilizers to be used off-planet; General Hydroponics products have been used by NASA for the hydroponic gardens aboard the International Space Station.


Unlike FoxFarm, which caters primarily to traditional outdoor gardeners, General Hydroponics specializes in and markets to hydroponic gardeners, and the company's products are engineered specifically for hydroponic applications. Located just north of San Francisco in one of the premier agricultural regions of California, General Hydroponics maintains a 45,000 square foot facility where new systems and fertilizers are constantly being tested and improved. In addition, this company offers a full line of equipment and other accessories for the hydroponic gardener, including controllers, pumps and replacement parts for various elements of the hydroponic system. The company website itself is an excellent resource for anyone interested in this type of production, including an online "nutrient calculator" to assist in determining the needs of specific plants.

Consumer response to General Hydroponics nutrients has been positive. One of the features of General Hydroponics products is that unlike many such nutrients, they are simple and easy to use. Whereas many such products are two and three-part solutions that require careful mixing, this company's products are one-part nutrients, making the overall process much less complicated in general. Hydroponic gardeners who have reviewed General Hydroponic's products note that they are extremely concentrated; at least one reviewer described the product as "heavy" and "like chocolate tar" - you won't need to use much, but you will require a blender or a good solid whisk in order to emulsify General Hydroponics nutrients properly.

In addition to their semi-liquid products, General Hydroponics manufactures a powdered product known as Kool Bloom. This product is engineered to promote flowering in such plants, particularly tomatoes, by increasing the amount of phosphorus and potassium that is available. Again, consumers report amazing results, but like many General Hydroponics nutrients, a little goes a very long way; overuse of this substance can result in "bloom burn." Nonetheless, these are excellent products in general; hydroponic farmers will find little to complain about when it comes to products made by General Hydroponics, provided they are used judiciously and according to instructions.