Starting Small – What Hydroponic Beginners Typically Grow First Hydroponics is the concept of soil less gardening. The word hydroponics comes from two Greek words, “hydro” meaning water and “ponics” meaning labor. This concept has been around for thousands of years and many countries, including China, Holland, Germany, and Australia have used hydroponics for crop production with results that are quite amazing. The greatest advantage to hydroponics is the overall outcome of the plants, which will be of better quality and are much healthier. Gardeners can give nature a helping hand while enjoying the therapeutic benefits of their garden. Gardeners will be able to watch the spectacular improvements that growing hydroponically can bring to their garden. Educators have also begun to realize the amazing applications that hydroponics can have in the classroom. Many gardeners have made their dreams come true by making their living in their backyard greenhouse and selling their produce to local restaurants and markets. The potential of hydroponic culture is incredible, but commercial hydroponics in the United States was held back until hydroponic systems that were economical to build and relatively easy to operate became available in the marketplace. Once the batch has stopped bubbling the fermentation process has ceased and another batch will need to be made in order to continue the production of carbon dioxide. The use of decomposing organic matter is rarely used indoors because of the odor and it is unsanitary because of the bugs it attracts. It can be used outdoors in a greenhouse but the bug problem and their potential diseases need to be addressed in order to save your plants from their adverse effects. Because of this reason, different pH levels for nutrient uptake are needed for each type of growing medium. Maintaining the proper pH level in the nutrient reservoir is most likely the single most critical factor to successful hydroponic gardening. If the pH factor goes too high or too low, the plants will not do well and will show confusing signs or nutrient deficiencies. Hydroponics is also environmentally sound. The water consumption in hydroponic growing is significantly less than traditional growth methods; in many cases, hydroponic crops use a tenth of the water of equivalent traditional crops. Also, the water that is used is used more effectively; in hydroponics, weeds do not steal part of the crop’s water supply.