As far as hydroponics are concerned, one of the most important factors is nutrition. Your hydroponic plants, whether tomatoes, cannabis, or anything in between, require nutrients. Not just any nutrients either, because they have to be the right kind.
In hydroponic gardening, plants don’t get their nutrients from soil, but directly from water. This means you need to figure out the best method to provide nutrients to your hydroponic plants
The issue is that there are two main types of nutrients you can use, dry soluble powder nutrients and liquid fertilizers. So, what are these, what are their benefits, and how do they stack up against each other? Let’s figure out whether you want dry soluble powder nutrients or liquid fertilizers.
What is Dry Soluble Powder?
First, we have dry soluble powder nutrients, which as the name implies, are hydroponic nutrients that come in the form of a dry powder that must then be mixed with water before it can be given to plants.
These fertilizers are highly concentrated and need to be mixed with water before use. They provide a crucial blend of nutrients essential for your plants to grow well, including nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and other microelements.
What Does Soluble Mean?
The term “soluble” simply refers to any substance that can be dissolved in a solvent, with the result being a homogenous solution, which means that the mixture appears to be one single substance. In other words, it refers to how well something can dissolve in a liquid.
In hydroponics, fertilizers must dissolve completely in water or the nutrient solution to ensure plants can absorb the necessary nutrients. Additionally, if you’re using a drip irrigation or dosing system, it’s important to ensure the nutrients are fully dissolved. If not, undissolved particles can clog the tubing and drippers, disrupting the flow of nutrients to the plants.
If the nutrients are not fully dissolved, plants cannot absorb them, and if nutrients are not soluble, it means that they cannot dissolve in water.
3 Main Advantages of Using Dry Soluble Powder Fertilizers for Growing Hydroponics
There are some advantages of using dry soluble powder fertilizers in hydroponic systems worth considering, mainly their cost-effectiveness, customizability, and Sustainability. Let’s take a look at why you might choose dry powder nutrients for your hydroponics system.
Cost
Dry soluble powder fertilizers tend to be quite cost-effective, which is thanks to various factors. First, dry powder nutrients are highly concentrated, which means that a little bit goes a long way, resulting in a low cost per gallon of nutrient solution.
Next, because they are so concentrated, it means that they come in lightweight and compact packages, therefore reducing shipping and handling costs, savings that translate to the consumer.
Finally, dry powder fertilizers have a great shelf life, so they won’t go bad quickly. They can stay stable for years, so you don’t have to worry about an expiry date.
Customizability
A benefit of dry soluble powder nutrients is that you can easily create a custom nutrient mix to suit your needs, no matter the growth stage of the plant in question, allowing for optimized plant growth.
On that note, measuring dry powders is also very easy. Precision is very important when mixing nutrients and putting them in a hydroponic system. Too little or too much can have disastrous consequences, so being able to precisely mix custom ratios is essential.
Simplicity
Following the instructions on a feeding chart for a nutrient line that is divided into several parts is straightforward. Unlike liquid nutrients, where the order of mixing can be crucial, in this case, you typically do not need to worry about mixing the parts in any specific order. In most situations, all you need is a scale to measure the required amount of each part in grams. Then, add these measured amounts to water as the feeding chart directs. After adding the nutrients to the water, it is important to mix everything thoroughly to ensure that the nutrients are completely dissolved. This method simplifies the process of providing the right nutrition to your plants without the complexity associated with managing multiple liquid nutrients.
How to Use Dry Powder Nutrients in Dosing Systems Like Growee
Using powder nutrients is becoming increasingly popular in hydroponics, and it’s essential to know how to use them correctly, especially with drip irrigation and automated dosing systems like Growee. Growee is a smart hydroponics control platform designed for both small-scale and home growers. It allows you to monitor water, balance pH, and mix nutrients automatically from anywhere using its smart dosing systems and a mobile/web app.
Disclaimer: This information is provided for educational purposes only and is not an endorsement of any specific product. Outcomes may vary based on environmental conditions and other factors. Always follow the nutrient manufacturer’s guidelines and consider your unique growing conditions.
How to Use Powder Nutrients with Growee Doser:
- Dissolve the Nutrients: Begin by dissolving each part of the powder nutrient into liquid, preferably using RO (Reverse Osmosis) water. This creates a concentrated stock solution for each nutrient part, which will later be used with the Growee doser.
- Dissolved Ratio: This refers to the amount of powder nutrient you need to dissolve per amount of water in the tank. Follow the specific instructions provided by the nutrient company, as each has its own recommended ratios for dissolving their products.
Example Instructions:
Using Advanced Nutrients Dry Fertilizers with Growee:
- Feeding Chart Phases: The chart is divided into grow and bloom phases. Use the appropriate fertilizers for each phase as recommended.
- Dissolving Ratios: According to Advanced Nutrients, dissolve 1lb of the soluble powder with 1 gallon of water for each part needed.
- Setting Up Growee: For a specific week, say week 4, if the chart recommends 6g/gal of bloom and 3g/gal of base, set up the Growee dosing to match these ratios (6 for part A and 3 for part B) along with your desired EC range. The system doses in intervals, maintaining the ratio until reaching the desired range. Ensure the stock tank is well mixed.
Using Athena Pro Line Dry Fertilizers with Growee:
- Feeding Chart Phases: The Athena Pro Line chart has Clone, Veg, and Flower phases over a 9-week feeding program, using 3 out of the 4 parts most weeks.
- Dissolving Ratios: Mix 1lb of powder per gallon of water for standard concentration. For a more concentrated solution, you can use 2lb/gallon or 2.5lb/gallon.
- Setting Up Growee: For instance, in week 4, if the recommendation is 7.7g/gal from Pro Grow, 4.6g/gal from Pro Core, and 2ml/gallon from Cleanse, set up the Growee dosing to match these ratios (7.7 for part A, 4.6 for part C, and 2 for part D). The system will dose at intervals to maintain these ratios until the desired range is achieved.
- Use the Growee pH balancer to set up the desired pH range according to Athena Pro Line’s targets for each week. Ensure the stock tank is well mixed.
By following these steps and setting up your Growee system according to the specific nutrient line’s recommendations, you can ensure your plants receive the right nutrition throughout their growth cycles
What Are Liquid Nutrients for Hydroponics?
Liquid nutrients in hydroponics are special types of nutrients that come pre-mixed in liquid form. These are bottles of liquid nutrients that contain all of the most important macronutrients and micronutrients that your plants need to thrive.
Traditionally, liquid nutrients have been preferred by many growers when using a hydroponic system, as there are many liquid fertilizers designed specifically for hydroponics.
They mix easily with your current watering system and allow for great consistency. Many people like these nutrients because they don’t first have to be dissolved in water, like dry powder nutrients.
What Do the Numbers on Nutrients Mean?
The numbers on the liquid nutrient label refer to the amount or ratio of the main components contained in them. Generally, these are the NPK nutrients, or nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, the three macronutrients that are most important for plant growth.
Each number represents the percentage of each mineral or substance contained in the liquid nutrients. For instance, if the bottle says 5-5-5, it will mean that the liquid nutrients contain 5% nitrogen, 5% phosphorus, and 5% potassium. This is very important, because plants require different amounts of these nutrients during various growth stages.
3 Main Advantages of Using Pre-Mixed Liquid Nutrients for Hydroponics
Just like powder nutrients have their advantages, so do liquid nutrients for hydroponics. So, what are these benefits?
Easy to Use
Perhaps the biggest benefit here is that pre-mixed liquid nutrients are very easy to use. They are already mixed, they have the right ratios, and plants can easily absorb these kinds of nutrients. Not only does this help you save time, but it also allows for much greater precision. Precise dosage is very important, as too little or too much can have negative consequences.
They’re Consistent
Pre-mixed liquid nutrients for hydroponics systems are very uniform and consistent. They are mixed with machines, so you know that every bottle is the same as the last, and the liquid in the top of one bottle is the same as the liquid in the bottom. If you expect stable plant growth, nutrient delivery needs to be consistent, something that liquid mixes allow for.
Quick Absorption
The other benefit of using liquid nutrients for hydroponics is that they are readily available to plants. Because plants can absorb these nutrients so quickly, it allows you to deal with nutrient deficiencies in a timely manner. Being so bioavailable to plants also allows for faster growth and higher yields.
How to Use Liquid Nutrients in Dosing Systems Like Growee
Using liquid nutrients in your hydroponic system with a smart dosing system like Growee is straightforward. Think of it as having an automatic helper that precisely adds the right amount of nutrients to your plants, following the feeding chart, but without the risk of adding too much at once.
Here’s a Quick Way to Use the General Hydroponics Flora Series with Growee:
- Choose Your Nutrients: For this example, we’re using the General Hydroponics Flora Series, which includes FloraGrow, FloraMicro, and FloraBloom.
- Pick the Right Equipment: The Growee Pro Combo is perfect for this setup because it has 4 nutrient dosing pumps and a system to balance the pH.
- Follow the Feeding Chart: If we’re going for a light feed, the instructions might say to use 1.8 parts of each FloraGrow, FloraMicro, and FloraBloom, aiming for an EC range of 0.9-1.1.
- Set the feedchart data in the Growee App: Enter these details into the Smart Dosing feature of the Growee App. This will ensure your plants get the right amount of nutrients without going overboard.
For a step-by-step guide:
How Does Adding Nutrients Affect the pH of the Water?
Interesting to note is that adding nutrients to water can affect the pH in both ways. The pH scale goes from 1 to 14, with 1 being acidic and 14 being alkaline or basic. Some nutrients, such as those that feature ammonium-based nitrogen, can make a water more acidic, or in other words, decrease the pH level.
On the other hand, some nutrients, like potassium and calcium nitrate, can cause a rise in pH levels, or in other words, make the water more basic. For the record, cannabis plants usually prefer their water to be on the slightly acidic side of things, upwards of 5.8, but lower than 6.5.
This is why it’s so important to have a good nutrient mixing system, something that can automatically tell you what the pH of your nutrient solution is, and then adjust on its own, without you having to do any of the hard work.
How Growee Saves Time When Mixing Nutrients
Speaking of using a nutrient mixing system to save time, that’s exactly what you get with the Growee Pro Combo. This is a fantastic time saving system, a fully automated nutrient mixing and delivery solution for all of your hydroponic needs.
The Growee Pro eliminates the need for you to manually mix nutrients and to monitor the pH level. The Growee Pro automatically mixes your nutrients according to the appropriate dosage, and automatically measures and adjusts the pH for you as well.
Growee also helps save time thanks to the Growee app, which allows you to keep track of the progress of your plants, eliminating the need for manual tracking and journals.
Conclusion
The bottom line is that if you want to make your life easier and more cost-effective, and you want reliable nutrient delivery for your hydroponic plants, then the Growee Automated Hydroponic System is for you!
