The agriculture industry has been debating the pros and cons of hydroponics vs. traditional farming for many years. Is hydroponic agriculture superior to conventional agriculture? Let’s examine closely hydroponic farm system expenses and other elements that can influence your choice.
Comparing hydroponics to traditional agricultural methods, hydroponics is less expensive and yields a higher volume of production.
The biggest drawback of hydroponics is that they necessitate a lot of energy to function properly, but in the long term, it pays off because hydroponic farms can typically generate ten times as much as a standard farm.
Farmers have depended on traditional farming methods to generate amazing harvests for decades. Nonetheless, some farmers are adopting hydroponics as their new preferred agricultural technique.
Even with agricultural advancements like better tools, better irrigation systems, and genetically modified seeds, traditional farming practices still fall short of the astounding results achieved with hydroponic gardening.
Many people believe that vertical hydroponic systems are the future. They enable farmers to grow a lot of wholesome fruits and vegetables in a small area.
To understand why so many contemporary farmers are adopting hydroponic farming techniques, let’s compare hydroponics vs. traditional farming practices.
Contents
Hydroponics: What is it?
Hydroponic farming is the cultivation of plants without the use of soil. With water-based mineral fertilizer solutions, roots develop in place of soil.
Hydroponics systems come in a variety of forms. Ebb and flow system and nutrient film technology are two examples. Different aggregates, also known as growing mediums, are used according to the system you employ. They may include coconut coir, clay pellets, and other materials.
In hydroponics, plants are fed a nutrient solution as they grow. With a blend of vitamins and minerals, this liquid feeds the roots.
It has nitrogen, phosphorus, and calcium in it. It is to the soil what fertilizer is.
Depending on the type of plant you are growing, there are various nutrients. Individuals may purchase chemical solutions or produce nutrient-rich solutions themselves. Growing plants in water rather than in soil allows individuals to control the environment for more rapid growth and frequently higher yields with careful monitoring.
Less water is needed to grow food thanks to hydroponics. Because hydroponics requires less water than soil for plant growth, many people prefer it. It’s an excellent option for places lacking access to water. Also, you won’t need to think about planting a garden in an area with poor soil if you use hydroponics.
The ability to grow in tough climes or unpredictable weather is another benefit of using hydroponics rather than traditional farming. You might be capable of cultivating hydroponically outside all year long if you live in a temperate climate region.
If your area has four distinct seasons, you can either build up a hydroponic greenhouse system or grow indoors in your home under grow lights. You’ll be able to reap crops all year long in this way.
Think about the garden’s aesthetic appeal while deciding between hydroponics vs. traditional farming.
Hydroponics vs. traditional farming
Hydroponics has a lot of important advantages, even though some people may find it easier to grow things with more conventional methods. With hydroponics, crop rotation is not a concern when growing and regrowing. Listed below are some explanations of why cultivating a garden hydroponically is a great alternative to utilizing traditional farming.
Space requirements
Whether you want to cultivate in the ground or a garden bed, traditional farming requires a sizable amount of yard space. However, for the same yield, hydroponics requires less area than pots and planter-grown crops.
Hydroponic farming allows for more growth in less area. The reason for this is that the plant can obtain the nutrients it requires without the aid of soil. The plant is instead given the remedy that has been developed for it. Long roots, like those found in soil, are not necessary because of this.
You require less space because the plants don’t depend on the soil to deliver nutrients to them. The plant can grow successfully as long as there is enough for both the mineral solution and the plant.
Vertical farming is a common term for hydroponics. This is due to the characteristic vertical, stacked layer configuration of hydroponic systems. In hydroponic vertical farms, you can grow up instead of horizontally, which optimizes both space and plant development.
The majority of installations are vertical when self-creating hydroponic growing systems. As a result, rather than using up extra ground space, rows of containers would be stacked up and down. The plant determines how much space is required. To produce numerous lettuce heads hydroponically, for instance, you would require a minimum of a few feet of unused soil.
The fertilizer solution only needs to be held in a few rows of piping using hydroponics, on the other hand. You will be able to fit more lettuce in one foot thanks to this. For each plant you cultivate, you can thus conserve a few feet of space.
The ability to cultivate the plants closer together is also available. As a result, you’ll already be conserving room while having more plants in a smaller area.
Plants nutrition
The nutrition your plants receive is another aspect to consider when contrasting traditional farming vs. hydroponics. You can adjust the nutritional needs of the specific plant you are growing with hydroponics.
You must choose from a variety of possibilities and improve the soil when you practice traditional farming.
There is topsoil, common dirt, soil that has been modified with compost, and more.
Even after adding potting soil, peat moss, vermiculite, manure, composted mulch, filler soil, and other ingredients to the soil to enhance it, you might not have the same access to the best nutrients as you would with hydroponics.
Consumption of water
There isn’t always easy access to water. Also, it’s a natural resource that, if you cultivate a lot of plants, can be expensive. Growing hydroponically rather than with traditional farming can be a preferable option if you don’t have a rainwater collection system.
More plants can be grown with hydroponics with less water. The environment will benefit from the water savings, and your water bills will remain low. Compared to a traditional farm, a hydroponic farm can use up to ten times less water, in turn avoiding wasting too much water and preventing the plant from receiving more than it needs.
This is because the nutrient container’s reservoir system retains the nutrients there. The remainder of the nutrients is kept there until the plant has enough of them. In addition, there is no evaporation because the sun shades the reservoir. You need to be cautious not to overwater or underwater when doing traditional farming.
Water conservation is more important than ever, with a large portion of the world’s population experiencing drought. Even though the fact that plants are grown on water and nutrients rather than on a traditional farm in hydroponic farming, the method is excellent for conserving water.
Compared to conventional methods, hydroponic farming consumes 99 percent less water. Contrary to traditional farming, where the water is removed due to evaporation, the nutrients and water are provided directly to the root systems of the plants and subsequently recycled. In regions that are facing extreme drought, hydroponics is a viable solution.
Weeding
Since there is no soil in the garden, there won’t be any weeds, which is another advantage of hydroponic gardening. Weeds can only thrive in soil. They cannot exist without soil to develop in. Weeds are not only an annoyance, but they also steal nutrients from your plants.
You won’t be concerned about weeding with hydroponics. Your plants will also grow better because weeds won’t be utilizing some of their nutrients.
Critters and insects
In traditional farming, insects frequently attack plants. Growing in soil can attract insects, depending on your soil and the plants you are cultivating. If you don’t inspect your plants every day, insects could invade them and consume your produce.
This also applies to predators attacking your garden. Plants, leaves, and fruits, in your soil garden, can be eaten by rabbits, birds, ground squirrels, raccoons, and other creatures. These pests are frequently more difficult to control than insects.
As a result, one downside of hydroponics vs. traditional farming is that you attract more creatures and insects when growing in soil. Your hydroponic garden is probably nearer to your house or maybe within it. There is most likely no danger of infections if you are practicing indoor farming.
There is less opportunity for insects and other creatures to devour the hydroponic farm plants if it is outside. Hydroponics does, however, provide a risk of pathogenic and other damaging organisms invading the roots. In the nutrition system, dangerous bacteria and other diseases can cause root rotting, wilting, and other problems.
Time
Your plants grow more quickly if you use hydroponics. As a result, you may receive more than one harvest over the plant’s growing season.
You can tell immediately if something is off if this is the case because plants grow. Making changes, therefore, have quicker results as well, and you can determine what is effective and what isn’t.
Hydroponics allows some plants, like lettuce, to be cultivated and harvested twice as quickly as employing traditional farming practices. You might be able to enjoy healthy cuisine conveniently and save a lot of money on groceries.
Decreased food waste
Vegetables and fruits cultivated hydroponically are wonderfully fresh and typically reach the market 2 days after harvest. When you bring them home, they are fresher and have a longer shelf life. There is a lot less food waste when farming is done hydroponically.
View of the garden
The appearance of the garden is one aspect where individuals could prefer to view a conventional earth garden.
Soil-grown plants can have a lush, vivid appearance.
It might be quite beautiful to look at. But a hydroponic farm appears more functional. Instead of cultivating in a garden bed surrounded by nature, it has a more industrial and practical appearance.
Hydroponics vs. traditional farming methods. Which is pricier?
Several important variables affect how much hydroponics vs. traditional farming costs. But generally speaking, hydroponics costs a little more overall.
Yet, this is only a quick peek, so be cautious. Your garden’s size is a significant aspect. It is probably more economical if your hydroponic farm is bigger. It is more expensive to use a smaller hydroponic farm compared to traditional farming.
The equipment and system for hydroponics require some initial costs, but once set up, you can utilize it for several years. Costs for LED grow lights are also included in the initial costs.
You could incur costs when using traditional methods for gardening. You must prepare a space for your garden. The construction of a raised garden bed is expensive. You might have to bring in some soil. A method to protect your garden from animals could cost money.
Hydroponic farming requires continual expenses, which you must account for. Your choice of growing media determines this. You are also responsible for the price of the plant-feeding fertilizer solution. The constant cost of electricity to run the vertical garden is another expense when growing hydroponically. Solar power for grow lights can also be available.
If you decide to use store-bought compost, worm castings, organic fertilizer, or mulch to improve the soil, additional costs are incurred. Soil gardens cost more as a result of all of these. To save money, get mulch from your backyard and start your compost pile.
With traditional methods, you need to budget for any additional items you might need to purchase or construct, like trellises, stakes, and shade structures.
The types of plants you are cultivating should also be taken into account when comparing hydroponics vs. traditional farming and their expenses. Certain plants require further attention. A hydroponic farm might make it more economical to grow these plants.
If you select the vegetables that are the simplest to cultivate in a conventional garden, they won’t require a lot of time and work. It might be less expensive due to how quickly they grow in soil.
Is food produced hydroponically better for you?
The quick answer is that foods grown hydroponically might be better for you than foods grown through traditional practices. This is so that plants can be protected from insects and infections without the use of pesticides, which are unnecessary when grown indoors in a controlled environment.
Farms are allowed to be located in areas with unfavorable weather and soil conditions for conventional food production, thanks to indoor farming in a climate-controlled environment.
More supervision of nutrient levels and water is another advantage of indoor farming. When done correctly, this can also guarantee a yield of higher quality compared to what you’d get from conventional agricultural methods.
Despite all of this, purchasing food at the supermarket or farmers’ market is far less expensive in the long term than using hydroponic farms, which are pricey and require electricity.
Is soil a viable option for hydroponics as a growing medium?
We frequently see this query, even though using soil in a soil-less growth method seems quite contradicting.
It is possible to grow plants hydroponically using soil, technically. You shouldn’t, though, for a variety of reasons.
Because the grower adds nutrients to the water, hydroponic growing media, for instance, do not include any nutrients.
By interfering with the nutrients that are accessible to the plants, using soil lessens the grower’s ability to control the system.
As a result, you run the risk of either fertilizing your plants too much, which could burn them with nutrients, or too little, which could impede their growth. Furthermore, they need to be as hygienic and clean as possible.
However, fungi, insects, and bacteria found in soil are frequently transmitted readily through a hydroponic system and can harm your plants.
Try using coco coir if you want to utilize anything that resembles soil.
FAQ
Why is hydroponics better than traditional farming?
Because of the vertical stacking in hydroponic farms, more can be grown in less space. Moreover, you can manage the nutrients given to the plants, plants in hydroponic farms typically develop more quickly than those cultivated with traditional farming.
The hydroponic garden requires electricity, which costs money. Energy charges apply if grow lights are required as well.
Also, traditional farming is preferable for some crop production as opposed to hydroponically. Choose the plant you wish to grow and make sure it can be grown hydroponically. Plants grown hydroponically can be grown more quickly, with far less water, and in a smaller area compared to growing using traditional farming.
What are 4 disadvantages of using hydroponics in farming?
Crops grown in hydroponic farms may cost up to twice as much to produce as those grown in conventional soil pots. Each component that makes up the hydroponic system is an extra cost. The initial expense is frequently the greatest deterrent for farmers in the agriculture industry to use this gardening technique.
Detailed work
The hydroponic system necessitates commitment and meticulousness. You must test and keep track of the pH and nutrient levels in the water. It can take a few hours each month to adjust and replace the chemicals in the hydroponic reservoirs.
Hydroponic farming is not healthier than traditional farming
Some people believe hydroponic agriculture to be healthier than conventional earth cultivation. Hydroponically grown plants, however, do not bear the designation “organic,” as they make use of nutrient solutions that are chemically manufactured.
Greater technical skills are required
Hydroponically growing food can initially be difficult. It necessitates meticulously monitoring the pH levels of the nutrition solution and meticulously adhering to all directions. The chemicals may injure the plants and cause harm to humans when we consume them, so the stakes might be quite high.
A hydroponics system also contains plenty of interconnected pipes and cables that could cause an electrocution or trip danger.
What are the 3 main disadvantages of hydroponic farming?
Water-borne illnesses
When hydroponically grown plants are cultivated in water rather than soil, the prevalence of waterborne infections is much higher. Infections can swiftly spread, thereby impacting the entire collection of plants, due to the system’s continual water circulation.
Concerns about water and air pollution are ongoing. Food recalls, as a result of serious food-borne illnesses, are becoming more often as a result of open-air farming. Under extreme circumstances, a waterborne illness can quickly eliminate all the crops in a hydroponics system.
Susceptible to blackouts
Soil is not required in a hydroponic system. To reduce their reliance on fossil fuels as a source of energy, many hydroponic growers are also using solar energy for their greenhouses.
The various parts of passive and active hydroponics systems, including water pumps, grow lights, aerators, and fans are all powered by electricity. Thus, the entire system will be impacted by a power loss. If a power outage in an active system is not observed by the grower, it could be harmful to the plants.
Plants are more vulnerable to problems
The soil shields the roots from sudden temperature fluctuations deter disease and pest invasion and absorbs nutrients regularly. Plants produced in hydroponic meth respond poorly to issues like nutrient deficits and illness much more quickly because there is no soil to serve as a buffer.
Can hydroponics replace traditional farming?
Unfortunately, some of the largest commodity crops, such as corn, cannot be grown successfully in a hydroponic system. Also, the initial investment in hydroponic farming is much higher than that of conventional farming.
Hence, switching to hydroponic farming may not always be feasible for farmers. Hydroponics, on the other hand, is a fantastic addition to conventional farming because traditional farming is not always practicable for urban and indoor farming.
Conclusion
Growing plants hydroponically inside is a productive method that offers several advantages. Without using pesticides, it enables gardeners to cultivate nutrient-rich plants much more quickly. Although it has some downsides, they are outweighed by its advantages. After reading our article, hopefully, you have a better understanding of both farming methods.
Learn More: Hydroponics vs. Traditional Farming
