As the prices for food rise and will keep rising I think it makes common sense to at least try to grow your own food. With a little knowledge and some love you can grow a garden that will put food on your table. It is not going to get any cheaper to feed a family of four and in these days saving money is no laughing matter for those who are trying to make ends meet.
At this time I know of four ways to grow and each one has it's benefits and draw backs. No matter what plants need water sunshine and the appropriate amount of nutrients and minerals to grow to their fullest potential. A green plant is a healthy plant.
Aquaponics is one of the newest ways I have seen and read about. It is a hydroponic process by moving water that is airriated with the key ingredient fish. The idea is awesome as you can have a fish farm and a plant farm. Feed the fish and the fish feed the plants. It really is a ecologically-green method that has a great potential on a large scale. It really doesn't make it easy for someone living in an apartment complex to grow plants.
Growing in soil is okay and works. Don't get me wrong but growing out of soil can be confusing when you don't know what your soil has in it or the lack of. I have grown out of soil for years and sometimes I have great results and sometimes not so great. I have to blame it on just not knowing what is in the soil. Growing out of dirt is a slow process to the technologies we have figured out to growing a healthy plant.
Hydroponics has by far been the Holy Grail to growing with water and nutrients. The popularity has grown in the last few years and has proven to give the results people look for out of growing. It is fast and calculating for the Indoor Gardner and it is being expanded to outdoors as well. I think that is where aquaponics came from as rain water doesn't effect the system like it does hydroponics. But root systems can grow in water as long as there is air and nutrients.
Aeroponis is another way to grow that is on the rise. Unlike Aquaponics and hydroponics, Aeroponics doesn't have the roots soaking in water. The water is sprayed into the air and onto the roots of the plant. and the water drains away leaving the roots which are suspended in air. NASA came up with the idea and it was so the astronauts would be able to have fresh vegetables. There isn't a lot of room in space so the design had to take up the least amount of space and be containable.
When it comes to space and containable this solves a problem for the person that doesn't have a lot of room for an indoor garden. Aeroponics allows you to grow a garden on a shelf and if you have a window space for sunshine aeroponics maybe the answer to getting more out of your garden.
As prices for a tomato go up it only makes sense to grow a tomato plant and have fresh tomato's at your disposal to pick off the vine and eat. That is one thing nice about a tomato plant, it grows like a vine which makes it nice to manage where it grows. Just Imagine have an assortment of your favorite vegetables growing at your finger tips. Wouldn't that be great?
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