My Hydroponic Experiments- Kratky Method

June 22, 2015 by  
Filed under build, Gardening/Farming, Hydroponics, Maker DIY

I grew up on a farm and have always been interested in technologies to grow more of safer crops.  One technology that has always intrigued me is hydroponics, or growing plants in water.  In an effort to effort to learn more about hydroponics I started by reading many books and watching allot of youtube videos. I also talked to people I knew that had experience with hydroponics, one friend in particular was very helpful and even gave me allot of supplies to use for my first experiments.

 

Notice a couple of these books are on auaponics.  Aquaponics uses only fish waste as the feed for the plants.  I eventually hope to set up an aquaponic system, but I live in a location with a cold winter and do not currently have a space indoors to keep the fish alive during the winter months.

 

Kratkey Method

My first experiments are with the stagnant water or Kratkey method.  I first heard about this method on the MHP Gardner Youtube channel.

This is the absolute simplest hydroponic method and thus where I started.  To grow plants with this method I started out by filling a coffee can with water and a mix of nutrients.  I drilled a 2 inch hole in the coffee can lid using a 2 inch Forster bit.  I placed a 2 inch netcup into the hole and placed a pea plant inside the netcup.  I previously started some alpine strawberry seeds in paper towels and lettuce seeds in rockwool.

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