Did you know that farming can be very funny and interesting. You do not need to follow a rule book to be the best farmer. All you need is to be experimental so that you can come up with simple and easy ways to grow your plants.
So, today we are growing coriander using hydroponics. When we hear the word hydroponics, we think of the complicated method of growing. I know you are actually thinking of energy, air pumps, the cost of procuring grow profiles, substrate and water pumps.
But did you know that the method that you employ depends on:
- Your income
- Space
- Availability of electricity and other resources.
So now we are going to learn how we can grow coriander in a passive hydroponic environment which is cheap and simple to construct.
Resources required.
- A grow profile, in this case we are going to use green house plastic, bricks , one square metre chip board and net cups
- Coriander seedlings that has been raised hydroponically
- 30litres of borehole water. The water that I used had a pH of around 6.0
- Grow media. In my area pine bark is readily available so we are going to use pine bark but the choice is yours , choose a media which is cheaper for you but we are not going to use soil.
- Nutrient solution: there so many nutrient solutions available in your area so I advice you choose the cheapest and readily available solution. Here I am using aqua fert.
Come on ! Let’s start working on our grow profile. This is where our coriander is going to grow in.
Measure a 1m by 1m space which is at a position which receives full sunshine .
MaKe sure your area is gentle , I mean even or flat so that we have an even distribution of water in the profile.
Use bricks to form your square, make sure you have two layers of bricks above.
Now, if satisfied with the slope of your area, measure 2square mètres of doubled green house plastic.Ok you can use any plastic that is thick and ensure that your plastic will not tear when you pour water inside.
Layer the plastic inside your box made from bricks and allow the plastic to spill over in all borders so that it effectively holds water.
Pour 30litres of water in your grow profile and add ten to 15 mililitres of nutrient solution.
Spread the nutrients evenly in the water.
Drill holes on your chip flat board that fits your netcups. Make sure your board is flat and firm so that it can hold all the plants without breaking.
Lift Your flat board which has holes which fit your netcups and place on top of your water tank that you have made with plastic and bricks. Make sure it is fitting well on your tank .
Depending on your grow media, prepare your media the usual way and transplant your seedling to the grow profile Coriander can be transplanted in groups so you can have four coriander plants in one netcup.
When you are transplanting, make sure your seedlings has a long tape root. Ensure that the tape root is deeped in water when you put it in the grow profile.
ThIs is the easiest way of growing coriander. You can even go for a week without checking on your plants. Do not worry about oxygen. Next time I will explain how plants survive in a passive hydroponics environment.
I accidentally discovered this way of growing herbs when I forgot to transplant my coriander, when I came back after two weeks my coriander was nolonger seedlings but they had grown very big and healthy.
Since then I am religiously using this method to save water, energy, time and other costs associated with active hydroponic farming.
The most important thing is to check on your ph when you are transplanting your coriander.
NB: your water tank can be anything that holds water and allow plant roots to grow inside.
That’s it for today , please enjoy farming.