Off the Grid

An Aerogarden in action

I definitely do not have a green thumb. My plants die quickly (or sometimes painfully slowly) and there’s no instinct within me to cultivate them properly. However the idea of growing my own vegetables appealed to me. Last year, I had a tomato plant that I managed to wrangle a few tomatoes out of but now I wanted more.

For Christmas I received an Aerogarden and wow, what a great way to go organic and move your way to getting off the grid. If you don’t have cultivation skills then it doesn’t really matter. All you do is fill it with water and leave it. It grows on its own.

Of course, you can grow herbs and vegetables on your own, but this is a great jumping off point for people who are not sure if they can do it.

By why grow your own food?

Growing your own food is less expensive and reaps greater rewards. You get fresh food at your fingertips that tastes better and has no pesticides.

So what exactly is Hydroponics?

Simply put, it’s a manner of growing plants without the use of soil. It instead uses nutrients to maintain its growth.

What’s great about hydroponics (and not just the Aerogarden) is that it allows food to grow in places where there is no soil, such as balconies of apartments or city blocks. As we build more buildings and preserve less space for the growing of food, hydroponics will come in handy. Hydroponic farming also uses less water. And while plants are desperate for CO2, hydroponics can increase CO2 levels in their greenhouse to enrich growth.

Are Hydroponics the way of the future? In actual fact, it’s prominent right now. Eurofresh Farms in Arizona is the largest hydroponic farm. They sold 125 million pounds of tomatoes in 2005.

Hydroponics is definitely a method that everyone can get on board with. Has anyone had success with their own hydroponic growing? Share below in the comments!

To learn more, check out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydroponics

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