observations
On the left is an image of a man tilling his garden and releasing soil to be blown away in the wind. On the right is an example of potential over watering that wastes water. (I should say that since we are still in winter these images are from the internet but I have seen this happening in our local environment).
I observed that the current method for gardening in a backyard is not very environmentally friendly. The tilling of the soil only accelerates the erosion of topsoil, and over watering or sprinkling systems can erode topsoil further and waste water because plants do not absorb most of the water used by sprinklers.
I have noticed that the Hydroponics technique of growing a garden is becoming quite popular because it can conserve topsoil by not washing it away and it can save water by reusing the same water for longer periods of time. This had started me thinking of the different ways to grow a garden.
I have noticed that the Hydroponics technique of growing a garden is becoming quite popular because it can conserve topsoil by not washing it away and it can save water by reusing the same water for longer periods of time. This had started me thinking of the different ways to grow a garden.
Some statistics for hydroponics verses traditional include approximately 90% of water can be saved by using a hydroponic system as opposed to a traditional system. Hydroponics can also offer up to 30% increase in crop yields compared to traditional. The amount of topsoil is reduced by about 1% each year due to traditional methods of growing plants so by planting hydroponically, the garden does not contribute to the degradation of the earth's soil.
The photo on the left is a picture of a hydroponic tank (mine is not yet constructed but this is what it should look like). On the right is a picture of traditional gardening which is just some plants potted in soil (due to the fact that we still have snow, this is only a picture of soil gardening).