KHTS Radio Santa Clarita Radio – Santa Clarita News
America’s Best Hydroponics & Garden Center in Palmdale leads our area in both grower supplies and education. Growing food in water rather than soil seems odd in the middle of a drought, but more efficient use of scarce water, higher production of produce per yard and a perceived better tasting product using Hydroponics are hard points to argue with.
English scientist Francis Bacon wrote about growing plants using water in lieu of soil back in 1627, so while the idea of hydroponics may not be new, several factors in our modern age are causing a rebirth of this food-growing technique. No longer confined to futurist stories and space adventures, growing plants using mineral nutrient solutions in water without soil is an accepted and fast-growing process, thanks to vast improvements in both the grow medium, reductions in the cost of climate control and the tremendous advances made in lighting over the past few years.
According to Hydroponics Unlimited, the area’s leading Superstore in the field, plants have five basic needs to ensure healthy growth: air, light, water, nutrients and a grow medium, consisting of air and moisture content.
The right mix of nutrients in the water can take the place of soil nutrients, or supplement a smaller amount of soil, while also providing better control over the quality of the end-product. Hydroponic gardens, which can be grown inside, outside or in a greenhouse, are actually less work than soil gardens because you can more easily add needed nutrients without having to replant or change soil makeup.
The added feature of hydroponics means growing produce without the introduction of heavy chemicals or soil-borne disease, allowing you to truly experience what the product actually tastes like.
America’s Best Hydroponics, which has over a quarter century of experience in the hydroponics market, is the go-to supplier for both startup operations and seasoned growers, and is an extension of Palmdale Hydroponics. With a plethora of books, videos, DVDs and a monthly newsletter, you would be hard-pressed not to find the right tools or seasoned staff to create or cultivate your home-grown garden. Whether you have a hankering for tasty, hard-to-find fruit and vegetables or need to grow your own produce for your own specific medical reasons, the hydroponics manufacturing market has caught up with the needs of these future farmers and offers electric-efficient lighting and nutrient rich supplements and additives that can handle any size grow system, from windowsill to apartment to standalone greenhouse.
Your garden can be as simple or as complex as your needs dictate. While you can talk to the Hydroponic specialists and customize your needs, grow systems start at under $80 and can expand to as large and robust system as your dreams allow. And grow systems are very space-friendly; while we tend to have ample space in the Santa Clarita Valley and Palmdale, vertical greenhouses, that are designed to go up instead of out, are all the rage in areas where space is more at a premium. With such a low-priced entry point, it may behoove you to dig into hydroponics and mature your own green thumb!
America’s Best Hydroponic Center & Garden Center is located at 641 West Palmdale in Palmdale, near the intersection of Palmdale Road and Trade Center Drive. Supplies can be ordered from their website, or by phone at 877-94-HYDRO (49376).
