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Article: What are hydroponically grown plants, and what's the advantage (or downside) over traditional growing?
- Article from:
- The Boston Globe (Boston, MA)
- Article date:
- August 17, 2009
CopyrightCopyright 2009 The Boston Globe. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Hydroponics (from the Greek "hydro," for water, and "ponos," for
labor) is the growing of plants without soil.
We all know that plants need carbon dioxide and water, but there
are all sorts of other things they need to live, which they usually
get from soil. Those include nitrogen and magnesium, which is at the
core of the chlorophyll molecule.
The key insight is that all the things a plant ordinarily gets
from soil can instead be taken up from water containing dissolved
nutrients. The dirt the plant is in is needed only to help hold the
plant up.
This means plants can be grown with their roots in liquid
solutions; they can be kept upright by sticking them in an inert
substance like gravel ...