BIOPONICS: A STRANGE HYBRID
Humidity—a factor often overlooked in any garden—plays
a crucial role in plant health. By influencing the rate at
which a plant can transpire, the relative humidity level modifies the rate at which plants can absorb water. The major
enemy of bioponics, like traditional hydroponics, is heat,
but in the case of bioponics, the consequences are different. When the nutrient solution warms up, the microbial
life increases tremendously in population and voracity and
the amount of nutrients released increases tremendously.
As a consequence, the EC can go through the roof in no
time, within 24 hours even, and this will kill plant roots. This
is another reason why it is wise to keep a low EC when you
grow in bioponics.
The Economics
Bioponics is an economical way to cultivate plants, as the
consumption of water and nutrients is a fraction of what is
needed by o ther growing techniques. Bioponic production
is based on the idea of sustainable agriculture. The goal is to
give less nitrogen to the plants and shift the balance in favor
of the flowering and fruiting stages, rather than the vegetative growth stage, which may be bountiful, but may end up
being just another addition to the compost pile.
With bioponics, you do not need to change the nutrient
solution too often during a plant’s life cycle—once every
three weeks or even once a month is enough. You can let
the solution drop to a low level, minimizing the volume of
solution to be renewed, just don’t allow it to accumulate
too much organic matter in such a small volume. When it is
finally time to change the solution, don’t discard it. Instead,
use it to water your soil-based plants. They will love the extra
nutritional boost.
A colony of trichoderma harzianum thriving in a bio-filter.
BIOPONICS IS AN ECONOMICAL
WAY TO CULTIVATE PLANTS, AS
THE CONSUMPTION OF WATER
AND NUTRIENTS IS A FRACTION
OF WHAT IS NEEDED BY OTHER
GROWING TECHNIQUES.”
Other Parameters
In a bioponic system, temperature, humidity, CO2 levels,
lighting and all the other parameters of the growroom
are similar to those for plants grown in traditional hydro
or soil because the basic plant requirements remain the
same. The bioponic system and the nutrients you supply
your plants are only one piece in a complex puzzle that
you have to assemble to re-create a favorable environment for your plants. Bioponics plays a vital role in the
quality of the harvest, but it cannot compensate for a
lack of illumination, depleted CO2 or bad genetics.
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Maximum Yield USA | October 2015
Protection Against Pathogens
The microbial population in a bioponic system becomes a
formidable barrier against pathogens. In bioponics, roots
are effectively protected by a huge army of beneficial organisms, so pathogens won’t be able to develop. If you keep
your system well-oxygenated, the roots will also stay immune
to fungal attacks. But oxygen is really the key word here
because everything in your system consumes it, both the
roots and the micro-organisms. Consider adding a powerful
air stone in the main tank to keep the solution well-aerated.
What About the Roots?
Remember that in hydroponics, root morphology is different than it is in soil. In hydroponics, plants develop what we
call water roots, which are usually thinner and more fragile
than soil roots. Bioponic plants grow roots that are sturdier.
Performing comparison tests between plants grown in classic
hydro versus bioponics, I often found that root disease develops in the mineral-fed plants, but almost never in the bio-fed
ones, even when systems are side by side growing the same
plants. Bioponic plants are slightly smaller than traditional
hydroponic ones, but they are definitely stronger when it
comes to resisting root pathogens.