Though there are commercial kits for hydroponics gardening, there is no need to spend a fortune when you can construct your own homemade hydroponics kit with just a few essential items.  With people becoming more and more health conscious and moving towards healthier fare, hydroponics gardening is a wonderful alternative or addition to traditional gardening.  It is also a viable solution for those who lack extra space or live in areas where temperatures tend to be extreme.  To set up your own system, you only need about five basic items to get started.

Author: Candice Pardue

Hydroponics is a food science that has been experimented with for thousands of years, however, people are just beginning to realize the tremendous value that hydroponics has to offer.  The science of growing plants without soil has quickly grown over the past forty years, and is now being cultivated for use in many different situations.

Author: Michelle Moore

Garden & Greenhouse Magazine

Even Your Greenhouse Can Have Seasons

It's time to think about saving your plants for fall. If you are like me, you are still in denial that summer is ending, or perhaps where you live the signs have been clear for quite some time. Either way, October is a good time to get serious about staving off the winter months. Your goals may be to winter over some tender perennials or you may want to extend your growing season as long as you can. Perhaps you plan to start and grow cool weather crops, or maybe you want to recreate the tropics. Regardless of your goals, there are ways you can get more out of your greenhouse, you plants, and your enjoyment. Just a few tricks of the trade may be all you need.

Author: Amanda Sylvie

Garden & Greenhouse Magazine

The lighting you select for your plants can make the difference between active, consistent growth or stunted, mediocre growth. Lighting choices can result in rewarding blooms or years of waiting for a single bud. Orchids can be particularly picky about the light they receive, some requiring long days of high light while others are quite content with the low sunlight from a northeast-facing windowsill. Lighting is likely one of your greatest concerns as you begin bringing your plants indoors for the winter months. The other key time when lighting is especially important is when orchids are in an active growth phase.