We all know that plants grow in soil. Well, it is certainly our most abundant growing medium, but it also contains the typical macro and micro-nutrients needed for plant growth.
When the water travels through soil, it takes those surplus nutrients with it to the plant roots underground.
In soilless agriculture, such as hydroponics, we simply deliver these same nutrients that have been pre-mixed into a water reservoir, along with high levels of oxygen, efficiently to the plant roots.
There is so much to unpack when it comes to soilless agriculture, so this article is going to mainly focus on the definition of hydroponics, their advantages, disadvantages and a little more facts.
Soilless farming is the process by which we grow plants without soil. If we are going to replace soil, we need to understand the purpose of soil first.
Just like in those days when we used to use fire wood but today we have gas cookers and all the rest of them for cooking.
For recent technology to work, we needed to understand what the purpose of firewood is because if you know the WHY then you can craft your own HOW.
So, in the case of firewood, we realize that the importance/the WHY of this whole process was heat. Hence, they thought, if we can produce heat then cooking is possible.
So, they started thinking of a different HOW to the discovered WHY. From there came kerosene stove, charcoal stove, electric plate, gas cooker etc. of which their common denominator is heat.
The afore-explained also happens if we are going to replace soil. We will need to know the WHY I.e., the function of soil- WHY SOIL?
If we understand the function of soil then it will be easy for us to eliminate soil, to craft our HOW and go soilless. In essence, there are three major functions of soil for the plants and they include:
Anchorage: To anchor the roots of the plants.
Water Retention: To retain water, to hold water.
Aeration: To allow air to pass or flow through
Let’s proof the aforementioned. In elementary Agric, we were told that there are three types of soil namely; SANDY SOIL, CLAY SOIL and LOAMY SOIL and we were taught that the best soil for planting is loamy soil.
LOAMY SOIL was adjudged to be the best for planting with respect to these three characteristics;
Anchorage: Only CLAY soil and LOAMY soil can give good anchorage.
Water Retention: Only CLAY soil and LOAMY soil have good water retention.
Aeration: Only LOAMY soil and SANDY soil have good air spaces.
From the above, we see loamy soil to appear in all three and hence, adjudged to be the best for planting.
In essence, if you can think of any substance that can play the same role and it isn’t soil then that is SOILLESS FARMING.
It is true that we have a lot of land in Nigeria but we do not have enough Arable land. Arable land is a plough-able land, a land that can support growth.
Beyond having Arable lands, we do not have enough fertile lands. A fertile land is a land that doesn’t require fertilizer for you to grow on it, it is self-sufficient.
It has all the nutrient that the plant needs. Only about 40% of our total land mass can be planted.
To make matters worse, in the North we have desertification- losing our lands to desert; in the South, we have coastal encroachment- losing our lands to water; in the south-south, we have crude oil spillage and pollution- losing our lands to oil and then in the middle belt we are losing our farms to herdsmen and nomads.
Furthermore, when civilization starts in any place, the first victim is always the farm. Once civilization comes to a place, you push the farms inside besides the people (youths) who are to work on these farms in the interior parts are struggling to come to the city where there are no farms in search of white-collar jobs.
Lastly, the climatic concerns; ill distribution and inconsistent climate. We don’t even know when rain will fall again and when it does, we can’t say how long.
There is an abysmal change in length and time of climate, weather and seasons. It will be important to state that one of the major index or indices on food price hike or inconsistencies is because of the unpredictability of planting.
Imagine what will be left of the 40% after all these factors must have been considered with exponential increase in population index.
Now, think of a Nigeria where you can plant without being concerned on if rain falls or not. This means that the cheapest tomatoes can be will can also be the price you buy tomato all year round.
Hence, in the 21st century, we need to find an agriculture that is not season dependent and this is where SOILLESS FARMING (HYDROPONICS) comes in.
It makes farming acceptable in the city.
Uses less space.
More brain-work than hard labour- less effort with hands and more with the brain.
Acceptable by the larger population- the youths
Allows for predictability.Faster growth, optimum yield.
Controlled Environment Agriculture.
Extreme decrease in water and nutrient use.
The system requires time and commitment as you must not make mistakes when dealing with crops under this system- supplying low or high dosage of nutrients to the crops may cause a lot of damage.
As a layman, you are first required to undergo training before you can practice this system. You need to understand the technical know-how before delving into it.
The initial cost of setting up this system may be high especially if it is to be done on a large scale. However, highly rewarding after the first cycle.
If pest or diseases finds their way into this system, they can be spread easily because of how close the crops are to one another and for the fact that they are in an enclosed environment.
In conclusion, there is so much to unpack when it comes to soilless agriculture as it will play a big role in survival for the 21st century economy, living and many more.
Note: Original photos taken by me with my phone.