Warning: Start with EASY plants when converting from soil to hydroculture.

At www.hydro-culture.net the first order of business, in breaking into hydroculture, is to distinguish hydroculture from hydroponics:

What is Hydroculture?

Hydroculture is a method of growing plants without the use of soil. With the method I use, and detail on this page, plants are grown in an absorbent aggregate and nutrients. Some of the advantages of houseplants grown in hydroculture are the water reservoir makes it easy to see when the plant requires water, the aggregate is open therefore allowing air to circulate around the roots, and the reservoir coupled with using absorbent aggregate helps create humidity around the plant. This method of hydroculture is sometimes referred to as ‘passive hydroponics’.

There is another method, which uses nutrient solution, called ‘active hydroponics’ or often referred to just as hydroponics. This system often uses a form of nutrient delivery system to deliver the nutrients to the roots. I will only be detailing the method of houseplant hydroculture I use on this page, however there are other web sites which detail active hydroponics and also various other methods of hydroculture.

How do I convert a plant from a soil to a hydroculture planting?

Not to be overlooked is the discussion, at www.hydro-culture.net, of how to convert a soil-rooted plant to one that will adapt to hydroculture without dying. The reader should be aware that an investment in a plant will be lost if the plant is not successfully converted; the plant may simply die from transplant shock, if care is not taken.

The easiest method I have found for converting a houseplant to hydroculture is to use one that has been water rooted because the root system seems to be slightly different to one that has been grown in soil. The method I use is to take a soft stemmed cutting and suspending it in a container full of water, this can be done by placing a piece of cardboard on the top of the container and putting the cutting through a hole in the centre. The cutting is put somewhere where it will get light but not direct sunlight and also somewhere that is not too hot. The water in the container is changed every few days to stop it becoming stagnent. When a good root system has developed the cardboard is carefully removed from the plant avoiding damaging the plant, the plant is then transferred to hydroculture as described in the containers section. Then I place the plant into a propagator or place a transparent plastic bag, with air holes, over it to keep the humidity high for up to 1 month and I also use only water, not nutrient solution, for this time.

Hydroculture – Water Rooting

Although water rooting is possibly the most reliable method of getting a houseplant into hydroculture, it is not my preferred method. I’m a little impatient and I like to see quick results, therefore I prefer to convert a soil (compost) rooted houseplant. I always use young houseplants as large or established ones may be more difficult to convert to hydroculture. The method I use is detailed below:

I soak the plant, in its pot, in room temperature tapwater up to the height of the top of the soil for approximately one hour. This helps soften the soil from around the roots.

Remove the plant from the pot, place the plant roots back into a bucket of clean room temperature water and agitate to remove most of the soil.

Remove the plant from the bucket and run room temperaure clean water over the roots until all the soil is removed. It is important to remove ALL the soil.

Cut off any dead roots. Trimming the roots a little seems to help the plant establish better.

The plant is placed into a hydroculture pot as described in the containers section.

Water only is added, no nutrients.

I don’t add nutrient solution for approximately 4 weeks, only water. The plant will be very sensitive until it has grown a new root system so it will need nurturing for a few weeks, to do this I place the plant into a propagator or place a transparent plastic bag, with air holes, over it to keep the humidity high.