Aquaponic Plant Acquisition and Conversion Methods
Core content of this article: experience in hydroponic flowers, methods of acquiring and converting hydroponic plants, details as follows:
I. Ways to Acquire Hydroponic Plants Generally, there are two ways to acquire hydroponic plants: direct and indirect.
1. Direct Acquisition Direct acquisition refers to the method of converting soil-cultivated plants directly into hydroponic materials. Depending on the different morphologies of the plants, corresponding methods can be used to acquire hydroponic materials.
(1) Single Plant Type Plants Excavate the entire soil-cultivated plant that matches the size of the container and use it as hydroponic material.
(2) suckering Plants Dig up the entire plant from soil or pot, shake off the soil, expose the connection between the daughter and mother plants, and cut it with a sharp knife at the connection; select robust, disease-free daughter plants with roots as hydroponic materials. Since the daughter plants have cuts, they should be first coated with wood ash, charcoal powder, or fine bran on the cuts, and then converted after the cuts dry. Plants of this type include peace lilies, evergreen, snake plant, caladium, cyperus, and bamboo palm.
(3) Rooted Vine Seedlings Excavate root suckers from the base of the soil-cultivated mother plant, cut appropriate-sized, robust, disease-free root suckers with roots, treat the cuts, and use them as hydroponic materials. For example, kaffir lily, aloe vera, pineapple, agave, snake plant, etc.
(4) Plants with Rhizomes Rhizomes are thin, elongated aerial stems that often produce one or more small plants. Cut the small plants, protect the roots, and use them as hydroponic materials. For example, variegated spider plant, etc.
(5) Plants with offsets Remove robust offsets from the soil-cultivated mother bulb and use them as hydroponic materials. For example, cacti, etc. 2. Indirect Acquisition Indirect acquisition refers to using seedlings obtained through seed propagation and tissue culture as hydroponic materials.
II. Hydroponic Methods
1. Root Washing Method Depending on whether the hydroponic plant materials have roots or not, different conversion methods can be used. The root washing method is suitable for hydroponic plant materials with roots. Root washing is best done in late spring and early autumn, as the temperature is usually around 20°C during these seasons, which is a suitable temperature for plant growth and favorable for the emergence of hydroponic roots. Also, water contains more oxygen in late spring and early autumn, ensuring root respiration, making late spring and early autumn the best time for converting soil-cultivated plants to hydroponic plants.
Specific methods of root washing are as follows
1) Clearing Soil and Washing Roots After digging out the soil-cultivated plant materials with roots, clear the heavy soil on the roots and then wash them with clean water. Make sure there are no soil residues. For plants with sparse roots, it is not advisable to prune them, as it may affect their adaptability to hydroponic conversion.
2) Place in a Shaded Area and Keep the Air Moist Place the plant in a shaded area, away from direct sunlight; when the air is dry, spray the leaves and surroundings to keep the air moist.
3) Regularly Change Water During conversion and adaptation, the clean water in the container should be changed frequently. Changing the water not only ensures clean water quality and reduces the harm to the root wounds by bacteria but also effectively increases the oxygen content in the water. The frequency of water changing depends on the plant species.
(1) Water Insertion Method The water insertion method is suitable for hydroponic plant materials without roots. It refers to the method of cutting a section of stem or branch from the mother plant, inserting it into water to root, and forming a new hydroponic plant. The water insertion method is divided into two types due to different raw material structures.
1. General Plants (Non-succulent Plants) The water insertion method should be performed in late spring and early autumn, as the temperature is suitable for root development, and the water also contains enough oxygen to meet the respiration metabolism of the roots.
Points to consider when performing water insertion:
1. Plant Selection: Use stems and branches from plants that can quickly root in water as hydroponic materials, such as Monstera deliciosa, English ivy, English ivy green, silver leaf chrysanthemum, philodendron, and Commelina communis, etc.
2. Branch Selection: Choose robust, disease-free branches. Robust branches contain more nutrients, which are beneficial for the formation of healing tissue and rooting. The branches should be cut from the top and middle of the trunk and main branches, or close to the trunk and main branches, as these parts have a strong ability to produce roots.
3. Length of Cut Branches: Generally determined by the plant species and decorative requirements. For slender and tall plant shapes, longer branches can be cut for decorative purposes; otherwise, shorter branches can be cut. To create a rich and full plant shape, branches can be cut to different lengths.
4. Cutting Position: Should be 0.2-0.5 cm below the node.
The specific content shared above on the acquisition and conversion methods of hydroponic plants is for everyone's reference and operation.