Almost Free - DIY Simple Hydroponics

This is the completed box, growing Miriacle fruit & Mango (cuttings) with capsicum, alpine strawberries, butternut pumkin, and brocoli.
This cost me nothing apart from some hydroponic mix.

Move on to step one to see what you need..

Step 1 What You Will Need

The parts you will need.

1. Foam Box (Ask ur local supermarket, they throw them away and will usually give them to you)
2. Sharp Knife or Thin Saw (To Cut holes in foam)
3. Large Black Plastic Bag (At least one)
4. Pots (Hydroponic pots are better, but any with good drainage holes will work)
5. Hydroponic Mixture - Any Should Do..
6. Hydroponic medium (Perlite/Vermiculite) Or others
7. Seeds or Plant
Optional 2..
ABOVE STUFF &
600 ml bottles
Drill
Seeds or plants

Option 3..
ABOVE STUFF &
Baby Formula lid
Scissors
Growing Plant Only
Requires no medium

Comments

[Mccall101]

 Using a soldering iron or heating up the knife can make more precise holes. This is how those CNC machines for cutting styrofoam work.

[fegundez1]

get the boxes from the seafood dept at your store,I used the salmon boxes and it worked quite well

[awang8]

Make sure to clean it well otherwise you might end up with a case of salmonella.

[wilson.joe]

vermiculite is harder and harder to find , wouldn't it be possible to just use 100% perlite..

[awang8]

Vermiculite is by far the easiest thing to find in this list of materials. Perlite takes a bit more effort to find though. Only perlite might be alright, but that's not a gurantee so don't blame me if your plants die from using only perlite.

[3frog]

One good way to cut styrofoam is with an electric knife, an other good way is with a hot wire cutter. Either way will make the cutting of styrofoam less messy. 3Frog

[plzspoilme25]

i haven't ventured out into hydroponics, YET, but was curious if anyone thought of the same kind of concept being used to make seeding flats? maybe some kind of bottom watering type of thing using the foam boxes and cutting rows(like the 20row seed flat)or holes. i have a table that i'm not using and would like to come up with a complete system of seed rows with bottom watering, with a light and such...i'm good at coming up with the idea, just not how to make it work efficiently

[Mr E Man]

Yes, seedling trays filled with hydroponic medium, sitting in a tray of water will work fine, just keep an eye on the roots, as the plants will quickly get root bound in smaller containers and need moving to something bigger. Just like soil gardening, but quicker. If you want check the PH of the water matches what you are growing. (pool test kits work fine) Plants grow better in the right conditions too, each plant is different.