The Perfect Hydroponic Nutrient Formula
Getting the hydroponic nutrient formula right can be a tricky business. Just as using the correct amount of fertilizer for ordinary gardening can be difficult to gauge. You risk having weak, malnourished looking plants with too little fertilizer; on the other hand you kill off your budding plants with too much fertilizer.
When you are figuring out the correct hydroponic nutrient formula you need to mix the fertilizers in the correct proportins. Hydroponics kits include fertilizers, it can be quite confusing when it comes to mixing them together.
Getting The Adequate Concentration
Mixing the fertilizers that you have in the right concentration is an important step to making sure that you end up with healthy plants. Because fertilizers sold for use in hydroponic systems are concentrated it is important to get the hydroponic nutrient formula right.
You can start with a concentration of 150-600 parts per million. But it is gernally possible to find a much more specific concentration range, the majority of plants will do well with a hydroponic nutrient formula of 300 to 400 parts per million.
Growth Stages
Plants go through various stages of growth and development, so it makes sense that plants require different nutrients during the different stages. There are different nutrients available that are specifically targetted toward the different phasess of the plants life cycle.
During the vegetative growth phase of a plant’s life there are many formulas out there that are typically named ‘grow’ formula. Another popular naming for this variety of formula is ‘growth’ formula. However once the plants you are growing begin to flower you need to change the type of hydroponic nutrient formula that you use. You should look for formulae targetted with ‘Flower’ or ‘Bloom’.
The strength of the hydroponic nutrient formula must be tailored to the growth stage and health of the plant. If you have a weak plant that is being grown in low level lighting then you should use a weak hydroponic nutrient formula, not a strong one. A strong formula should be used for healthy thriving plants, even if common sense would tell you to do the opposite.
If you are planning on changing the strength of formula you use, you must make small changes and gradually tweak it towards the strength you want. Too fast and you risk killing your plants. You need to also make sure the plants are in a well ventilated space with lots of light for good growth.


