Hege Crowton our expert of the day, writes:

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Hydroponics gardening becomes more and more popular these days. Some consider it miraculous. But what is hydroponics gardening after all? How does this system work? Why is it considered more convenient and more successful than classic gardening (geoponics)? What are the advantages and disadvantages of growing your own hydroponics garden? Here are some answers to the questions above.

With hydroponics you can grow plants (fruits, vegetables, flowers etc.) using water and mineral nutrients instead of soil. The idea behind hydroponics gardening is to provide the plants with all the nutrients they need to absorb, without using soil. Besides, soil is just a nutrient reservoir and its not critical to the plant growth.

You can grow almost any kind of plant using hydroponics techniques but there’s no guarantee that you will produce greater crops and more nutritious or better tasting products than with quality soil. What is certain is that hydroponics gardening is cheaper, less tiring and it allows greater control of the plant itself.

Here is a list of the great advantages that hydroponics gardening has to offer comparing with classic geoponics gardening:

Looking for a better way to preserve those beautiful flowers in your garden? Don’t you wish you could make them bloom longer for others to see and appreciate?

Well, it’s about time you gave them a drink. That’s the advice of a Cornell University horticulturist who said that hard liquor can preserve flowers.

William Miller, director of Cornell’s Flower Bulb Research Program, wasn’t drunk when he said this. In fact, his study has been published in HortTechnology, a peer-reviewed journal of horticulture.

Miller found that diluted alcohol - whiskey, vodka, gin or tequila - prevents the plant’s leaves and stem from growing but has no effect on the blossoms.

Because the plants are shorter, the flowers don’t tip over - a condition called the “bent neck” syndrome. Plants that were “watered” with alcohol produced blooms that remained upright longer.

“I’ve heard of using alcohol for lots of things but never for dwarfing plants,” said Charlie Nardozzi, a senior horticulturist with the National Gardening Association, a Vermont-based organization.

“It sounded weird when I first heard about it, but our members say it works. I’m going to try it just for curiosity,” he added.

Want to have a good night’s sleep? Smell some roses in your garden and you’ll get rosier dreams.

This rosy connection was discovered by researchers from the University Hospital Mannheim in Germany who said that what you smell may influence your dreams.

Their new research was presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery Foundation in Chicago. It is the first study that shows the impact of olfactory function on dreams.

“If odor has a strong effect on your emotions when you’re awake, it makes sense for it to have a strong effect on your emotions when you’re asleep,” said study author Boris Stuck.

To prove this, they recruited 15 healthy young women in their 20s - the period when the sense of smell is strongest.

The volunteers were fitted with olfactometers. Tubes leading to their nostrils constantly pumped air as the subjects slept.

“The subjects’ brain activity was also being monitored. When they reached the rapid-eye-movement stage of sleep, when most dreams occur, a shot of scent was administered via the olfactometer for ten seconds,” reported Rebecca Carroll of National Geographic News.

Tomatoes, the most popular vegetable for the home garden, are divided into three main types. Small compact plants with stems only 12 to 18 inches long, called determinate, stop bearing once they reach their full size.

The kaki species is especially tasty. These persimmons are heart-, plum- or tomato-shaped. 2 to 4 inches in diameter and golden red, yellow or orange in color; the flesh may be yellow or brown. The trees grow 20 to 30 feet tall with an equal spread; they are especially beautiful in autumn when their leaves turn brilliant shades of yellow and red. Good varieties are Chocolate; Eureka; Fuyu, also called Gaki or Fuyugaki; Hachiya; Tamopan; and Tane-Nashi. Japanese persimmon trees are usually self-pollinating and can be planted alone.

The common persimmon grows wild in much of the southern and eastern half of the United States and will grow in Zones 5-10. Trees grow 30 to 60 feet tall with a spread of 20 to 30 feet. This species bears 1- to 2-inch yellow, orange or purplish fruit in the fall. Good varieties are Early Golden, Garrettson and Killen. Plant trees of at least two varieties to ensure that the trees bear fruit.

Gooseberries are seldom eaten fresh but are prized for jam and pie. However, like currants, they spread white-pine blister rust, and their cultivation is prohibited where white pine trees grow. Ask your agricultural agent if gooseberries can be legally grown where you live.

To prepare the ground, scatter a 1-foot-wide band of 5-10-5 fertilizer at a rate of 1 1/2 pounds to every 25 feet of row; dig the fertilizer in thoroughly, and set the plants 2 to 3 feet apart in rows 4 feet apart. For later crops, sow seeds directly outdoors when night temperatures can be depended upon to stay above 60.

The genus is closely related to Cattleya, and the plants are sometimes difficult to tell apart. From the early days of hybridizing, laelias were crossed with cattleyas to such an extent that there are more laeliocattleyas than interspecific hybrids. Laelias are evergreen epiphytic plants, their size varying from 15cm (6in) to 1 in (3ft) tall. A number of the smaller growing species have pets. brightly coloured flowers held on upright sprays above the foliage for plants, such as Laelia cinnabarina, produce slender pseudobulbs with single, semi-rigid leaf. The larger nests such as L. crispa, resemble cattleyat while others, which include L. ar3ceste are more distinct with squarish pseudobulbs and a shiny single leaf Their flowers are carried on tall, slender flower spikes, at the end of which the large, 10cm (4in) blooms are held in a loose cluster.

Orchids will dry out quicker in their lofty position hanging in the greenhouse. Again it should be stressed that humidity and moisture are all-important if your plants are to reach their full potential, and every part of them is to be allowed to develop fully.

In addition to producing a normal root system, when these roots have become fully or partially formed further roots then emerge along their length at right angles to them, they then turn upward and after a short time cease to grow leaving a sharp pointed tip to the end of the root which becomes very hard.

The first essential in any greenhouse where orchids are to be `grown is some form of artificial heating. If you arc growing only cool-house varieties, heating will be necessary for approximately six months of the year. Intermediate or hot-house orchids will require heating all the year round to maintain the higher temperatures at night. Whatever form of heating is decided upon, it should be more than capable of holding the required temperature without working continuously at full capacity. Also, an additional form of heating should be kept at the ready in case of emergencies when one system may fail.

What’s the easiest way to help sick people recover? Give them a bunch of flowers and you’ll be doing them a favor.

That’s the advice of Kansas State University researchers who recently looked into the effects of flowers on recovering patients.

In their study titled “Effects of Flowering and Foliage Plants in Hospital Rooms on Patients Recovering from Abdominal Surgery”, Seong-Hyun Park and Richard H. Mattson of the Department of Horticulture, Forestry and Recreation Resources at Kansas State University in Manhattan, found that seeing green had a positive effect on people.

The study was carried out in surgical patients. Ninety people who had their appendix removed were randomly assigned to different rooms with or without plants.

“Patients in the plant treatment room viewed eight species of foliage and flowering plants during their postoperative recovery periods. Data collected for each patient included length of hospitalization, analgesics used for postoperative pain control, vital signs, ratings of pain intensity, pain distress, anxiety, and fatigue,” the researchers said.

At the end of the study, researchers said those who stayed in rooms that had potted flowering plants were better off. They needed fewer painkillers, had a lower heart rate and blood pressure, and were more relaxed.

The beauty of orchids is well known - but how do you make sure you are taking care of orchids properly? Well - part of taking care of orchids is choosing the right pot. It can make a different in the orchids growth and its ability to bloom.

First, before potting your orchid, there is a little bit of research that you will have to do. Different types of orchids often require different types of potting material. These types of potting material include coconut husk, fir bark, moss, and frequently a mixture of several of these materials.

Overall, your goal is to give structural support to the roots of the orchid, as well as provide plenty of air between the potting material particles.

Many orchids originate in rain forests. You can imagine how humid it is there! What is really awesome is that orchids can grow on the side of these massive trees. Their roots dangling in the air and drinking up the water. What you can learn from this - do not let your roots be submerged in water for a long period of time. It just isn’t natural for them.