Hydroponic Strawberries - The Holy Grail of Hydroponic Gardening

Interest in growing hydroponic strawberries is surprisingly strong considering they are among the most difficult plants to grow hydroponically. Hydroponic strawberries seem to have taken on a Holy Grail status among existing and potential hydroponic gardeners.

There are several good reasons to grow hydroponic strawberries.

The first is seasonal availability. Obviously it would be great to be able to have an endless supply of these little beauties all year round. And so you shall, because with a little bit of effort and care hydroponic strawberries can be grown in January through December in just about any spot in the home or greenhouse.

The second reason goes hand in hand with the first. If you would love to have a year round supply of strawberries, so would others! So, the second reason is clearly profit and a commercial relationship is born. Hydroponic strawberries are healthier, more abundant and cost less to raise than their conventional peers so "farming" hydroponic strawberries makes a lot of sense.

Now, how does one grow hydroponic strawberries? Strawberries are raised using standard hydroponic gardening techniques. There are however, one or two points specific to growing strawberries worth keeping in mind. The first is temperature. Strawberries are fairly intolerant of large temperature deviations. They usually thrive in a temperature range of 70ºF daytime temperature and 57ºF at night.

If the ambient temperature goes much over that the plants will stop producing fruit and flowers altogether. If they are exposed to lower temperatures, the plants vegetative growth is impaired resulting in smaller, harder flowers and fruit, or just none at all.

The second important consideration when growing hydroponic strawberries is humidity. Strawberries thrive in a moist environment so it will probably be necessary to up the humidity levels if your hydroponic system has a humidity control. If you are growing the strawberries on a larger scale you'll have to provide supplemental humidity. This is a good thing in the long run as it keeps pests such as spiders and thrips at bay.

These two specific points may necessitate growing your hydroponic strawberries in an isolated environment so other plants aren't negatively affected. Even so, the rewards are well worth the effort. In addition, strawberries have their own specific light needs.

If your strawberries are exposed to natural light, say in a greenhouse, this won't be an issue. If they have less or no natural sunlight, grow lights should be used. Fortunately strawberries aren't as sensitive to light issues as they are to temperature and humidity.

As with most forms of in home hydroponic gardening, growing and farming hydroponic strawberries can be cost effective once the basic requirements have been met. The same benefits also apply in respect of higher yields, larger, healthier fruit and less pest problems.

All in all, as with other hydroponic endeavors, growing hydroponic strawberries makes a lot of sense and it becomes clear why they are such a popular hydroponic project.