pH stands for potential Hydrogen, and it tells us whether a solution or substance is basic (pH above 7.0), acidic (pH below 7.0) or neutral (pH of 7.0).

 A plant’s pH needs vary whether they are grown in soil or hydroponics, so it is important to tailor your pH level to your growing method.

 

 Your pH level affects the solubility and uptake of essential plant nutrients. This is important because nutrients are the food that your plant needs to grow. Much like humans and our needs for a variety of nutrients (fats, carbs, proteins etc.), plants also need a variety of nutrients to grow and be healthy.

 

The optimal pH range for most common hydroponic crops is between 5.5 and 6.0. If your pH drifts outside of this range, your plant will not be able to uptake certain nutrients.

Influence of pH on plant nutrients

 

You can see that a nutrient like Nitrogen can be amply absorbed within a large pH range (5.0 - 9.0), whereas Phosphorus can only absorbed from pH 5.0 - 6.0 and 9.0 - 10.

However, majority of the nutrients can well absorbed within the pH 5.5 - 6.0 levels. That is why a pH of 5.5 - 6.0 is the optimal range for plants.

Because the absorption of nutrients is so critical to maintaining healthy plants, it is important to measure and adjust your pH daily to avoid any issues.

 

How to test and adjust pH

There are many ways to test the pH of your hydroponic garden. The options range in both accuracy and price:

2. pH meter - For some extra money, you can get yourself a handheld pH meter that will read and report the pH level digitally. These meters are fairly accurate and will perform much better than pH strips. Not to mention they last more than just one test!

3. Grobo - Unlike both pH strips and a pH meter, Grobo will measure your pH automatically 24 hours a day, meaning you never have to worry about your pH being out of balance. In addition, Grobo will automatically adjust your pH if it is found to be out of balance, eliminating the need to play around with dosing pH up or pH down. As an added bonus, you can grow your plants right in Grobo, and Grobo takes care of all aspects of plant growth for you, including other time consuming tasks like lighting and nutrient dosing!

 

Summary