Biggest Hydroponic innovations of 2014

There's a lot going on in the hydroponic industry right now. Companies and individuals are at work creating ever more sophisticated and modern systems, to help commercial growers and hobbyists cultivate plants in home or business areas.

Some of these modern inventions have to do with making small space systems more efficient or effective. Others have to do with that delicate chemistry of nurturing plants. There's a lot more in the mix, too, so think about how to outfit your next hydroponic project with some of these advanced features and solutions.

Aquaponics

2014 was a big year for aquaponics. Lots of people were looking at how to integrate koi fish or other fish varieties into an indoor or greenhouse garden atmosphere.

New reservoir products emerged to accommodate aquaponics projects. Small organic food stands started to advertise that their hydroponic products were grown in synergy with koi, tilapia, catfish, or other fish varieties.

In general, more growers started recognizing that blending flora and fauna is a good way to innovate and get projects more visibility, while utilizing this biological combination to get plants some of what they need to grow.

Advanced Nutrients

2014 also saw a lot of progress in hydroponic nutrients. Manufacturers and innovators continued to tinker with the designs of vegetative and flowering phases nutrients for a range of plants. For example, this article in Big Buds Magazine covering some of the progress at Advanced Nutrients shows how certain nutrient makers kept exploring the promise of different elements to boost plant harvest last year.

LEDs

2014 was also the year where a lot of growers kept advancing with light emitting diode or LED lights.

Using new LED lights can be a big improvement over maintaining the kinds of traditional systems that lots of growers used in grow boxes and grow tents. Traditional bulbs tended to produce a lot of heat, energy which is often wasted or even makes more air-conditioning of the space necessary. Traditional bulbs are higher fire risk. By contrast, LED is low energy, low heat, saving on utilities and treating plants more gently, with the same powerful lumens for assisting photosynthesis.

These are some of the big innovations that were going on last year, and will continue to emerge in 2015. Take a look at all the options that are available to you as a grower -- from state-of-the-art kits and closed compact systems to new nutrient packages, new lighting systems and more, a little bit of an upgrade may help you to really boost harvests and decrease your labor and energy costs for your hydroponics project.