How to Improve Root Growth

You know what they say – out of sight, out of mind. This saying rings true for many growers who tend to neglect their plants’ hidden root systems in favour of stems and foliage. We’re not saying you should ignore your leaves, but it certainly pays to give your roots some lovin’ too.

When push comes to shove, indoor growers are all looking to achieve the same thing: bigger yields and more of them.

Common sense dictates that a plant with a healthy root structure will also have stronger, healthier stems, leaves and flowers. Giving a bit of extra TLC to your roots has other benefits as well, like making your plants less susceptible to pests and diseases.

But what can we do to improve the root systems of our plants – especially when we can’t directly look at them?

There are a few ways we can help our plants develop the bountiful root systems you’ve been dreaming of – it all starts with oxygen.

Many people think of plants as things that produce oxygen, not as living organisms that need oxygen. The reality is exactly that – without oxygen, your plants can’t survive.

This is because of cellular respiration, a process occurring right after photosynthesis.

After a plant has photosythesized carbon dioxide and thermal energy from the sun, it transforms it into oxygen and glucose. Your plants release a portion of this oxygen back into the environment and use the rest, along with glucose, to grow.

A biproduct of this cellular respiration is that more carbon dioxide is released into the environment which is then used for photosynthesis… and so the cycle continues.

With this information in mind, it makes sense that the more oxygen available to your plants and their root systems, the easier it will be for your plants to carry out cellular respiration and, therefore, the easier it will be for them to thrive.

So, if oxygen really is all that, how do we increase it’s concentration in a space we can’t see?

There are a few great ways to increase the concentration of oxygen in your hydroponic system.
If you’re running a system where roots are fully submerged in water (e.g. deep water culture) you must add oxygen by way of a submersible pump and air stones.

The temperature of your nutrient solution also plays a crucial role in the volume of dissolved oxygen your plants can access.

The ideal temperature for most hydroponic systems is 18 to about 21°C. Once your nutrient solution hits 23°C, it’s ability to hold oxygen diminishes.

For Australian growers, this is paramount.

When summer hits and we begin seeing 47 degree days, a water chiller will become an essential piece of kit that will be worth it’s weight in gold.

In hydroponic systems that do not use a reservoir, you’ll want to aerate your grow through a good choice of media.

The options here are abundant but we recommend using a good quality german made expanded clay, perlite, or a coco/perlite mix. We’ve linked the options we use in-store below.

Outside of increasing oxygen levels, there are a few other things you can do to encourage a strong, healthy root system.

For example, when you take cuttings, apply a rooting hormone like Clonex to stimulate and encourage new root development.

You can also add beneficial microorganisms, like mycorrhizae, which work by extending the plant’s access to vital nutrients. For more information on mycorrhizae, take a look at the newsletter archives on our website – we’ll link our most recent newsletter on beneficial microorganisms below.

Although mostly unseen, the root systems of your grow play a huge role in the overall health and success of your garden. Growers who take the care to nurture their plant’s roots are proven to achieve bigger yields and more of them.

Hopefully this newsletter has helped improve your next yield and from the whole team at Aquaponics WA and Hydroponic Xpress, happy growing!