on 6/17/03 3:50 PM, vawright at wrote:

Hi -- I saw your answer to a tomato question in rec.gardens.edible. I have
been curious about hydroponics for a while, and I have been thinking about a
greenhouse, too... I was wondering if you would be so kind as to suggest some
resources (websites, magazines, books, etc.) where I could get a good thorough
intoduction? Don't know if it matters, but I am just north of Tulsa, Oklahoma
on 2-1/2 acres -- hot as hell in the summer and colder than, well, never mind,
in the winter. And the weather changes every five minutes. Is this
(hydroponics/greenhouse) something I can do relatively inexpensively, or start
small and add on later? I can do any building and such myself, including
plumbing/electrical/etc.
Thanks for the help! Virginia

Virginia:

It is good to hear from someone also interested in hydroponics. There is a
newsgroup rec.gardens.hydroponic. Unfortunately, it does not get many posts.
But I am posting this there.

You do not say how much you want to do. I have a small "hobby" greenhouse
that I got from Spectrum Hobby Greenhouse at:

http://www.spectrumgreenhouses.com/

You can also do a Google search with an exact term "hobby greenhouse".

Although I had a few problems assembling the greenhouse, and it wasn't
cheap, I have been happy with the result. There are many more expensive ones
available, and there are many cheaper ones. Some may be OK but others are
not worth their small price. I see no reason why you cannot put one together
for yourself.

You may be in a place that will require heat in the winter and cooling in
the summer. I have a swamp cooler to keep from burning crops.

You can get much information using Google including hydroponic fundamentals,
construction and more. My first grower was a General Hydroponics Power
Grower kit. I bought it from Beylik Farms. It was a bit expensive, but it
was complete and could be used without buying anything else but seed.

I then used a tray with rock wool blocks but quickly found that I did not
like that system either.

My mainstay now is an array of 12 Dutch pots that I bought from Beylik
Farms, www.beylikhydroponics.com. They grow hydroponic vegetables for the
Los Angeles area Farmers' Markets. They sell hydroponic supplies on the
side. They are reasonable, but not cheap. Remember, hobby hydroponics is a
boutique hobby or used for growing pot for which cost may not be a problem.

Since then, I started assembling growers made from five gallon buckets and
plastic tubing. Plans for these are on the web. Google hydroponics.

There is no way I can answer all your questions, but you have enough to
start.

Bill
PS
I received mail from and answered. I tried sending it
to USENET as well but encountered difficulty. Please excuse me if multiple
copies show up.