Nutrient Solutions

for Controlled Environment Agriculture

Presented by
Dr. Don C. Wilkerson, Professor & Extension Specialist (Emeritus)
Department of Horticultural Sciences
Texas A&M University College Station, Texas

Caliber Biotheraputics, College Station, Texas

Baron Justus von Liebig
Darmstadt Germany
May 12, 1803

German scientist in the mid-19th century, showed that

nutrients are essential for plant life.

He stated, "We have determined that a number of elements

are absolutely essential to plant life. They are essential
because a plant deprived of any one of these elements would
cease to exist.
16 - Essential Plant Nutrients:

C, H, O,
Macro Nutrients
N, P, K,
Ca, S, Mg, Secondary Nutrients

Fe, Zn, Mn, Cu, B, Mo, Micro Nutrients

Cl
“They are essential because a plant deprived of
any one of these elements would cease to exist. “
 Substrate Plant Nutrition
Versus
Hydroponic Plant Nutrition
Substrate Plant Nutrition:

Measured as Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC)

Hydroponic Plant Nutrition:

Plant nutrients in the bulk solution.

Substrates (i.e. rockwool) primarily for anchorage.

 Developing a
Hydroponic Nutrient Solution
• More Cost Efficient
• More Precise Control of Plant Nutrition
• Eliminates Substrates as Potential Source of
Contamination
 Hoagland Solution
The Hoagland solution is a hydroponic nutrient solution
released by Hoagland and Arnon in 1938 and revised by
Arnon in 1950. This solution is was among the first
developed for growing plants without soil/substrate.

The Hoagland solution provides all of the essential

nutrients for plant growth and is appropriate for a wide
Dennis Robert Hoagland (1884-1949)
range of plant species. The solution described by
Hoagland and Arnon in 1950 has been modified several
times, mainly to add iron chelates for improved stability.

Daniel I. Arnon (1910 - 1994)

Basic Hoagland Solution:
Component Stock Solution mL Stock Solution/1L N 210 ppm
Macronutrients
K 235 ppm
2M KNO3 202 g/L 2.5
Ca 200 ppm
1M Ca(NO3)2•4H2O 236 g/0.5L 2.5
P 31 ppm
Iron (Sprint 138 iron
S 64 ppm
15 g/L 1.5
chelate) Mg 48 ppm
2M MgSO4•7H2O 493 g/L 1 B 0.5 ppm
1M NH4NO3 80 g/L 1 Fe 1 to 5 ppm
Micronutrients Mn 0.5 ppm
H3BO3 2.86 g/L 1 Zn 0.05 ppm
MnCl2•4H2O 1.81 g/L 1 Cu 0.02 ppm
ZnSO4•7H2O 0.22 g/L 1 Mo 0.01 ppm
CuSO4•5H2O 0.051 g/L 1
H3MoO4•H2O or 0.09 g/L 1
Na2MoO4•2H2O 0.12 g/L 1
Phosphate

1M KH2PO4 (pH to 6.0) 136 g/L 0.5

Nutrient Solution Optimization
Knowing the nutrients required to grow plants hydroponically is
only one aspect of successful crop production. Maximizing yield
also requires additional optimization of the solution.

• Concentration to apply (ppm or EC)

• Timing of application (stage/rate of
growth)
• Source of nutrients to use
• Water quality
• Solution temperature
• Environmental conditions
(temperature/humidity)
• Light
• Carbon Dioxide levels
Nutrient Solution Optimization
Continued…

• pH (5.5 – 6.5)
• Buffer Capacity
• Electrical Conductivity (salinity)
• Temperature
• UV Light
• Availability/Solubility (Precipitation)
• Concentrates (1:200)
• Pre-Mixed vs Make Your Own