7 plants you can grow in water all year round – the effortless, mess-free way to grow vegetables and houseplants
These are the best plants for hydroponics
Ever seen houseplants growing in a vase of water, sand or gravel, no soil in sight? That’s what’s known as ‘hydroponics’ – and there are so many plants you can grow hydroponically all year round.
Growing even the most unkillable houseplants without water seems like a recipe for disaster, but actually, hydroponics offers plants everything they need to survive. They’re grown in a water-based solution that delivers essential nutrients to the roots.
If you’re keen to give this growing method a try, I’ve rounded up a list of the best plants for hydroponics (using water, specifically).
What you'll need
Propagation stations to get you started with hydroponics
This indoor hydroponic kit comes with nine pods and an LED grow light.
This water-soluble fertiliser is perfect for adding to the water around leafy vegetables.
1. Pothos
There are plenty of houseplants you can grow hydroponically all year round, but natural climbers like pothos are one of the very best examples. If you know how to propagate pothos plants using the water method, you're already halfway there.
‘Plants that grow well hydroponically are generally those that are easy to propagate by cuttings in water,’ explains Kelly Dyer, plant doctor at Patch Plants. ‘These include climbing plants like pothos.’
If you’ve already got a pothos plant, simply take cuttings from just below a node, ideally a few inches long. Pop the cutting in water so a couple of nodes sit beneath the surface, and roots should start to form.
‘The key to growing plants hydroponically is to refresh and top up the water regularly, and to give them the tiniest amount of liquid plant food about once a month throughout the growing season (April to October),’ Kelly adds.
Growth Technology Hydroponic Houseplant Focus, which you can buy for £9.99 at Amazon, is specially formulated for hydroponically-grown houseplants.
2. Monstera
Like pothos, monsteras can be grown hydroponically, too. It’s best to start with a monstera cutting, rather than moving the entire plant to water.
‘When growing monsteras hydroponically, be mindful of the water quality, and the plant will need to be supported as it grows,’ advises Richard Barker, a horticultural expert from LBS Horticulture.
It’s best to use distilled or filtered water instead of tap water, or even bottled water, which contains natural minerals.
‘To keep the plant upright, you may need to add pebbles to support the stem within the container,’ Richard adds. These glass pebbles, £12.99 from Amazon are a popular incognito choice.
3. Philodendrons
Similar to pothos and monstera, philodendrons are one of the best plants for hydroponics.
‘Glossy-leafed philodendrons are happy in water,’ says Monique Kemperman, horticultural expert at the Plants and Flower Foundation Holland.
‘Cut the plant just below a leaf, at the leaf node. This is where the plant’s rooting hormone is concentrated. A bottle-shaped vase with a narrow neck will help to hold your plant in place.’
These propagation stations from Amazon are ideal.
4. Lettuce
There are plenty of vegetables that can be grown hydroponically, too. Learning how to grow lettuce is straightforward at the best of times, but in water, it’s even simpler.
‘Lettuce is one of the easiest plants to grow hydroponically, and it can be ready to harvest within a month,’ says Richard from LBS Horticulture.
‘First, start the seeds in a growing medium until they have produced a few leaves and roots, which usually takes two to three weeks. After this, they can be transplanted to the hydroponic growing system that you are using.’
For the best growth, you’ll need to position your hydroponic lettuce somewhere that receives plenty of sunlight (but make sure it isn’t too warm). Water-soluble fertilisers like Vitax Vitafeed, available at Amazon, are perfect for growing leafy vegetables hydroponically.
5. Basil
A huge number of herbs are suitable for hydroponics, too – and according to Easy Garden Irrigation’s gardening and greenhouse expert Lucie Bradley, basil is one of the top choices.
‘What makes it fantastic for growing hydroponically is that it germinates and grows at least twice as fast as when you grow it in the ground – with germination possible in three to seven days and harvesting as early as 21 days from sowing, rather than 60 days when grown in soil,’ Lucie explains.
‘This also means much higher yields when grown hydroponically, with studies showing three times as much compared to traditionally grown basil.’
You can pick up sweet basil seeds from Crocus.
6. Mint
Learning how to grow mint from seed is all fun and games until it takes over your vegetable patch – but of course, its pest-battling benefits are usually worth the risk.
If you’re keen to grow this popular herb for its culinary value, though, it's one of the best plants for hydroponics.
‘When mint is grown hydroponically, there is no soil for the rhizomes of mint to spread, limiting their growth,’ explains Lucie.
‘Growing mint in the controlled environment of a hydroponic system also significantly reduces the risk of disease – simply the fact that no soil is involved eliminates any chance of soil-borne pathogens, which can be responsible for rust and verticillium wilt.’
7. Dumb canes
According to plant doctor Kelly from Patch Plants, dumb canes (Dieffenbachia) are well-suited to growing in water, too.
‘Thicker woody or cane-stemmed plants like Dieffenbachia are also suitable for hydroponics,’ she says.
‘The trick is to change the water at least a week after feeding, to prevent a build-up of nutrients and algal growth, which will happen naturally as sunlight reacts with nutrients in the water.'
Our list of plants that can be grown hydroponically all year round isn't extensive, but it's long enough to get you started. I think it's a totally fuss-free, tidy way of growing plants – and, as the likes of basil show, some varieties grow even better in water.
