Txkstew
Veteran Member
Back in the mid 70's, my parents bought some rural property, 30 miles outside Beaumont, Tx. They built a nice house on the 45 acres. Why here in this area, I'm not sure because Houston was our home town, 100 miles away. We had been living overseas at different places for almost 10 years, and my Dad was about ready to retire from his Electrical Engineering career. I was 18 at the time, and hated living out in the country. I had friends in Beaumont, and as soon as I could get a real job, I moved into town.
Before I moved, one day I was driving my Mom home to the "Farm" from a trip into the little town nearby. There was a house off the highway, that had a big hoop style Greenhouse, approximately 30 x 100 foot. Mom wanted to just pull in there to talk to the man who lived there. I was mortified at going to a strangers house, and just bugging someone, but not my Mom. She had no problem doing such a thing. Turns out, the guy came out, and was happy to chat with Mom, and show us his setup.
As it was, he grew hothouse tomatoes, and gave us a detailed explanation of how he went about growing a crop. Mom was looking for something to do, as she was totally going bonkers sitting out in the boonies, mostly by herself. She researched all she could about hydroponics at the library, and in magazines.
I moved to the city, and that was the last I heard about her idea for the next few years. Around that time, one of my older Brothers and his wife and kid showed up at my parent's house, and moved in. He needed something to do for money, and it was decided my parents would bank roll a Greenhouse for him there on the property. Him and my Dad drove to College Station, Tx the home of Texas A&M University, and attended some seminars on Hydroponic Farming, tomatoes to be exact.
My Brother dove into this project with a total commitment to making a success business out of it, and actually has been doing very well at it for 41 years now, only not as you would think. I'll explain how I got roped into this endeavour later in this thread. Some pics of Brother's first efforts, first.
A simple frame work, sloping down to a collection sump for return nutrient solution.
Polyethylene tubing laid over the frame like saddle bags. The seedling is inserted in through a small hole so the roots are submerged in the nutrient stream. The root mass grow into this stream, and fill in the tube eventually. A timer turns on a pump every twenty minutes to keep the roots saturated.
A crop on the way
Getting there
Ready for market
Before I moved, one day I was driving my Mom home to the "Farm" from a trip into the little town nearby. There was a house off the highway, that had a big hoop style Greenhouse, approximately 30 x 100 foot. Mom wanted to just pull in there to talk to the man who lived there. I was mortified at going to a strangers house, and just bugging someone, but not my Mom. She had no problem doing such a thing. Turns out, the guy came out, and was happy to chat with Mom, and show us his setup.
As it was, he grew hothouse tomatoes, and gave us a detailed explanation of how he went about growing a crop. Mom was looking for something to do, as she was totally going bonkers sitting out in the boonies, mostly by herself. She researched all she could about hydroponics at the library, and in magazines.
I moved to the city, and that was the last I heard about her idea for the next few years. Around that time, one of my older Brothers and his wife and kid showed up at my parent's house, and moved in. He needed something to do for money, and it was decided my parents would bank roll a Greenhouse for him there on the property. Him and my Dad drove to College Station, Tx the home of Texas A&M University, and attended some seminars on Hydroponic Farming, tomatoes to be exact.
My Brother dove into this project with a total commitment to making a success business out of it, and actually has been doing very well at it for 41 years now, only not as you would think. I'll explain how I got roped into this endeavour later in this thread. Some pics of Brother's first efforts, first.
A simple frame work, sloping down to a collection sump for return nutrient solution.
Polyethylene tubing laid over the frame like saddle bags. The seedling is inserted in through a small hole so the roots are submerged in the nutrient stream. The root mass grow into this stream, and fill in the tube eventually. A timer turns on a pump every twenty minutes to keep the roots saturated.
A crop on the way
Getting there
Ready for market