Question
Hallo. My name is Ryo Yamaguchi, I am a student and researching about indoor hydroponics system. I would appreciate if you could answer my couple of question.

First question is about the safety of hydroponics in enclosed indoor environment. Solution used in hydroponics contents nutrient such as potassium solution and nitrogen nitrate etc. to supplement plants to grow. Does these chemicals effects human health when the solution evaporates into the air of the enclosed environment?

Second question is about air-purification action of plants. It is well-known that some of the indoor plants has high rate of air purify effect. How about vegetables? Does these vegetable which is popular to be grown in hydroponics system such as lettuce, tomato and herbs provide such air purifying effect as well? And if they do, is there a risk to eat the vegetables and fruits by the stimulated absorbed toxic substances in the body or the fruits of the plants?

I am looking forward you to answering my questions.  

Answer
Hi there,

My expertise is limited to the care of indoor plants. I am not a researcher or a medical expert.

I have never heard that hydroponic solutions are at all toxic to humans, but I cannot say that I know that as a scientific fact.

The studies of plants as air purifiers are quite limited. They were conducted by Bill Wolverton. The plants used were non-edible. They were grown in soil in sealed cases to simulate modern office buildings that do not have windows that open. The chemical pollutants tested were those that are typically found in sealed buildings suffering from "sick building syndrome." These chemicals included benzene, tuolene, and formaldehyde. The tests did not include tobacco or vehicular emissions. The tests did not include plants grown hydroponically.

Thus, I do not believe there is any research that has been done on the ability of fruits an vegetables to remove common airborne pollutants grown hydroponically. However, it would seem logical that virtually all plants have some ability to remove at least some air pollutants.

Please let me know if any of this is unclear or if you have any additional questions.

Regards,
Will Creed, Interior Landscaper
Horticultural Help, NYC

You can E-mail me directly at: [email protected]

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