DIY Hydroponic Gardens
This book is a gem! Best Hydroponics book published here yet! Retro-tech, cheap components and It-Just-Works Philosophy!
I am sure people have figured out by now that the Memex is about building a reference library for VAULT-SYS as a network service, as a portable library for my own vault and as a general reference for all civil defense advocates and survivalists nationwide.
Of particular interest would be all books on hydroponics (of which we have published quite a few) but the best focus would be on small-sized, high-yield setups like you would expect to see underground, semi-buried and banked aboveground development plots. Most books on this topic approach it from the sheeple perspective … “go down to the gardening store and buy it,” whatever it is. This isn’t always practical in some circumstances, for obvious reasons.
This is the best book and the best overall content on this subject that I have found yet. It’s got a tech approach (both automated and semi-automated) but leans towards complete self-sufficiency over the long term without extended support from the surrounding civilization. That’s the hydro I am aiming for, framed as an underground garden that requires low-maintenance and produces high outputs year round. Nothing but scavenged components for parts and maintenance if it comes to that.
It’s funny but this is an extremely good companion when coupled with the first hydroponics book we ever published to the Memex back in the ancient past (2024) - the remarkable tome called The “Hydroponic Hot House” by the grandfather heritage survivalist, the great James B. Dekorne. (It’s still on the Memex now if you don’t have a copy) I am linking to the original post …
The Hydroponic Hot House
This is a true classic on the subject that teaches how to combine aquaculture, hydroponics and permaculture into one big food production facility in minimal space. I bought it in 1992 in hardback when it was recommended to me … I envy you that you get it for free now after it has generously been donated to public domain by Dekorne.
Best of all, it’s designed to be cheap! Everything in it is geared towards inexpensive solutions wherever possible. There is a huge focus on water-based systems so I thought it was maybe better called aquaponics! All that is missing here is the “fish and their wastes as fertilizer,” which is covered in detail in the DeKorne book mentioned above.
Get it before you realize how bad you need it and you can’t find it! Until VAULT-SYS comes out, it might be prudent to print these sorts of books out and keep them in a binder. I did this for years in Australia and black mold ruined quite a few of them when it creeped into the reference shelves. So even printed and laminated books can be vulnerable, believe it or not. Frustrating but true. Perhaps multiple backups both digital and printed is the best idea of all if you can afford it.
DIY HYDROPONICS GARDENS
(Added to the Memex)
Regards, Tex
Thanks and (shocker) with any luck I might be able to become a paid subscriber by month’s end. 😊