FILLING A NEW NICHE: AREA WOMAN'S VEGETABLES TAKE ROOT IN WATER, NOT SOIL

Octavia Scharenborg needs two to three weeks to produce a head of bib-type selena lettuce. She needs a little more time for romaine lettuce, from 40 to 60 days.

One thing she doesn't need is dirt.

Scharenborg grows lettuce, other vegetables and herbs using hydroponics, that is, growing them without soil in trays of water. While the idea goes back to the hanging gardens of Babylon, scientists in the 1930s experimented with using nutrients dissolved in water to grow plants. They found the soil is not necessary except to anchor the roots.

Using that knowledge, Scharenborg is filling a new agricultural niche producing for buyers seeking organic foods.

Scharenborg helps her parents operate a 216-acre farm just north of Cape Girardeau.

"We do row cropping and raise cattle," she said. "But my real agriculture love is in a 3,400-square-foot greenhouse" on Cape County Road 640. The greenhouse is open Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The greenhouse and hydroponic farming has been the dream of Scharenborg since she attended an agriculture expo in Memphis while in high school in Cape Girardeau. Her dream became fulfilled last year.

"I have room here for 5,700 plants," said Scharenborg, who sells her products to restaurants, grocery markets, farmers' markets and individuals.

Scharenborg's parents, Martin and Connie Scharenborg, lend a hand in the greenhouse. The temperature in the greenhouse is usually about 60 at night and 74 during the day, although they can soar to 80 or 90 degrees on sunning days.

The water is obtained from a well on the farm and is recycled daily.

Seeds are planted in miniature, one-inch rockwool cubes and supplied with 16 to 18 hours of light a day. They will be ready to transplant into their permanent home -- a water tray -- when roots show through the bottom of the cube.

Mrs. Scharenborg raises koi fish in some water tanks at the greenhouse, and has hopes of adding perch and crappie tanks.

Scharenborg will be guest speaker at a Master Gardeners meeting March 3 at the Jackson Extension office. She will also speak at meetings at Perryville and Farmington.