Interview!!!!!!!!!!

Alright, so in my quest to learn more about plant
growth and various factors that would effect my hydroponic system, I have contacted a number of botany professors looking for answers to my questions. The other day, one of them finally responded (yay!). Prof. Donna Fernandez from the University of Wyoming was gracious enough to aid me in this project and answer my questions. The questions that I asked ranged from the importance of botany, to the way that UV light affect plant growth, all things that affect the success of hydroponic gardens both big and small. Now I'm going into the questions that I asked and explain why these are important things for me to know. I will only include some of the answers here, but will post a link to the full interview transcript at the bottom of this post.

(questions are bold and my reasoning for asking them are in italics)

What are the most vital nutrients to plant growth? How are these incorporated into the plants/how do the plants use these nutrients?

"Plants require macronutrients in large quantities and micronutrients in smaller quantities.  Macronutrients include carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulfur, nitrogen, calcium, and potassium.  Macronutrients are used to building the "molecules of life" like protein, DNA, carbohydrates, and lipids.  Micronutrients include things like iron, nickel, zinc, manganese, etc.  They are often used as co-factors for various enzymes or vitamins. "

Because instead of gaining nutrients from the ground, nutrients for plants have to be given them directly through the water, it's important to know what nutrients the plants need, and how much they need at different developmental stages. This knowledge allows for the plants to grow healthier, bigger, and (for fruit/vegetables) improve taste and texture. 

Do different plants absorb different spectrum of light? How could using lights on plants specific to these ranges effect growth?

"There are some differences, but most plants use chlorophyll as their primary light absorbing molecule.  That absorbs primarily in the blue and red wavelengths.  Grow lights  are enriched in these colors and that's why they appear purple."

Because all of the light in a hydroponic system is not natural, knowing how different grow lights affect the growth of plants as well as what type of lights to use can affect things like growth cycle. 

In your opinion, why is botany an important area of study?

"Because all life on earth depends ultimately on the capture of solar energy by plants.  They feed the world.  "

I was interviewing a botany professor for my project, who better to ask about the importance of botany?

rest of the interview 
For me, this is a solid step on my way to understanding plant growth and how a hydroponic system will affect plant growth. For any of my questions that she was unable to answer, Prof. Fernandez recommended other places (reputable sources) where I could find more information. So, again, a big thanks to her for all the help.