Posted on: Monday, August 22, 2005
FITNESS PROFILE
Homegrown food boost to fitness
By Paula Rath
Advertiser Staff Writer
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Chuck Glenn checks lettuces in his backyard, where he grows vegetables using a hydroponic (without soil) cultivation system.
RICHARD AMBO | The Honolulu Advertiser
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HYDROPONIC GARDENING IDEAL FOR HAWAI'I Chuck Glenn began hydroponic gardening in his backyard in Kailua as a means of providing fresh vegetables for his family and friends. With characteristic curiosity and enthusiasm, he is constantly seeking ways to improve his crops and the system that delivers them.
The term hydroponics refers to growing plants without soil. Instead of planting seeds in the ground, the roots of plants are fed with a nutrient-rich solution in a system suspended above ground. While the system may sound new and revolutionary, in a historical context, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon were probably hydroponic.
Glenn's most recent invention is the "Dual Channel Stack Level Flo Recirculating Hydroponic Gardening System" for backyard growing. He said the system is ideal for Hawai'i's climate, as it can handle full sun year-round. On the Mainland, people who grow hydroponics usually need a greenhouse, but in the Islands it is not necessary.
"While growing quality lettuce for gourmet salads (pesticide free), it conserves water, fertilizer, space and energy," Glenn said as he harvested enormous heads of leafy bright green lettuce. He grows eight different varieties of lettuce — a total of about 50 heads per month.
Glenn said daily maintenance of his hydroponic system requires just five to 10 minutes to do the following:
Check water level in the reservoir and replenish when needed.
Check fertilizer strength and replenish as needed.
Check pH level with a meter or pH kit and adjust as needed.
Glenn said the smallest system requires only three-feet by six-feet of space. It can even be set up on a lanai if the lanai has the appropriate lighting — about six to eight hours a day of sunlight.
For information, write to Glenn at glennc001@hawaii.rr.com or see www.growingedge.com. |
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Chuck Glenn of Kailua balances his workouts with a diet of homegrown, healthy, environmentally friendly vegetables. Last week we profiled his wife, Ruth.
Name: Charles "Chuck" Glenn.
Age: 68.
Profession: Retired secondary school counselor, Windward District outreach counselor.
Height: 5-feet-11.
Weight: 185 pounds.
Workout habits: Attends yoga classes at the Windward YMCA two or three times a week; works out with weights along with cardio (treadmill and stationary bike) two or three times a week.
When and why I started working out: Retirement allows Glenn the time to work out more regularly. "I treat exercise as physical therapy and muscle-toning, especially yoga. It affords me socialization with other age groups."
My good foods/bad foods: Consumes mostly vegetables and fruits, with an occasional treat of cake or candy.
My biggest motivator: "Trying to avoid physical and mental deterioration."
My biggest roadblock to fitness: "None. Retirement affords us the time, and the local YMCA gives us a place."
What saves his sanity: Glenn's hobby, hydroponic gardening, has become a passion and a challenge. He is constantly seeking better ways to grow vegetables and recently invented a new system called the "Dual Channel Stack Level Flo." (See box for more on hydroponics.) "Vegetables can be eaten fresh from the system. The freshness is addictive to the palate," he said.
My next challenge: "To avoid dependency."
Advice for those in the same boat: "Maintain a diet heavy on fruits and vegetables. Exercise, exercise, exercise."
Reach Paula Rath at prath@honoluluadvertiser.com.
