I've gardened in soil since I first started well over 40 years ago. I've had my share of successes and more than my share of failures, just like most everyone. Some of my failures were entirely my fault (i.e. forgetting to water) and some were beyond my control, such as the hailstorm a couple of years ago. I was in the shop when it started and opened up the door to see what all the noise was. I remember just closing the door and telling myself, "well, no more weeding this year." Everything was pounded into the ground.

Somewhere along the way I had heard about hydroponic gardening and just b...