Aquaponics Update - 12/18/10

It has been 7 days since my last update and O-M-G! I am thinking the claims that veggies grow much faster in aquaponics systems than in soil medium are possibly true. I only wish I had my raised garden bed prepared to test this hypothesis. Maybe next time.

I shoulda known the ants were up to no good! Where there are ants, there are aphids. I found the source ... hidden amongst my mint leaves was a healthy colony of fat aphids that eventually invaded my fennel. One nice thing about the floating rafts is I can pull the plant out, spray with soapy water, wash it off, and return it to its spot. :) Aphids are HISTORY!
I had some problems with what I think is iron deficiency so treated with some foliar Fe/Zn spray and added some Maxicrop with iron for insurance a couple days ago. I'm still waiting to see the results but chucked one struggling chlorotic mizuna. No space for the weak in this system! LOL
I've started a new rotation of lettuce in the hopes this system will provide lettuce year round.

Aquaponics fish tank - golden tilapia

Dinner, Lunch, and Jack (the one-eyed tilapia) are doing well amongst the minion. I'm sure they get the best morsels too.

If you're an aquaponics nerd, you might find this info interesting ... pH is 6.8, ammonia is negligible, nitrites 0.25 mg/L, and nitrates 15 mg/L. I dunno the dissolved oxygen but I use an airpump and airstone. Oh, and the PVC pipe with holes that is running along the bottom of the tank is part of the pump, drawing off fish solids (i.e., poop). It's been really effective so far!

My fish tank is 100 gallons and receives the overflow from the sump. The pipe to the left is the overflow drain so I don't flood my downstairs when it rains hard.

Backyard aquaponics ... the adventure

On to my new project ... AQUAPONICS! Aquaponics is the cross between hydroponics (growing plants in a water medium) and aquaculture (growing fish for food). It's a rather ingenious idea, actually, and is really catching on by those who want to grow their own food and to remain sustainable. Basically, one grows vegetables using fish poo, which is high in nitrogen. The fish water is piped to vegetable growing beds where bacteria break down the ammonia to nitrites and then nitrates, which is a form plants can take up. In doing so, the plants clean the water, which is then circulated back to the fish!

I've started building my three grow bed benches and have already finished the table for my 100-gallon fish tank. Thanks to Donna and Tracy, the Vierra's, and donations from church, I have enough recycled wood for my construction projects. And bless you Dennis for cutting the 2x4s to length for 2 tables! It helped tremendously!

Oh, did I tell you that I am running all of this on solar power? The generator is purchased and ready to install! I'm so excited! More pics soon!