The word aquaponics is starting to become more common in the agricultural world. What is aquaponics? Aquaponics is a way to grow organic food in places where it would not otherwise be possible with conventional farming. It does this by creating a natural biological system within a controlled environment.
This system is created by growing plants and fish together. Aquaponics is simply a hydroponics system attached to an aquaculture (fish) tank. Fish and plants make excellent companions to each other. Fish release large amounts of waste materials into the water that contain the nutrients that plants need. In return, the plant roots along with bacteria, clean the water for the fish.
Hydroponics can be a good way to grow plants, but it has its disadvantages. Mainly in supplying the plants with nutrients and maintaining proper nutrient levels. This can be especially difficult for organic hydroponics in finding and supplying good sources of organic fertilizer.
Aquaculture is a growing industry, but one of the main problems is disposing of the fish water full of fish wastes. This can require a lot of water to keep the system clean and healthy for the fish. And often times the fish wastes are released into the environment, which can cause problems for streams and other bodies of water.
Aquaponics is a way to solve all of these problems. Water from the fish tank is circulated through the hydroponic system. Bacteria in the system break down the fish wastes and convert it to plant nutrients. The plants remove these materials from the water and keep it clean for the fish. This cycle works so well, that the same water can be cycled through the system over and over.
This type of farming can use only about 2% of the water that conventional farming uses, as well as less energy. There is no need to dispose of fish wastes, the bacteria and plants take care of it. This means no need for a mechanical filter or regular cleaning of the fish tank.
Plants in this type of system can show amazing growth. The system directly supplies the plant roots with everything they need. They get plenty of oxygen rich water and organic nutrients. When the plants don’t have to search for and compete with sometimes scare nutrients and water in soil, they can be planted closer together, allowing more plants to be grown in a smaller space. With the organic fertilizer, aquaponics is becoming more popular since the produce is known for having more of a garden grown taste than with hydroponics.
A common configuration is to have a fish tank on the ground, and a grow bed on top of it. This places the plants at a convenient working level, and it makes excellent use of space. You get highly productive plants in the grow bed and the production of fish below, using the same space and resources. This allows the same amount of land to be many times more productive. And since the system does not use soil and very little water, it opens up infertile, land and even barren deserts to become highly productive farm land.
For commercial farmers, back yard gardeners, and even indoor gardeners, aquaponics systems can be scaled for your needs. They can be as simple as a home aquarium attached to a grow bed, or complex computer controlled systems. It is easy to start with a simple and low cost system in your home, greenhouse, or yard. You can then see for yourself how easy it can be to grow fresh organic vegetables and clean, fresh organic fish.