Informally, one would describe aquaponics as the combination of hydroponics
(growing plants without soil) and aquaculture (fish farming). In an aquaponic
system, the fish provide nutrients required in plant growth and the plants,
in absorbing these nutrients, help to purify the water.
Harvest Springs Horticulture
Inc - Home of Steve's Sweet Water system
Aquaponics.com -
Aquaponics.com is the source for information on aquaponics, hydroponics
and aquaculture.
S & S Aqua Farm -
Bioponics System
Arizona Aquaculture - information
about aquaculture in Arizona, the United States and around the world
Aquaculture Research Institute
- University of Idaho
Aquaponics
- An integrated fish culture and vegetable hydroponics production system.
Time -2:07, 1 Dec 1998
From Vic High
Hey guys, just back from Vansterdam.
Finally got to meet with Breeder Steve.
He's quite a generous guy with his time,
and boy can he roll big joints! He rolled
a J of brand X that must have been a
whole 8th! Rope will get me stoned, so that
was way out of my league.
What did get my attention was his aquaponic
setup that he calls "The
Sweetwater System".It employs a double
res setup, one typical, and one
being a fish tank loaded with fish.
Water in the two res's are exchanged
regularily (something like every hour).
He says he never cleans his fish tank, as
all the plants and bottom feeders use
up all wastes. Plants are fed with drip
emmitters via the typical res. pH doesn't
fluctuate and the ppms remain between
300 and 400.
Now these drip emmitters fed two setups.
One was a traditional "dutch pot"
system. You know, the one where each
plant is grown on a 5 gallon pail? He
used a 5 or 6 inch basket that was 3/4
filled with those red balls (I think they are
an expanded clay called "hyrotron"?).
Steve then covered the red balls with 1"
layer of a blend of worm castings and
"Steve's Special Blend". The Special
Blend (2-6-5) is an organic mix comprised
of green sand, rock phosphate, fruit
bat quano, feather meal, steamed bone
meal- regular & fine, kelp meal,
sunflower seed hull ash, canola seed
meal, cotton seed meal, alfalfa meal,
langbeinite, corn gluten meal, pyro
clay, diatomaceous earth, and calcium
peroxide. Initially, the low nitrogen
surprised me, but then after I thought about it,
I realized that the plants were probably
getting all the nitrogen they needed from
the fish tank. I believe there was an
air stone in teh bottom of each pail. Seven
weeks ago Steve planted tomato seeds
into the medium and now the plants are
3 feet tall and have softball sized
green tomatoes on them. WOW!
The second setup was basically a large
table, 4' high, covered with something
like 1/4" dense plastic. Holes were
cut in it to hold the 4" or 5" net cups. Again
the cups were filled with the reddish
clay balls and topped with the special blend
and worm castings. Again the net baskets
were fed with drip emitters. What
interested me is what happened under
those net cups.
A large pond liner tarp was suspended
under the net cups to catch the water
and funnel it back into the typical
res. There was about 3' between the bottom of
the net cups and the bottom of the tarp.
And you know what this means?????
LOTSA ROOM FOR ROOTS! Big roots equal
big buds in my book. This feature
had me totally stoked!
I'm one that has had little respect for
the hydroponic side of our hobby for some
time. I've watched others playing with
the large numbers of clones and shaken
my head (legal risk). I've watched them
fight pH drifts and shaken my head. I've
watched them fight root rot and shaken
my head. I've watched them lose entire
crops due to pump or power failures
and shaken my head. I've watched them
pumping in the chems (hurting the environment)
and shaken my head. I've
watched them be proud of their 1-2 lbs
per light in their high intensity gardens
and shaken my head. Well I've stopped
shaking my head for this one. Steve's
way of working with the Dutch Pot system
seems to take care of all my
hydroponic concerns. I just wish I wasn't
too stoned to have asked him what he
fed his fish and why his emmitters didn't
clog.
This is an ongoing thread at Overgrow.com, but wanted to archive it as a place to start. I have other aquaponic discussions archived somewhere, I'll add them as I find them.
Topic: aquaponics-ever try it?
steve
Member
posted October 31, 1999 04:40 AM
The smoothest smoking buds ever are the result. I kid you not. The plants
grow beautifully, not a burnt tip
anywhwere. The only way for me indoors. Much more to come on this subject,
believe you me. A delicacy!
s.bl3nd
Member
posted October 31, 1999 04:47 AM
hey steve,
yeah i'm pretty interested in that aquaponic setup you have...
do the fish actually give out enough ppms to feed the plants? you would
think that the nutes would be
really low for the fish to survive.
it does make sense in one way though, if the fish are happy then the plants would be happy...
hope you can post more about this...
.blend
minty
Member
posted November 01, 1999 01:06 AM
Have pondered this theory once upon a time. Cool to have a proven follow-up.
I'm very happy to see you've found a method that works.
I'm quite interested in hearing about the basic setup.
I hear ya on the plants thriving if the phish are.
Same holds true with earthworms in soil.
Solid work my friend.
breed the trees,
mint
[This message has been edited by minty (edited November 02, 1999).]
junior-botanist
Member
posted November 01, 1999 06:02 PM
i tested my aquarium water once it was 1100ppm, but what was in it don't
know(ratios) how much is
uneaten food and how much is waste from the fish. i dunno.
------------------
breed the seed and overgrow the world. good growing to you.
jb
Vic High
Member
posted November 02, 1999 11:16 PM
Ahh now this would be the life, could actually convert me to a hydro head, haha
Just think, sit back amongst yer plants, smoke a fatty and toss a line in the res, fishing in paradise!! haha.
Steve, I shared what little I learned in my visit with ya, but it was defiantely
lacking. So quite teasing us
and teach us buddy. I missed points like whether you worry about monitoring
NPK ratios as the crop
progresses. Do some fish give better nutes than others?
Persoanlly, I saw a large table sharing a common tarp and a few bucket
systems. I prefer the idea of the
bucket system due to it's flexibility and allowing the grower to maximize
the density of his/her canopy. Any
thoughts on this?
I also noticed that both setups you had on display allowed for large root
systems. A few of us are big
believers in the idea that big roots equal big flowers. Any thoughts here?
I have loads of questions, but I'll stop short here for now, haha.
got my email?
minty
Member
posted November 03, 1999 04:08 AM
wooooooord
heheh,
mint
Wadsworth
Member
posted November 04, 1999 06:47 PM
From what I've read Carp or Tilapia are the best fish to raise this way
and you can eat them. Catfish
probally would work. Of course the stuff I read was on raising fish to
eat and using the water for
gardening. This technique also requires several hundred if not thousand
gallons of water. A large fish tank
should be able to support some plants. The concern would be the hardinest
of the fish more than the
plants.
------------------
d;^)-~
steve
Member
posted November 06, 1999 02:46 AM
Typical aquarium owners change 30% of the water every week. This is to
protect the fish from the
accumulation of toxic waste in their habitat. I'm talking about their own
waste choking them. Aquarium
enthusiasts are all ready familiar with the nitrogen cycle, for the rest
of you here it is. Ammonia is the most
poisonous of the nitrogenous compounds to the fish, it is also the first
to accumulate in the water as a
result of the fish waste. As the ammonia level rises during the first few
days of operation, and given the
proper conditions (ie aerated surface area), beneficial aerobic bacteria
called nitrosonomas begin to feed
on the ammonia converting it into the less harmful compound nitrite. This
is still toxic to the fish, but not
as toxic as ammonia. As the nitrite level rises, given the appropriate
conditions, another species of
nitrobacteria (nitrobacter) colonizes feeding on the nitrite. This reduces
the nitrite to nitrate, the least
toxic of these compounds to the fish. The aerated surface area is known
as the biofilter, an integral part of
this technique, for this is where the good bacteria colonize. This cycle
takes twelve days to control the
degradation of ammonia-nitrite-nitrate. For this reason most people begin
with a few small fish and
gradually add more after two weeks, when the biofilter is bacterially balanced.
As you know these three
nitrogenous compounds are essential to the health of your plant, which
will readily suck them out of the
water. A foliar feed with this water will green up any plants, guaranteed.
By bathing the roots continuously
with this water, the plants are sponging the nutrients out of the solution
hence cleaning the water further
than the filter. When the water returns to the aquarium it is heavily aerated,
which is of the utmost
importance to the health of populations of beneficial aerobic bacteria.
These
bacteria not only process
nutrients into a plant soluble form, and clean the water for the fish,
they also inhibit the proliferation of
destructive bacteria by a process known as competitive exclusion. Once
the solution is dominant with good
bacteria monopolizing the available food sources, bad bacteria is unable
to gain a foot hold. When one
spore of bad bacteria comes in contact with a sterile hydroponic solution,
it multiplies rapidly and disaster
is the inevitable result. In a healthy aquaponic system that spore is a
snack for more established helpful
bacteria. The plants are protected and fed by the beneficial bacteria.
The only supplemental nutes given
are organic and used sparingly. It is definately a less is more scenario.
I use Earth Juice Catalyst for PH
down. PH up is merl mix, ground oyster shells and special lime. I top dress
around the plants with a tbsp of
castings. Repeat as necessary. I fill up the foot of nylon stockings with
my special blend of guanos, ashes,
mineral rock, kelp, and feed meals. I drop this in the aquarium for added
bloom food. Rapidly algae starts to
eat at it, and a horde of algae eaters attach themselves to it reducing
it to plant soluble food. Any and all
deficiencies in any garden can be rectified organically.
For best results use only one aquarium for your entire garden, mothers,
clones and all stages of growth. If
your garden is staggered you balance the demands on the water, as the plants
have varying nutrient
requirements at different stages of growth. I keep the most diverse range
of creatures in the aquarium to
fill all the niches. The more lifeforms, the greater the balance. I could
go on and on, I'm writing a book on
growing cannabis this way. Your questions are important to me. Some other
nice things about this are that
you never have to change your solution, just top it up. The plants sprout
and finish with an average of
275ppm. Remember that the probes that measure dissolved salts only give
a very rough picture, they
cannot measure life. I'll check back here if anyone wants more information
and has specific questions. Yes
Vic, more roots=more plant. Cheers!
------------------
Sinserely Steve
la.bud
Member
posted November 06, 1999 08:27 AM
hey steve,sounds like "Jaws"{g13xgws}would fit right in ..lol ..i'll have
vic get with ya in a couple weeks
i'm currently running an organic room and an aero room http://genhydro.com/index2.html
using GH's aero flo
2 ...what benefits do you get vs a standard organic setup? and is root
waste a problem with your
setup?...nice to see ya around...
steve
Member
posted November 06, 1999 10:20 AM
In response to some excellent e-mail questions I told the person I would
reply here. I thought that I may
as well answer here as more will share his questions. Water temperature
and fish types? As the primary
reason for our system is the highest quality cannabis possible the water
temperature must be optimum for
the cannabis. I find this to be between 22°C-24° Celsius. Most
tropicals are all right with this, the feeder
goldfish are fine, until chow time, which is all the time. To the surprise
of my fish dealer I keep fish
together that theoretically won't live together due to differing PH preferences,
ie hardwater cichlids from
some of the best ganja producing lands in Africa, (calcium rich soils around
Lakes Malawi, and Tanginyka,
PH 7.1) These hardy fish do quite well in a tank with southeast asian and
amazonian varieties that prefer
something around PH 6. In general the grass likes 6.2. I let it move around
a little because in my
superstitious mind that allows the freeing up of things I barely understand.
If it has risen to the high sixes I
will bring it down, even with apple juice or coffee, unless I feel it needs
a boost of fert, then I give it a
tbsp of EJ Catalyst as I mentioned earlier. I have little freshwater crabs,
lobsters, snails, eels, and a huge
variety of "suckers". All of these keep the tank clean. Instead of just
feeding the fish flakes and pellets you
will likely derive much more pleasure and taste from your garden if you
keep a small auxilliary tank for
raising feeder guppies. I keep the fancy guppies whom are now referred
to as gourmet guppies and scoop
out a bunch for the main tank before I plan on watching the cycle of destruction
and renewal. Get a book
on aquarium layout to maximize the aesthetic of your tank with well arranged
rocks, driftwood, and aquatic
plants. I've been sucked into one aquarium for two years so far. Much better
than TV.
Yes, cooler water = more oxygen holding ability. Too cool or especially
too warm can also mean root
problems. Measure the temperature of your root zone and adjust the aquarium
cooler or warmer to keep
your roots healthy. We're here for the grass.
The supplemental sources of P,K and micros are all natural, and can be
applied easily to specific plants in
the garden as a topdressing of blended guanos, ashes, meals, and unrefined
minerals ie seabed deposits,
langbeinite, rock phosphate, etc. By topdressing specific plants their
roots hold the dressing in the rocks,
largely for the use of this plant. This makes it possible to grow a variety
of plants off of the same reservoir.
A bit of an organically derived tea is gradually released into the water
as a result. This benefits all the
plants. I keep over three times the recommended amount of fish in my aquarium.
One inch of fish per gallon
of water is the traditional aquarium formula. The reason for the standard
formula is that the water is dirty
too fast and the fish suffer. However the traditional aquarium is not filtered
through an 8000 watt grow
room full of weed at all stages. The aquarium/reservoir is 90 gallons.
The one I am setting up in Europe is
twice the reservoir for about 24 000 watts of grow space. You'll see how
it goes. Most of the grow gurus
were decidely skeptical when I told them what I'd found, too many of their
friends sell chem nutrients.
These grow groupies are now the ones that offer to blow me for .5 gram
of aquaponic grapefruit (not for
sale) The reason is there is no finer way to grow palatable cannabis indoors,
good soil is good, but not
better. As far as quantity of harvest there is one thing to remember, that
chem salesmen say all the time,
"The plants don't care about the source of their nutrients, they'll use
whatever is available to feed on."
Which is my point exactly, as long as everything necessary to feed the
plant is properly provided for it will
feed just as fast. It may take you a little practise to be certain that
your organic fert is plant soluble on
schedule, compared to the soluble salts you are conditioned to using, but
it's worth it. Even if profit is your
only motive, when you achieve the same yield with better pot you can still
charge more. I don't feed my
plants chemicals for my sake, I'm the one that is going to taste it. Someone
was recently telling me the old
"Well the plants can't tell the difference!" and I was about to reply the
usual "Well I can", when I told them
"If your dog is getting into some really foul garbage, ie eating someone's
vomit, you would pull it away
wouldn't you, because it doesn't know any better, but you do or should."
I've met the proprietors of many
hydro chem companies, I scare the shit out of them. The owner of the largest
American hydroponic
nutrient company was telling an audience how his new formula more closely
mimicks nature. "More like it
mocks nature" I told him afterwards as I presented him with the opportunity
to smoke some incredibly
sweet ganja and after visit the bio aquaponic garden it came from, his
eyes went wide and his face had
the stunned glow of someone caught with their pants down. If the glistening
bud in my hand scared this
old timer, just imagine if he smoked it and saw a healthy garden indoors
in organic hydro. It wasn't very
nice of me, but it was amusing to see this very self-assured man go from
strut to split. I'm still laughing at
him. What a shyster, he even admitted he eats organically produced food,
for the taste. Sells you cancer.
But he is a bit player in the grand scheme of things. See if phosphate
poisoning is a problem in a water
source near you. Identify it's source, and then see if you can pour your
excess wasted nutrients down the
drain everyweek with a good conscience. Food for thought, eat good food!
Ciao for now.
------------------
Sinserely Steve
raydavies
Member
posted November 06, 1999 11:16 PM
Steve,
Wow. When is the book going to be available ? What would you say to someone
whos only grown in soil
and want to switch. Great work.
Be KIND,
RAY
steve
Member
posted November 07, 1999 04:36 AM
Practically all systems are convertible including tubes and soil. Soil
requires a larger volume of water than a
recirculating system. Try a kiddie pool with gravel and young koi, as they
age you can appreciate them,
breed them, or sell them. If you have a lot of plants to feed, start off
with plenty of frogs and turtles as
well as fish, etc. The diggetty doo for the ultimate boo!
------------------
Sinserely Steve
steve
Member
posted November 07, 1999 11:59 AM
The book will be at least a year and will have plenty of pictures. HT article
in 3 months with pics and
diagrams. Fair enough? I'll be doing a grow seminar talking about it, and
answering questions at the cup.
This is good practice.
------------------
Sinserely Steve
Blazer
Member
posted November 07, 1999 06:51 PM
Steve! Incredible 1st. of all. We have a few common friends that have been
trying to get Me to Your place
to check this out. I've been dabling w/ aqua, bio, and hydroponic hybrid
systems for a little while now and
have visited a couple aquaponics farms in the midwest US. I'm soo glad
to see some1 w/ Your capacities
sharing all this "Top Shelf" info. I'm a huge buff of both the grow and
aquarium stuff Myself w/ a lil goldfish
farm using a towering type delivery system trickling through growrock.
It's merely a huge wet/dry filtration
system on steriods allowing 3 fold plus on the amount of creatures in the
h2o w/o any amonia problems.
Now the 1 and only grow shop in the metro wants 1 in there window as does
My fish supply buddy. It's
great of You to share the method of achieving propper nute ratio's via
juggling species and additives.
That's been the missing links here. I also have great luck combining species
that aren't intended for thses
ph ranges. I've spent more time keeping the the fish looking happy than
focusing on the plants as it's been
just a new way of filtering really, I didn't know how/what to alter for
the plants and the fish are in the
window too and must look presentable. Man o man I cannot wait to apply
this new knowledge to the hobby
arena full tilt! I'm very grateful for Your willingness to share Your outcomes
etc. w/ Us rather than guard it
w/ Your life as the chem. guru's try to do. I can only imagine that man's
face and I was almost laughing to
tears visualizing His potential future there dwindling at Your "mocking
nature" comments and backing it up
w/ product to boot! Balls, brains and common sense is something lacking
big in this world today as a
combined package(You) and thanks again for sharing it! I look forward to
future info bigtime and will keep
everyone posted on what I come up w/ as I begin this journey Myself.
Peace and keep up the great work
Blaze
Blazer
Member
posted November 07, 1999 09:36 PM
Steve I'm wondering if You started w/ the African species named Tilapia?
I know it's the trend around here
for aquaponics, but it is also for meat production too. I know they are
a very hardy fish that can handle
different temps, ph etc.. I'm wondering if most have chosen this fish for
its ease of care or if it has much if
anything to do w/ proper nutes? I never knew enough about true organics
to understand why You use
what kinda poop,quano etc. and how that may tie into the choice of Tilapia
fish for thier aqua units
excrimate wise. Is it along those lines or merely just a very easy fish
to farm for profit along w/ thier top
notch greens/herbs for all the trendy restruants in the Ozark's.
I have found in My hybrid bioponic/nft system that the taste, flavor, pest
resistance and overall
appearance is outstanding. We(You) are essentually duplicating the most
beneficial micro-organism's ability
to interact and exchange beneficial acids(humic etc.), enzyme's and antibiotics
at the plants root levels
resulting in like You said...The most incredible(not for sale) treats known
to Our community IMO.
Man I just returned from a vaca in Your neck of the woods and sb or Vic
threatened to introduce Us and
see the man in action. I did get to BC for almost 24 hours before having
to race home to Kansas for an
emergency damnit. I think You were in Europe at the time anyhow sadly.
I have been dying to talk w/ someone on this level of understanding for
the longest time and My limited
resources have shut mine down for the moment. Since We haven't been introduced
and You probably hear
soo many different webnicks I'd like to say I'm Blazer. A 31 year old parapledgic
that has run out of
western medicine options at the moment for the massive back reconstruction.
Well they failed Me 4 times
and I now have 3 breaks instead of 2 that pinches nerves on whats left
of My severed spinal cord. I also
have incurable/uncontrollable muscle spasms in every part of My body that
I no longer have control
over(chest down completly). The herb hasn't helped w/ the pain alot, but
flat kicks ass over any perscribed
muscle relaxer's that just eat Me guts away everyday now. I'm searching
for the most effective and easy
means to accomodate My want/need for med. use and use whatever is left
to pay the out of pocket
exspense of accupuncture treatments that do more good than any western
doctor!
Well that's My lil Bio. I just didn't want You to think I was wanting to
try and market YOUR project or the
like, I need it for Me personally. If I can drop the chems totally it will
make My paralyzed ass MUCH easier!
Just top it off w/ fresh h2o, check ph and be on My way. Thanks again Man
Blazer
ps. Keep in mind at the moment I'm all kinds of pie eyed and just on a
rambling/brainstorming kick after
reading the posts. Although I know I'm just a lil off center so maybe I
did get a lil bonus head injury along
w/ the spinal cord! ROFLMAO
steve
Member
posted November 08, 1999 03:18 AM
Dear Blazer, I was just about to suggest Acupuncture, it's pretty amazing,
eh? Still in Europe, I live here
now. I'm only too willing to share what I learned, I feel like I am seeing
the light while most people are
behaving like heathens in the dark ages. Hence I am going door to door
with the conviction of a Jehovah's
witness to save us all from the wretched chem pot (extends to food as well).
I am hardly worried about
someone copying this, it is for all to copy. It is nature and is for the
benefit of all it's inhabitants. To
reduce pollution is everybody's business. I had some tilapia but the oscars
ate them. To be honest, I was
going to start this thread in the beginners area, they might as well start
right the first time, and become
perfectionists. The first time I tried it I was thoroughly amazed at how
easy it was. The few people that
had problems their first time always had a glaring omission, no mother
marsh bio-filters, ph 7.5, drowning
soil, or bad temperature. Keep it between the lines and read the plant.
The revolution has begun. Once
people become accustomed to the quality of the produce, it's just a matter
of time until everyone demands
it, ie tomatoes that taste like tomatoes, pot that tastes like pot. Most
people have forgotten, or never
knew how good things should taste. Once you realize how bland or synthetic
most supermarket produce, or
Amsterdam weed tastes you will be appalled.
Blazer, I sympathize with your back problems, mine has not reached that
stage yet, thankfully I declined
the operations, however now and then my fifth lumbar pops out and I know
that pinching pain. Absolutely
debilitating weeks in bed, I know pot mainly just cheers me up, homegrown
opium is the ultimate muscle
relaxer, read up on growing some and processing without making slits in
the garden, that's illegal. My back
improves from it's episodes much quicker when the muscles go so slack the
bone pops into place. Best of
Luck and I hope that you're feeling better.
------------------
Sinserely Steve
hibe
Member
posted November 09, 1999 02:15 AM
wow!....cool..
Steve! I like how you approached feeding your plants!(a nice,cumulative
wide spectrum arrangement) I too
have been looking at the literature regarding aquaponics, but after looking
into it, i talked myself out of it
because of the nature of the plants that are(at this time)being used,that
seem to be better served by the
Nitrogen-Rich fish soup,from start to finish.From what ive seen,the "visible"
trailblazing aquaponics people
seem to be growing leafy-type, quick production crops like lettuce,spinach,basil,herbs..and
not generally
flowers,or smokable delicacies like ours. I see that you are using the
nitrogenous fish waste water ,even at
the ends of your flowering plants life,and have to ask...how u doin that
mann?...extremely soluble
ammonium and nitrate to the last day of harvest?.."If its there;They will
eat it" rite?..As you know,organic
budfarmers in other mediums or methods,generally plan the nitrogen release
to time out before harvest . Is
the total PPM of soluble ammonium and nitrate(from the fish)low enough,so
as not to become an issue for
our flowering plants?..A separate "clearing res" would allow for a break
from the N,rite,or do you feel its not
as big of an issue as im making it?....please tell ,thanks..
can u describe the setup sometime pleese? ie. irrigation method,medium,how
the res is
arranged/aerated/cooled,containers etc..appreciate it
..Totally respect you(et al.) for blazing trail through the cannabis patch
and coming forward with your
findings mann.........hibe
Blazer
Member
posted November 09, 1999 11:46 AM
Hibe...Get out of My head man! It's kinda spooky coming here to ask a Q
only to find You beat Me to
it...AGAIN! You and Az are always on the same wavelength w/ My melon too
and it's just really odd IMO. I
was glaring at the cieling trying to get to sleep lastnight and was pondering
this too. If I understand it
correctly, the low ppm of the fish h2o/nute allows this to not be a problem
and added trace elements
should balance it all out I think. Hopefully Steve will have all the answer's
We have yet to find
Check out Harvetsprings.com Hibe and look at the aquaculture farm in the
ozarks, they are online too w/
details of thier system.. It's just soo simple other than the items You
mentioned above IMO. I think Steve
has worked out these kinks from what I'm finding and hearing. I'm kinda
banking on it. Meanwhile, I'm still
digging and learning too.
------------------
Blazer
Member
posted November 10, 1999 10:59 AM
Hibe. I've been playing w/ My african cichlid tank and have had awesome
luck using the res. for the
wet/dry filter as a cloner for all kinds of plants. The kind digs it as
does several species of annuals and
tropicals. Over the weekend I decided to place a few branches from a cosmos
flower that had some very
immature buds on it. Well I have had good luck getting them to bloom inna
glass of plain h2o in a window,
but when I put them into the tank w/ light they bloomed in 1 day. They
still look marvelous, but does this
apply to anything We were thinking of above? It was the only way I could
figure to see what a flowering
plant would/could do w/ fish h2o for a nute. It probably isn't conclusive
for shit, but just a note. I keep the
ph up to around 7.5 for the species of fish, they really would like it
over 8. Just a few lil notes on what I'm
seeing w/ hi ph and low ppm(300+ last time I checked). Granted this isn't
by anymeans an aquaculture set
up, just stirring the waters a lil in My lil melon. Boy I love a challenge,
but on such a tiny scale, I can't get
any really applicable results IMO. I'll keep digging
steve
Member
posted November 11, 1999 04:50 AM
Excellent question Hibe. The nitrogen level is low enough not to inhibit
flowering. The nitrogen most present
is the softest, nitrate. It is essential to the health of the plant throughout.
I increase the N in veg by
adding a little worm castings around the base of the plant, this is used
up within a few weeks. I too had
heard that aquaponics are only good for green leafy crops like lettuce,
or chives. When you look at the
massive tomatoes on Harvest Springs site you will see that this is just
a fallacy. The water is rich in all
compounds not just N. Supplemental P and K are easily found in the realm
of organic nutrients for an added
boost in bloom.
A simple system consists of buckets (the bigger the better) rubbermaid
roughtotes work great. Fill halfway
with your choice of well-rinsed lava rock, hydroton, or gravel, aeration
underneath. The buckets should
drain easily to a lower bucket that contains only a pump activated with
a float switch. This pump returns
the water to the aquarium as rain (hole in pipes). The aquarium can pump
water constantly to piss lines
(not drip) situated on the top of the buckets. The lids of the buckets
are cut to facilitate a 3 gallon mesh
bottom pot. The pot is filled with clay corn and should have wicks. I've
even fed it on syphon action alone,
no feed pump. Either way about a quarter to a third of the water in the
tank floods the buckets until the
return float switch is activated, thereby draining the buckets airing out
the biofilter surface area that will
be teeming with beneficial bacteria and massive white roots. It will grow
as fast as with any
chemhydronutes, and taste a hell of a lot better, while be better for you.
Many feel that it comes through
with a better buzz, but that is pretty subjective for science. I don't
care; science is science and life is art.
Warmest Wishes People, Lotsa Love,
------------------
Sinserely Steve
Ultimate
Member
posted November 15, 1999 03:05 AM
A few footlong Oscars produce plenty of waste which gets siphoned biweekly
into a res. The plants really
do love it.
I wonder about the fish though, with the benefit of roots filtering out
the "un"beneficial bacteria - what
effect does the addition of topdressing and various teas in the water have
on the fish's health and water
quality necessary for their survival? Pros & Cons on Fish Survial vs
Plant Enhancement?
The guys are big and hearty as hell but I just can't picture myself standing
over the tank pouring earth
juice catalyst over my 10 year old south american cichlids. I suspect they
would tolerate slight impurities
at a low level, but where and when do we draw the line before it becomes
toxic?
P.S. Steve, there are claims that a SOL distributor resides in ON, any
truth to this?
steve
Member
posted November 15, 1999 04:45 AM
I understand. A capful of catalyst is all we add to the tank occassionally.
The top dressings are also used
sparingly, I don't kill the fish, the last tank I set up has run two years
with the same fish. Yes, you can buy
Spice of Life Seeds under the counter at better headshops in Ontario. Check
with OT in London, and CT in
Ottawa. I have to check up with OT, they may be elsewhere as well. Check
with me first to confirm
authenticity if you wish, there is some reselling going on out there, it
takes me one phonecall to see if
they're real, I don't want to call someone false if they really are selling
my seeds. Email me for sure. I'll
supply them to shops but www.legendsseeds.com has them for the 'net. To
keep it simple for you. In the
new year SOLS will be recognizable by special packaging to allay your concerns.
Cheers!
------------------
Sinserely Steve
Ombudsman posted November 15, 1999 11:59 AM
Blazer there's an article in a Grower's Edge that reminded me of your situation.
It may be one that Muir!
was getting at. It was about a parapledgic (sp?) that opened a commercial
aquaculture/hydro farm. He
grew Tilapias. I think it was the winter 97/98 issue but I'm not positive.
It had some specs on the setup as
well as feedings and cycles.
Just when I thought I was starting to know a lot about growing, you guys throw this at me
Keep the innovations coming fellas.
GG posted November 16, 1999 12:18 AM
I thought this was an interesting article. It's really has to do with aquatic
plants but you never know, it
could hold some value for soil, soil based, or inorganic mediums as well.
Tests should be done, we all need
to delve further into the art and science of growing and breeding cannabis!
It truly is a wondrous plant.
http://www.thekrib.com/Plants/Fertilizer/roots.html#0
steve posted November 16, 1999 01:32 PM
Check out back issues of growing edge, there is one on flavinoids in tomatoes.
The brix level (the sugar
index)only gets really high in naturally grown tomatoes. They also discuss
primary and secondary flavinoids.
The secondary aren't present in chemically grown produce, ie the overall
blandness, lacking the
well-rounded flavour. You will never taste fine wine from grapes grown
in rockwool, or fed a bath of
chemical synthetics. It's all about quality to me, and I appreciate that
many take a different approach,
with quality taking a back seat. That's your business, not mine. Heads
will appreciate the heads up on this
very popular thread. It ain't no joke, nature that is.
------------------
Sinserely Steve
imgc posted November 19, 1999 08:26 AM
webfish has got a real simple set up it is a 4" pvc pipe with holes cut
in the top for basket pots it then
haas a 1/2" feeder pipe (also pvc) runs down the inside wall of the large
pipe. At each cell location there is
a T in the supply line going to a 360 deg sprinkler head. the pipe sits
on a downword incline about 1" I
think. with a large hole at the low end for drainage. He has had great
luck with this system. He aslo has
the optimim PPM leavels and such. He would be a good resource also.
I am going to build a test system this wek.
BSSF
KQ posted November 22, 1999 08:15 PM
I ran across this article---pretty interesting read!
http://www.thekrib.com/Plants/Fertilizer/composting.html
Lite-Brite posted November 28, 1999 03:31 AM
While mulling around the cyber world I bumped into a link of interest to
this thread:
http://www.aquaponics.com/hobbycf.htm
Amazing stuff Steve, thanks for sharing!
Breeder Steve posted February 03, 2000 02:58 PM
Dear Doctor Turner, sounds like a ninety gallon tank, roughly. Two 4X8
tables or nine big ass bushes, three
rows of three with 4 - thousand watt bulbs hanging in between would be
fine.
You can use the water from the aquarium to water soil plants, or foliar
feed.
Bonk, I will write an article on it just for you here, I used to get a
good Aquaponics journal, I'll find out how
you can find it. Check search engines, and Growing Edge magazine. It's
not difficult. It is rewarding. Here's
a link to www.harvestsprings.com you can get a primer there, and I'll write
something more detailed about
pot. My back is sore and I'm just not into it now. Thanks for asking, though,
it's important to me to share
this information. Have a great day, Steve
Breeder Steve posted February 06, 2000 04:57 AM
Okay, back on topic. For those new to the subject Aquaponics is raising
fish and growing plants. There are
many reasons why. This benefits both the fish and the plants. The plants
benefit mainly from the
nitrogenous compounds excreted by the fish. The plants take up the fish
waste products as nutrient thus
continuously cleaning the water for the fish. That is the short explanation.
The long one is not much
worse.
All aquarium owners know about the Nitrogen Cycle. This is the process
by which ammonia is reduced, by
the aerobic bacteria nitrosonomas, to the less toxic nitrite which is broken
down by nitrobacteria into the
much less toxic nitrate. This cycle takes 12 days for the bacterias to
fully colonize in a bio-filter. The
bio-filter need only contain a lot of surface area for well-aerated water
to flow through. The surface area
may be rocks, plastic rings, gravel, etc. When we put growing plants into
the filter, they feed off of the
waste of the aerobic bacteria. A plentitude of nutrients besides N compounds
are also present in low levels.
The low levels work, meters can't show all. The domination of the nutrient
solution by beneficial aerobic
bacteria inhibit the growth of the anaerobic bacteria that can be such
a hydro nightmare.
The water is only topped up, not drained. The nutrient is recycled, not
discharged as an environmental,
and overhead cost waste. It is desirable to run all stages of growth from
the same system. Preferably run
concurrently. The plants produce as well as by any hydro standard, because
it's still hydro. The plants
don't show any signs of overfertilization, and the buds burn very smooth
to a soft, white ash. The true
flavour of the strain comes through and very little else. Chem Hydro can
never match the flavour, only
primary flavinoids are produced. Secondary flavinoids only develop in naturally
grown produce. The sugar
levels, measurable on the Brix index, are way up.
It's a lot more fun to design/watch an underwater world, and by the health
of the aquarium upstairs in the
living room, you have a good idea that all is well in the basement down
below.
I have had good success starting the plants in a light organic soil mix
with coco fibre, worm castings,++++
and having the roots grow out wicks in the pots into a hydro or aero scenario.
The plants were hand
watered from the top about twice a week, and misted, bathed, or flooded
and drained over rocks. It all
works.
Supplemental foods are possible, even some use a combination of Aquaponics
with small doses of chem
nutrient. I like to fill up a nylon sock with several guanos, sunflowerseed
hull ash (0-0-40), cottonseed
meal, canola seed meal, feather meal, corn gluten, bone meal, silicate
clay, kelp meal, langbeinite, rock
phophate, greensand, and probably five or six more things that I'm forgetting.
The algae eaters swarm the
sock and suck as it grows algae like a MoFo! They release this bloom oriented
concoction as long as you
leave it in the tank. I'm talking about using miniature amounts of fertilizer.
Occasionally I top dress the
plants with a tbsp of worm castings, one bag lasts a year for a garden
with four lights. The fish are fed a
mix of live, frozen, and pellet food. All micros on the labels! It will
give you great pleasure to witness the
miracle of life. A lot of fun, and perfect smoke!
------------------
Sinserely Steve
raydavies posted February 06, 2000 09:06 PM
Al the Aquaponics info I could find from around the web. Thanks so much for the info 10K. Respect.
RAY
AQUAPONICS: Aquaponics is the integration of aquaculture (fish farming)
and hydroponics (cultivating
plants in a water medium). Within the aquaponics system, there are three
primary organisms: fish, plants,
and nitrifying bacteria. Each of these life forms is dependent in some
way on the other for survival. The fish
produce manure which acts as fertilizer for the plants. Fish manure is
mainly in the form of ammonia. In high
concentrations, ammonia can be toxic to fish. The bacteria come into play
at this critical point. Nitrifying
bacteria convert ammonia into nitrate which is non- toxic to fish at low
levels and is also the form of
nitrogen plants take up most readily. The fish produce fertilizer for plants
and with the help of the bacteria,
the plants in turn clean, the water for the fish. This cycle is closely
monitored through daily water testing.
Water quality is a key component in maintaining a healthy system. The main
factors involved include pH,
ammonia( NH3- N), nitrite (NO2), alkalinity, temperature, and dissolved
oxygen. Once a week a more
complete water test is conducted to measure iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium,
nitrite, carbon dioxide,
conductivity, and settable solids. The combination of all of these factors
helps us to asses the health of
our system on a chemical level. We then incorporate this information into
our visual assessment of the
plants and fish to regulate our management schemes and analyze any problems
Tilapia has been called the fish of the future. A member of the cichlid
family, Tilapia is high in protein, low in
fat, and grows out in nine months. Native to Africa, tilapia has been cultured
for centuries. Also called St.
Peter's fish, tilapia is said to be the fish Jesus fed the masses in the
Bible. Tilapia is a warm water species
requiring water temperatures of 82 degrees Fahrenheit. It can withstand
extreme shifts in water quality
and is an excellent converter of feed to fish flesh. One and one half pounds
of good quality fish food will
produce one and one quarter pounds of fish in 9 months. At optimal water
quality, growth rates exceed
that of any other recirculating system farm raised fish. Walleye, yellow
perch, and large mouth bass are
other species of interest, but have yet to be widely proven in recirculating
systems. Refer to Table 1 for
water quality requirements for tilapia, yellow perch, and walleye.
Leaf lettuce is our primary vegetable crop. We also grow small quantities
of basil and watercress.
Vegetative crops do best based on the nutrient makeup of the system. Vegetative
crops primarily require
nitrogen for growth as opposed to fruiting crops which need high levels
of phosphorus and potassium. An
aquaponics system is rich in nitrogen but generally lacks the other macro
nutrients in substantive enough
quantities to grow fruiting crops. Plants grow out in five to seven weeks
depending on the season. the
quality of the crop is heavily dependent on fish stocking densities, bacteria
populations, and overall water
quality
Good management practices involve checking the fish regularly for disease.
A brief examination during dip
netting is usually sufficient. When examining the fish look for scale loss,
bruising, lesions, and discoloration
of gills. Lesions and scale loss can indicate fungal disease or external
parasites. The gills of the fish should
be dark red in color. Brown colored gills indicate stress caused by high
levels of ammonia. Pink colored gills
can indicate low levels of oxygen and / or parasites. If at any time these
symptoms are noticed, fish should
be sent to a lab for diagnostic testing such as the Aqua vet department
at Cornell University. It is also
good management to send fish to a lab periodically for routine disease
and parasite testing.
PLANT HEALTH Plant health is monitored in several different ways. The color
of the leaves is a key
indication of nutrient availability in the water. Mottled and pale leaves
indicate low nitrogen and other
nutrients. A healthy crop is the product of good water quality and a healthy
population of nitrifying
bacteria. Pest insects populations are monitored via yellow insect sticky
cards placed throughout the
greenhouse. Preventative measures such as releasing ladybugs every two
weeks helps to keep pest insect
populations at a minimum. Disease outbreaks are also controlled through
preventative measures such as
washing the hydroponic channels weekly with baking soda and water solution.
Seasonal variations such as
temperature and day length largely contribute to potential disease problems.
It is important to be aware of
the environmental factors that will promote certain diseases and pest populations
and to then work at
monitoring those conditions and controlling them if at all possible.
If at any time a disease or pest insect infestation is suspected, send
out plant samples to the nearest
extension office for identification and control recommendations. When dealing
with these problems, it is
very important to remember that anything you treat the plants with will
affect the rest of the aquaponics
system. The greenhouse environment needs to be managed as organically as
possible so as not to harm
other beneficial organisms living throughout the system such as nitrifying
bacteria and fish
Aquaponic systems are designed around the specific goals of the group involved.
Generally, systems are
either for education or commercial production. If you ate new in the field
of aquaponics, we suggest you
investigate the many different aquaponics systems out there. Components
to research are biofiltration,
solids removal, treatment of waste effluent, and crop selection. In addition
to the physical aspects of the
system, you should investigate markets in your region for selling your
product. This is very important. Even
if you have the best aquaponic system in the world, with no market for
your product, commercial viability is
impossible. This process will help educate you about what works and what
doesn't work so you don't try to
'recreate the wheel".
There are several other factors to consider in building an aquaponic greenhouse:
Licensing - We suggest you contact your state, county, and local offices
for licensing requirements to
assure you meet all applicable regulations for greenhouse construction.
Greenhouse Structure and Cost- The construction cost will be determined
by the layout of your site. This
refers to any existing buildings, land preparation, ect. We can make recommendations
about style of
greenhouse to use. There are many greenhouse companies out there to choose
from.
Aquaponic System Cost- This is totally dependent on the type of system
you create. We can help you
estimate your construction cost.
Other Cost- This includes electricity, heat, water supply, shipping cost
of materials, ect. These will vary
depending on location.
Project Revenue - This will depend on your products and marketing. We can
suggest vegetable crops and
fish, but marketing research will depend on you.
We can assist you in making some of these decisions before you start construction
of your aquaponic
&nbs