Our aquaponics system is getting established and the fish are about to have another growth spurt (we hope). In the winter, when the water gets cold, the fish eat very little and therefore don't grow much at all. Now that the nights are starting to warm up a little, that should change. We are hoping that by Christmas, we'll have some jade perch ready for the plate. And as the fish grow, so do the plants. Before we had the fish, the plants would still grow but just more slowly. When you first establish a system, you let it cycle with just leafy greens for the first month or two before you add the fish. But once the fish are in and growing, the plants grow faster with all the nutrients the fish release. The lettuce we had in the second grow bed had grown so much that it was finally time to take them out and plant the next lot. They won't take long though...
The third grow bed is full of spinach and growing nicely, so we're leaving that as it is.
And the triffid tomato plant in the first grow bed (the same one I took the cuttings from which are now huge and fruiting in the veggie patch) is massive again but is also growing gorgeous tomatoes.
You can see why they're called Green Zebra.
Fascinating. I am so tempted to try this . What kind of fish do you have in your tank and will you get to eat them one day?
ReplyDeleteHi Kim,
ReplyDeleteWe have Jade Perch (Aussie native) and once they are a good size, they will most definitely be for the table! ;)
You should definitely give aquaponics a go... depending on your winter average temps, you may be able to have home grown trout over the cooler months. Otherwise Silver Perch would be a another good species.
One of my favourite things about this system is that you use a tenth of the water that you would if you were growing in the ground (with no compost or mulch to be added) - and then fish to boot.
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