What is Aquaponics?
Aquaponics combines ‘Aquaculture’ and ‘Hydroponics’ to grow edible fish and vegetables harvested from your own backyard, both use water as the base of their production. One wants to shed nutrients from it’s water, while the other feeds on nutrients in it’s water.
The water in a fish tank is high in nutrients and requires filtering, instead of using a traditional filter you pump the water into specially built vegetable gardens that feeds and waters your plants. In turn the vegetable plants return clean water to the fish tank.
Healthy Fish and Healthy Vegetables
Growing in the nutrient rich water your vegetables experience accelerated growth rates, are stronger and healthier and use about 10% of the water it takes to grow vegetable plants in soil. The fish grow happily and gives you a steady supply of fresh fish high in omega 3.
Fish most suitable for aquaponic systems are jade perch and silver perch although silver perch will grow more slowly, both take pelleted fish food. Murray cod and Barramundi are not suitable as they predate on the slower growing of their own species.
Aquaponic systems are usually available from produce stores.