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Cleaning a 3 Year old Grow Bed
Its a messy time consuming job but eventually you got to do it. Cleaning out a Grow-bed full of fish crap after three years of service. Following on from a previous post we wrote about how long can old media growbeds last using using three quarter inch gravel? The answer seems to be around 5 years. But what about hydroton? How long will it last? Hydroton or Lecca are those little round clay pebbles that are often used in the hydroponics world. The conventional wisdom was generally thought around 18 months. Last week we got our answer in our...
read moreAquaponics Podcast with Green Acre Organics
Continuing on in our audio podcast series of small hobby farm aquaponics people selling their produce locally, we talk with Gina Cavaliero of Green Acre Organics who is expanding her system from a 1000 square foot DWC “floating raft” system to a mix of NFT and Media Bed systems to take advantage of different plants and their growing requirements. Listen to the Audio Podcast [sws_blue_box box_size=”450″] Gina Cavaliero from Green Acre Organics talk with Murray Hallam and Ecofilms about commercial aquaponics farm size....
read moreGammarus: Nature’s Waste Disposal Unit
Just as compost worms thrive in a media bed aquaponics system, the tiny Gammarus crustacean is ideal for Floating Raft and any Filtration systems where fish waste collects. Behold the Mighty Gammarus! by Damon Polta Behold one and all, I’m here to tell you about one of natures unsung heroes, All dramatics aside there is an organism that does a lot of work with very little credit. Gammarus, commonly known as scuds in Northern America, are a tiny crustacean that lives basically everywhere on the planet in one form or another. There are...
read moreJade Perch for Aquaponics: Podcast
Continuing our Podcast series. Today we road test the vegetarian loving Jade Perch with Murray Hallam. He’s always grabbing one out of his tank to show visitors. Whats so good about them? Should you consider growing Jade Perch if you live in a warm climate? What are the health benefits of eating Jade Perch and will it eat the food grown in your aquaponics system? Even the green stuff growing in your fish tank like algae? Listen to the Audio Podcast [sws_blue_box box_size=”450″] Murray Hallam speaks to Frank Gapinski of...
read moreThe Cost of Commercial Aquaponics
Is it possible to build your own small scale commercial aquaponics system without costing you an arm and a leg? How much should it cost to build it yourself? How much money can you expect to earn? Where do you sell your produce? Where do you go to learn more about all this stuff? We grab hold of Aquaponics kit builder and teacher Murray Hallam and get the low down on his training course and how much money a small DIY commercial Aquaponics system would cost you to set up. His answers may surprise you. Listen to the Audio Podcast...
read moreWhat Tank should you get for Aquaponics?
Choosing a tank suitable for aquaponics is probably a no brainer. Many people grab the first thing that suits their budget, but not all tanks are the same and some can positively damage your health and kill all your fish. We take a look at choosing the best tanks for your budget with Aquaponics guru Murray Hallam. The good, the bad and the ugly. Got 15 minutes? Its worth a listen. Listen to the Audio Podcast [sws_blue_box box_size=”450″] Murray Hallam speaks to Frank Gapinski of Ecofilms about choosing the right tank for your...
read moreIntensive Aquaponics with Liquid Oxygen
The first thing they tell you at Green Sky Growers when you enter their greenhouse is “Don’t try this at home!” And you wouldn’t want to try it at home if you saw how intensively they grow their fish. Growing fish intensively at great volume is fraught with difficulties even for the experts – especially if any of the machinery breaks down and the dissolved oxygen in the system drops sharply – the fish will die very quickly. So what do the big boys with all the toys do? Especially if they also happen to own...
read moreGeodesic Aquaponic Greenhouse
Living in the cold snows of Connecticut and wishing to do aquaponics doesn’t stop Rob Torcellini of Bigelow Brook Farm from building an innovative greenhouse. You can watch Rob’s construction methods and learn a few tips along the way from this well documented 9 part Youtube series that takes you through every step, triumphs and failures in constructing this 1200 square foot Geodesic Greenhouse with an optional rocket-stove mass heater to keep the fish and plants nice and happy through the cold of winter. This series will take you...
read moreGrowing Basil Vertically in Aquaponics
Recently we were talking to someone who wishes to remain anonymous who say they invested more than $250,000 in their commercial aquaponics business and it wasn’t working to plan. Sure they grew plants. The fish grew fine. They had 1,000 Jade perch in their tanks that were coming up for harvest. The system was running so well that they claimed they could grow lettuce in two weeks for market! They were able to get $1.20 per lettuce head wholesale at the food co-op. Although they didn’t have organic certification – their...
read moreAquaponics: Things that go Crunch in the Night!
Have you ever got up in the morning, went to inspect your aquaponics system and discovered something has been nibbling at your seedlings? A comment by Catryna today inspired this post. “My main interest in Aquaponics is that our family lives in the rurals of San Diego county, California.” she said. “The rodents underground and above ground decimate anything you grow and that includes fruit trees. So, having an Aquaponics system enclosed in a greenhouse is a win/win system; no access by the critters and year round food and...
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