Title : Aquaponic Gardening: A Step-by-Step Guide to Raising Vegetables and Fish Together
Author : Sylvia Bernstein
Publisher : New Society Publishers
Published : second printing November 2011
ISBN : 9780 86571 7015
Volume : 288
Today, more than ever before, our society is seeking ways to live more conscientiously. To help bring you the very best inspiration and information about greener, more sustainable lifestyles, Mother Earth News is recommending select New Society Publishers’ books to its readers. For more than 30 years, Mother Earth has been North America’s “Original Guide to Living Wisely,” creating books and magazines for people with a passion for self-reliance and a desire to live in harmony with nature. Across the countryside and in our cities, New Society Publishers and Mother Earth are leading the way to a wiser, more sustainable world.
Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments…………………………………………………………………… xi
Foreword, by Tom Alexander ……………………………………………………xv
Preface………………………………………………………………………………….. xix
The aquaponics epiphany……………………………………………………….. xix
About this book…………………………………………………………………….. xxii
Section 1: An introduction to aquaponics
Chapter 1: What is aquaponics? ………………………………………………..1
Hydroponics……………………………………………………………………………3
Aquaculture…………………………………………………………………………….5
Chapter 2: The global perspective……………………………………………..9
The bad news………………………………………………………………………….9
The good news……………………………………………………………………….21
Chapter 3: Home food production……………………………………………27
Earth-smart gardening …………………………………………………………..28
Convenient gardening…………………………………………………………….28
Year-round gardening……………………………………………………………30
Growing fish for food …………………………………………………………….31
Section 2: The plan
Chapter 4: Before you start……………………………………………………..35
The plan ……………………………………………………………………………….36
Section 3: The hardware
Chapter 7: Grow beds and fish tanks…………………………………………..69
Volume relationship between grow beds and fish tanks ……………….70
Common grow bed and fish tank requirements…………………………….71
Special considerations for the grow bed………………………………………72
Special considerations for the fish tank……………………………………….76
Commonly used products and materials …………………………………….77
Vertical growing ………………………………………………………………………87
Aquaponic Grow Beds and Fish Tanks Rules of Thumb ……………….89
Chapter 8: Plumbing ………………………………………………………………..91
The pump ……………………………………………………………………………….92
The pipes ……………………………………………………………………………….94
The timing mechanism ……………………………………………………………97
Some other thoughts about circulating water …………………………….105
Aquaponic Plumbing Rules of Thumb ……………………………………..107
Chapter 9: Grow media ………………………………………………………….109
What is the best medium? ………………………………………………………111
Aquaponic Media Rules of Thumb ………………………………………….114
Chapter 10: Water …………………………………………………………………117
Purity …………………………………………………………………………………..117
Section 3: The hardware
Chapter 7: Grow beds and fish tanks………………………………………..69
Volume relationship between grow beds and fish tanks …………….70
Common grow bed and fish tank requirements…………………………71
Special considerations for the grow bed……………………………………72
Special considerations for the fish tank……………………………………76
Commonly used products and materials …………………………………77
Vertical growing …………………………………………………………………..87
Aquaponic Grow Beds and Fish Tanks Rules of Thumb …………..89
Chapter 8: Plumbing …………………………………………………………….91
The pump ……………………………………………………………………………92
The pipes …………………………………………………………………………….94
The timing mechanism …………………………………………………………97
Some other thoughts about circulating water ………………………….105
Aquaponic Plumbing Rules of Thumb ……………………………………107
Chapter 9: Grow media …………………………………………………………109
What is the best medium? ……………………………………………………..111
Aquaponic Media Rules of Thumb …………………………………………114
Chapter 10: Water ………………………………………………………………..117
Purity ………………………………………………………………………………….117
Temperature ………………………………………………………………………..119
Dissolved oxygen ………………………………………………………………….122
pH ………………………………………………………………………………………124
Aquaponic Water Rules of Thumb ………………………………………….128
Section 4: The software
Chapter 11: Fish …………………………………………………………………….133
How many fish can I grow? ……………………………………………………134
What type of fish can I grow? ………………………………………………….136
Sources of fish ……………………………………………………………………….142
Introducing fish into your aquaponics system …………………………..146
Feeding your fish …………………………………………………………………..147
Harvesting your fish ………………………………………………………………151
Aquaponic Fish Rules of Thumb …………………………………………….152
Chapter 12: Plants …………………………………………………………………153
What plants grow best in aquaponics? ……………………………………153
Growing plants in aquaponics ……………………………………………….154
How to start plants in, and for, aquaponics …………………………….159
Spacing your plants ………………………………………………………………163
Unhealthy plants ………………………………………………………………….164
pH and nutrient supplementation ………………………………………….164
Insect control ………………………………………………………………………165
Aquaponic Plants Rules of Thumb ………………………………………….171
Chapter 13: Bacteria and worms …………………………………………….173
Bacteria farmers …………………………………………………………………..173
Nitrifying bacteria ………………………………………………………………..174
Caring for and feeding bacteria ……………………………………………..176
Worms ……………………………………………………………………………….178
Aquaponic Worms Rule of Thumb …………………………………………180
Section 5: The integrated system
Chapter 14: Cycling ………………………………………………………………183
What is cycling? …………………………………………………………………..183
The importance of testing tools ……………………………………………..184
Cycling with fish ………………………………………………………………….186
Fishless cycling ……………………………………………………………………189
The Murray Hallam cycling technique ……………………………………192
Speeding up the process ……………………………………………………….193
Aquaponic Cycling Rules of Thumb ……………………………………….194
Chapter 15: System maintenance …………………………………………..197
Daily ………………………………………………………………………………….198
Weekly (after cycling) …………………………………………………………199
Monthly …………………………………………………………………………….200
Aquaponic System Maintenance Rules of Thumb ……………………201
In Conclusion……………………………………………………………………….203
Appendices ………………………………………………………………………….209
Troubleshooting …………………………………………………………………..209
Aquaponic Gardening Rules of Thumb ……………………………………215
The top 10 dumbest mistakes I’ve made in aquaponics ………………223
What to consider before plunging into commercial aquaponics …..227
Aquaponics System Maintenance Checklist ………………………………233
Aquaponics System Data Tracking Sheet ………………………………….235
Recommended resources …………………………………………………………237
References ……………………………………………………………………………..241
Index …………………………………………………………………………………….245
About the Author …………………………………………………………………..256