Zach’s Aquaponic Garden
I finally got a chance to visit my sister in Las Vegas and see the AMAZING aquaponic garden her husband Zach built. Besides being beautiful, it is very small (their yard is tiny!) and the plants thrive on the nutrients provided by the fish.
That’s right–fish! He keeps fish in a tank and then pumps the water through the gardens. He said you can even grow a certain kind of pond scum which feeds the fish, and the entire system is self-sustaining. Unbelievable!
This method wouldn’t work as well where there are freezing temperatures that would kill the fish (unless you want to heat it), but it’s ideal for Las Vegas. The running water even cools things off in the 110 degree summer heat, helping the veggies grow better.
From Zach: Catfish… YES! We’ve also used goldfish and other pond fishes because they were given to us. But we were able to buy catfish. Double harvesting 🙂
We haven’t grown much in the winter yet. It is still pretty cold. I’ve tried to cover the tops of the aquaponics with clear Rubbermaid tubs to try to create mini greenhouses… but the water was still pretty cold. A few weeks ago I coiled a hose, painted it black and had it sit in direct sunlight. By having the water pass through this hose I was able to raise the temperature a few degrees, and hope that this will help next winter. Hopefully I will have more answers by next spring as to my wintertime growing.
Hi,
I live in the Vegas area and I have been looking into aquaponics.
What kind of fish was your brother-in-law able to get? I hope to use catfish in mine so that the system provides meat as well as veggies.
Does your brother-in-law need greenhouses for the winter?
Thanks!
So glad to see you’ve added aquaponics to your list of methods! My mom has an aquaponics system in Provo, UT (she does have one of those Harbor Freight greenhouses).
I’m in Northern Virginia and have goldfish and bluegill in my system. I’ve been seeing if my simple DIY greenhouse can keep things warm enough to get through the cold days. It’s just plastic sheeting and metal conduit from home depot. So far everyone has been adequately happy, even though the water temperatures have gotten down as low as 40 degrees (the outside temperature had been down to 16 degrees…). My rosemary plant, chives, and strawberry plants are hanging in there, along with a beet plant I didn’t eat during the summer. I started seedlings January first, and though they’re growing slowly, they are doing OK.
You might want to see about having a small indoor system (great for starting seeds), if your family has enough space near a sunny window for a small shelf and a 10 gallon aquarium. Check out my recent post about such a system at http://365aquaponics.blogspot.com/2012/02/making-indoor-system.html.
Love your site – keep it up!
This isn’t Hydroponics. It is Aquaponics. The combination of Aquaculture and Hydroponics.
It’s very popular in Australia, Florida and So California. It is staring to pick up other places as well like Nevada, Colorado, and Utah to name a few.
Thanks for the video and I love your site!
I am building a similar system here in the mid-west (brr – yes I will have to heat the tank). I will be using tilapia so I can harvest the fish as well.
My plans include an indoor breeder tank where I can over-winter the fish and grow some smaller plants (lettuce, spinach, etc.) under grow lights. That way I can enjoy fresh foods all winter. Then during the summer I will grow out the fish and larger plants outdoors. I will use heaters to extend the grow-out season for the fish as I understand it takes 6-8 months.
The breeder tank has been started and am currently working on my indoor grow bed.