Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hello All,

I am new to this forum so hello and glad to be a member. I started my system in Feb this year so I am still a noobie. I used IBC totes and made three grow beds ebb and flow system with sump tank and 270 gal tote for fish. I have about 30 gold fish in there right now and just got a batch of tilapia that are a separate aquarium until they get bigger.

So I have issues with fruit/ flowering plants such as beans tomatoes and cumbers. My cucumbers have not been doing well they are dieing. I add once every two weeks I dilute 4oz of maxicrop, tablespoon calmag, b it of potassium, and iron in a gallon of water. I pour it directly into intake area of the grow beds. I have attached a picture of the issues, most of my plants have this same issue just not as bad. See my system levels below, can anyone help me figure out how to balance this out please?

Thanks

~ 300 Gal system
PH - 6.8 - 7
Iron 5 PPM
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 100 PPM
77 deg f

It's probably too late for this plant but it looks like a potassium deficiency (a little tough to tell from the pics which are the new leaves though) because the lower leaves turn brown around the edges first. I know you've been adding a bit of potassium, try spray applying the potassium instead. Might help to have some more pictures that show the whole plant (for the cucumbers as well as the tomatoes and any other plants showing signs of problems.

how much potassium am I adding per water volume? Do you just foilage spray? I can post more pictures later tonight

Can I ask why you're putting calmag?
When adding Calcium.Magnesium & Potassium (to the root zone),you must be careful because you may lockout at least one of them.
Scotty is probably right,it looks like a potassium deficiency & foliar spray is your best shot now.But don't add any other supplements until you really need it & you're sure that it is (what ever you're trying to treat).
I just read this on another thread "1 tablespoon per gallon of water of Potassium Bicarbonate" (foliar spray) quote from Scotty.

Another thing,what are you feeding the fish?

I ended up pulling the cucumbers they were not recovering as well as everything else showing significant issues. I have attached some pictures of the set up please any comments would be appreciated, my strawberry plants showing some signs of deficiency as well.

Thanks

Regular lighting is helpful when trying to visualize these deficiencies but it looks like potassium still. The edges of the older leaves is where you expect to see this initially. That's where the strawberries look like they are having troubles. Not sure what else you have going on - give it another shot with regular light and I'll take another look .

As mentioned before spray application of potassium is what I recommend you try - it takes awhile for the plants to turn around so results won't be instant and it may take more than one application.

Ok thank you I will do that.

What are you feeding your fish

Goldfish food has very little to offer plants after the fish have finished with it

Quality aquaculture feed and a bit of supplement from seaweed products is usually sufficient

Iron and potassium and calcium depending on ph crop type ect

Gold fish can get into trouble on aquaculture feed so you may need to work out a supplement mix that you put in weekly

Your mix sounds like a good start I think your potassium probably just ran out once your plants got size in them and started flowering

Plant some more cucumbers (they will be good indicator plants for you)

And watch the leaves early for deficiencies

Plenty of nutrient deficiency charts / descriptions online

Remember you started from nothing in gravel (so its like growing a veggy patch in a gravel driveway)

There will be issues to deal with



1. Nitrogen – If your plants are deficient in nitrogen, your leaves may turn a pale green, or perhaps even yellow in cases of more extreme nitrogen deficiency. You may also notice stunted growth or a slight purple tint on stems and the undersides of leaves. If your nutrient solution contains excess nitrogen, your roots may become stunted and cause a delaying in flowering.
2. Phosphorous – Too little phosphorous may result in darkly hued leaves, small roots, very small flowers, and leaves that have a red or purple appearance. Signs of phosphorous deficiency may not be the result of a lack of phosphorous in the nutrient solution. It may be the result of the nutrient solution being too cold, which may decrease uptake.
3. Potassium – Not enough potassium in your hydroponic nutrients will create leaves that have edges that look blackened or “burned.” They may also develop brown, dead spots. These signs typically show on the older leaves first. The fruits and flowers of a potassium deficient plant may also be lighter in weight than normal.
4. Magnesium -This deficiency will first reveal itself in the yellowing around your leaf edges. The worse the deficiency, the yellowier the edges, and the more of the leaf will be affected. This is most commonly seen in tomato plants.
5. Calcium – Calcium deficiency usually affects newer leaves before it will affect older leaves. These leaves usually have dead spots, and may look mangled and very small in size.
6. Iron – A plant that is receiving too little iron will typically have yellowing on its younger leaves. In more severe cases, the leaves will become extremely pale, or almost white. Like with phosphorous deficiency, iron deficiency may be the result of too cold water rather than any actual deficiency in the solution.
7. Manganese – Manganese deficiency has many similarities in appearance to iron deficiency, except it may affect the older leaves first rather than the younger leaves. If your nutrient solution is too rich in manganese, it might actually cause an iron deficiency because of decreased uptake.
8. Copper – Plants do not need very much copper, and therefore copper deficiency is very rare. However, it is entirely possible to have too little copper, and it may result in weak, distorted, or mutated young leaves. Too much copper may decrease branching and create roots that are have greater girth and are darker than usual.
9. Boron – Not enough boron may create roots that appear “fleshy” and look darker than normal. It may also make fruits and roots that deteriorate easily. This deficiency may also create an iron deficiency.
10. Molybdenum – Too little of this hydroponic nutrient may make the edges of the leaves of your plant darken and curl. Even a slight deficiency may create smaller than usual flowers.

Hello All,

I wanted to give an update on the issues. I have been spraying the plants with potassium a few times now, but still having issues. Can you please take another look tell me what is going on?

THanks

Once the edges have turned brown, spraying with potassium won't bring them back. Plant leaves can recover from having yellow edges OK though and treatment helps prevent any further damage. Looks like you might have some aphid skins on some of the strawberries.

So it still looks like potassium deficiency but it is too late for those leaves? I thought maybe magnesium. So what is aphid skins?


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I see alphonse are bugs I got alphind I am in a basement how do I get rid of them?

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I'm not sure you really have aphids just kind of looks like you might . Might want to look on the underside of the leaves since usually you'll find more of them there. They're one of the easier pests to get rid of if you do have them but you should also know that ants will farm them and put them on the plants so you need to be rid of any ants too.

If you confirm and are actually certain it's aphids, do a search on the forum - There are some homemade aphid remedies on the forum using chili and garlic but watch the overspray because oil and detergents can suffocate the fish if you get too much on the water surface. Usually these work by either repelling the aphids or suffocating them. Others will probably suggest their own method of being rid of these

I am still having a potasium issue, I have been spraying the plants with a spray bottle once a week. I am still getting potassium deficiency. How much potasium should be mixed with a 16 oz spray bottle? What schedule should be used for applying, once a week good not enough? How much spraying is required is it like a few sprays per plant? Thanks

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Mix it at 1 Tablespoon per gallon of water and then spray apply. This same mix will work as a fungicide on some fungi. I'm not certain how much it will take or how many applications but it usually will require multiple applications. Have you seen any improvement?

Where the leaves have turned brown won't recover but most of the yellow areas will. If you're to this point now or when you get to the point where everything is healed that can, I would stop spraying and maintain by using seaweed extract which contains some potassium.