Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hello,

My system ( three 55 gallon grow beds and 18 finger size Gold fish) is four months old and I believe it is cycled. The readings are Ph 7.6, Ammonia .25, Nitrite 0, Nitrate 0.

The Broccoli plants produce very small heads that are about 1.5 inches in diameter and go to flower very quickly, never getting any larger. All the other vegetables (excepting Spring onions) Lettuce, Radishes, Bush Beans, and Snap Peas are very slow growing produce very little to harvest. Is this common in a new system?

Thanks for any help.

Sorry,
Didn't mean to post twice and don't know how to delete one of these.

Ambient + water temps???

Must be too warm there

Thanks for the reply.

I live on the coast of California U.S.A and it is quite cool here. The ambient temp currently is 71F (22C) and 55F(13C). I have planted the same vegetables at the same time in the soil and these are doing much better than those in the Aquaponics system.

I'm wondering if the system is perhaps to new/not mature yet?

It sounds like a combination of temperature and nutrients. I think most of what you're seeing is probably typical for this time of year in our climate. AP and soil growing complement each other but I've found that the soil warms faster in the spring. I stick to cool weather plants in the AP well into June but even these I start outside of the AP system in trays and then transplant into AP. In the Fall the advantage seems to go to AP, the plants in my AP system hang on longer. I try to take advantage of each growing environment as much as possible. I do root crops and warm weather plants in soil. I keep the cool weather plants going longer into summer with the AP and extend the season. Once summer starts heating up I'll start putting some warm weather plants in the AP like melons, peppers, basil and bush beans.

I suspect that the water is too cool for the bush beans and for most warm weather crops still. For the broccoli, some varieties of broccoli only produce small heads. If you're seeing large heads in the soil garden and the packet you used wasn't a mix then I'm not sure what's going on. High temps can cause small heads on broccoli as can nutrient problems.

This could also be a light problem, any information on that? The surface of the bed may be getting too hot so just a bit of shade might help stop the plants from bolting.

If you have some pictures you could post we might be able to tell you what's going on, especially if there is a deficiency

Cheers

PS - What's your water temp running? Right around 60 seems to be where most things start growing a better.

edit 2 - looks like a temperature issue on the broccoli (either high or low) based on this document - https://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource000605_Rep627.pdf

Scotty,

Thank you for the link. I think it has provided some information that could be pertinent. This statement jumped out at me!

Ensure vigorous growth once plants are set in the garden to prevent the flowering heads of broccoli and
cauliflower from “buttoning”. “Buttons” are small, unusable heads borne on small plants stunted by
drought, weed competition, or insect damage. A few days of low temperature (35ºF to 50º F) can also
cause buttons to develop. While young cabbage plants can withstand very low temperatures (even down
to 10º to 15º F for a night or two), broccoli and cauliflower are not nearly so resistant. Do not plant too
early!

The central coast here can get quite chilly at night, temps have recently dropped to just above freezing on concurrent nights. Perhaps this explains the "buttoning" and small heads I am seeing. After all this is the winter and I guess I should be more patient. But then again I'm a newbie and can't wait for results to happen=).

Thanks also for the information you have experienced comparing your AP system to your soil gardening.