Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Would love some advice on my new system (by the way I have spent quite some time going through the forum trying to get an answer to my question but there seems to be so many variations).

I have just set up my system with a 1500 litre tank plus a 500 litre grow bed and have put 5 gold fish in the tank (initially) and have just planted a variety of leafy greens including - lettuce, spinnach, bok choy, chilli plants and capsicums.

In just over a month I will take stock of about 25 Silver Perch and am hence trying to initiate a cycle in the meantime. Havent done any water testing and wont do till I get a test kit and attend the afternoon session at BYAP in a couple of weeks.

Anyhow...Seasol seems to be a suitable additive for the system and obviously doesnt harm the fish. Would like some advice on when to add it, how much to add and how often to add. Will post pics of my system ASAP!

Many thanks.

I was adding a cap full per 1000 litres per week in the early days of my system for about 8 weeks.

Hi Borby,
I am a bit of a fan of foliar feeding. It means that the plants can absorb the nutrients through the leaves as well as through their roots. The benefit is also that the diluted solution is applied either with a watering can or spray bottle. The rate at which to apply is noted on the bottle and I would probably use the watering can method, which would be around 10 litres per 2 square metre growbed. There are many variable ways, so you will find one that works for you, you can reapply weekly if you wish.

I started with about a quarter bottle of Seasol into my 2 x IBC system, but there were no fish in there yet. Plants are loving it Have since swapped out half the water, and will probably scale down to around a capful per week.

Thank you all for your help, will use a watering can and a couple of cap fulls per week as a starter.

Just a reminder, Seasol/maxicrop doesn't have much nitrogen in it. It's mostly for micro-nutrients.

Can you go overboard with seasol?

I usually put a diluted amount in a spray bottle and onto the plants.

Too much and your water will go brown which will be unsightly. Not sure if too much would cause plants to bolt to seed.

It's probably like most things: best in moderation.