Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I love sea perch... I was looking for plants I could grow in a saltwater system that wasn't a mangrove, something that had a purpose in a saltwater ap system other than filtration. I came across an article on treehugger.com that got me thinking. I still don't know what kind of plants to use but I have an idea of what I can do with them, even if it's just fish food for freshwater fish. This article is all about using seawater to irrigate saltwater plants in desert areas and using it to produce biomass for aviation fuel.

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/01 ... _air_1.php

1:Has anyone contemplated a saltwater system?
2:Does anyone have a salt water system?
3:What else could you grow in a saltwater system?
4:Pros and Cons???

Very interesting. I brought this topic up in the international task force thread. It may be a real help for places that don't have easy access to fresh water.

Found this on wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:H ... ant_plants

You can grow varieties of caulerpa and other macro algaes growbed sizes would probably need 2:1 or better because water quality would need to be higher than a comprable freshwater system. Look for refugium systems or filters. Here is a decent thread
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthrea ... ium+plants

Here is a link to another forum that contains a ton of information on saltwater systems, filters etc.
http://reefcentral.com/forums/index.php?s=

I think one of the biggest problems with this would be that you would have to have a low stocking density and an easy to raise species to work with. Most species have minimum water requirements (liters per fish), many are extremely aggressive when confined, little is known of breeding habits or feed requirements of most species. Maintaining correct light, pump and temprature perameters would also be tricky when you start scaling a system up in size although it would be easier than doing the same for corals. Not saying it couldn't be done on the backyard scale but it wouldn't be easy, it would be expensive and you better really do your homework before even starting to experiment.

Now as far as the macro-algaes are concerned most are rampant growers ie. labor intensive to keep cropped if they get plenty of light. Many of them have to be kept within a certain range of growth or they crash and take your system with it. They do pull huge quantities of nutrients out of the system though and with some daily maintenance would work admirably.

Shrimp might be an easier crop to raise as they can handle less stringent water perameters and larger temp swings than many of the fish. Also aquaculture of shrimp is a older industry and more information is available on it.

I don't think the "animal" to use is such a problem ,, sheesh even Tilapia will grow in salt-water,,, it's edible plants I think he's looking for.
There are large farms that grow sea-weed for those Japanese sushi / shashima eating , also used in soups. AHHH , yep found some good old Aussie fruit trees etc that don't mind salt.
LINK Dinky http://www.rarefruitaustralia.org/rfca/ ... anical.pdf

Sea cucumbers

ROFLMAO at the cumbers ,, I guess Coconuts , need a tall roof top cover.

Laugh would ya Chappo... google them.... seriously, big money delicacy

If I was contemplating a saltwater system... that's exactly what I'd grow... kelp and sea cucumbers....

Rupe , Just loved ,, me saying vegetable needed and you coming up with sea cucumber ,, head was spinning for another alternative animal with vegie name ,, but FAILED.
I've eaten them ,, taste like a slightly over boiled egg-plant.

Look up the traditional diet of Vietnamese and Thai people , I've travelled a lot through there ,, I have eaten some very strange critters and bugs.

Bat's rat's and mice where the only things I refused.

"Sandfish" is the premium grade of beche-de-mer.... the sea cucumber.... (also known as trepang)

Not only are mangroves a nursery, they're also a pantry. An Australian succulent and helophyte - which means it likes growing in salty conditions - is Sarcocornia quinqueflora. Propagate it by taking tip-cuttings. It tastes like salted celery and is enjoyable in stews, stir fries, salads, and blanched - it's a nice vegetable.

You could grow this in the growbeds. folow this link below for the full article



http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s2064681.htm


AP

1

Google (seaponics) to find what some are and have been doing with saltwater.

well this hasa bigger outcome than I expected... growing prawns would add a lot of joy to my life... especially at christmas, I might look into that. even on a small scale it would be worth it. established saltwater plants for aquariums are worth a small fortune too. I think kelp and a few kinds of aglae would be the way to go, not too tasty for me but I'm guessing fish will enjoy it.