Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Has any one ever grown root crops in aqua?

I got a sweet potato thats doing ok but the roots(potatos) are not forming only the 'feeder' roots. i got it in some aquarim gravel, 4-2in oscars, 40 gall, flood and drain, 1once a hour @15mins


the slip planted in the ground has started to from potatos all ready
Any toughts one this

In the barrelponics system, the bloke was talking of onions and a few other root crops, I haven't tried it as yet but the wife loves beetroot so I was going to pinch some of her next lot of seedlings to give it a try - carrots, potatoes would have a question mark because they have to make space in the gravel to expand but worth experimenting with

I have a perlite / vermiculite grow bed serviced by a "Wet Pot" that I threw in a heap of radish seeds yesterday to see what happens. This growbed sits below the level of the tank so it doesn't has an exit point just a gravity fed slow release of nutrient rich water into it.

I also am very interested in how this experiment goes. I wonder if clay balls would work as they move quite easily, of course if the root crop does not rot.

I have just today seen photos of hydroponic beetroot in a sand medium. I think root crops stand a fair chance with finer light mediums.

I would not bother with most root crops personally as they are available all year round at cheap(ish) prices. For personal use it's definately worth a look.

If it works, I'll send some photos. If not, I'll deny all knowledge. Radish is reasonably fast growing, so I should know in a few weeks.

People grow carrots in hydroponics systems with pearlite...so it should work

The radish seeds germinated in two days and are now starting to develop. I'll post more as things progress.

Nice one, so it is perlite you're using?

4:1 perlite / vermiculite

I grew some nice garlic in my gravel beds a couple of years ago...

I would love to eat food grown only from a AP system for 6months (just something I want to do so I could say I did).

I always thought that root crops needed some pressure on the roots to form I guess if potatoes could be grown airoponicly that anything is possible!!!!

I also really like the idea of mediumless I think that should be the ultimate goal of hydroponics because we are getting rid of the dirt why not get rid of all medium!!!!

main reason I can see is becasue your medium can act as your bio filter, getting rid of the need for a sepearate one, simplifying things

years ago we grew sweet potatoes in a huge mound of peanut shells. they had no stringy bits and were the nicest sweetspuds I've ever had. The shells were very loose and didn't give much pressure.

Jaymie, whatever gave you the idea to do that?