Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hello, What a friendly forum!
I haven't got a set up yet, as I'm a newbie & want to investigate possibilities. Has anyone had success growing root vegies, such as carrots and sweet potatoes in an aquaponic system. If so, do I need a support system for them to grow in? From the little that I've seen on it, it appears that the root vegies require a higher density growing media. Is this so?
Old fashioned gardening in soil is no longer an option for me. (bad back).
Barb/.

Hi Barb, Welcome!

I'm not sure about spuds and sweet potatoes in AP, but there has been some discussion about carrots. It was thought that because carrots need lower nutrient levels to grow (so they don't split), if you grew them in a bed that was in series with another grow bed (that is, AFTER another grow bed and BEFORE the water goes back into the fish tank).

I'm going to try this, using either coarse sand or maybe vermiculite for the medium, rather than gravel. All the times I've grown sweet potatoes, they've done better when they don't have to work hard through the medium.

Welcome to the forum Barb. Yes this is a great group. If I remember right there was some talk of root crops so I know you'll get help.

From what I have heard, high nutrient levels with say carrots, will just end up with a tiny carrot with a big bushy top! Homegrown uses coarse river sand with about 10% compost in an old broccoli box. Sprinkles carrot seeds over the top, the covers with a bit more medium, then waters. Very low nutrient levels.

I wonder if expanded clay balls would be successful here, they are lightweight which would be easy on the back and perhaps allow the root crops to stretch out easier?

I think many ppl have just disregarded root crops also because they are so easy to grow in soil (potatoes for example) but I think it would be a great experiment to do.

I've enquired at a hydroponics shop. They say potatoes can be grown just like in the soil - plant them, then build up the medium around the plant, using eg tyres to keep it in place. I tried that method in soil, and it kinda worked. (I made some basic mistakes)

Root crops work great in the dirt -in the summer-. I think I'll have to go sprinkle some radish seeds in my (indoor) beds and see what happens. The ground is frozen here, so no dirt-radishes for me for several months.

Thank you all for your comments. I shall take them on board.
the 'raised' ( 1 sleeper high) conventional vegie patch is just too low for me to attack. I had thought about pots, but I really like the idea of the water saving properties of aquaponics. I guess there is no reason why a combination of things wouldn't work, is there, providing they are linked together with the reticulated feeding & drainage. Has anyone any experience with growing sweet potatoes in our Southern climes? I am intolerant of potatoes as well as the rest of the solaneum family. We don't eat Lettuce either, It's amazing how many people get indegestion eating it!

Hi,

The main reason that people don't usually grow root crops hydroponically/aquaponically is that they are usually so cheap that it's not cost effective.

Coco peat is a suitable medium for growing all root crops.

While I would usually have suggested that you set up coco peat beds as run to waste (about 10% of daily feeding rate), I note that Murray is using coco peat in a recirculating flood and drain system.

If this proves to be successful, then coco peat would become my first choice for growing media.....above all others.

You can grow potatoes very successfully in perlite.....and they are excellent to eat (unless you happen to be intolerant of such foods).

You would need to experiment with nutrient levels to get the right balance for things like carrots, etc. You can vary nutrient levels in an aquaponic system through adjusting the number and size of fish, feeding rates and whether or not you filter out the fish wastes.

Ummm, so far I have to grow 18 pounds of basil in my system to break even. I'm not going to think about it.

However, I sprinkled some radish seeds in my 3/8 inch river gravel. It germinated very quickly. I think I will be eating fresh radishes in the dead of winter, and not those dried out things they try to pass at the grocery store. Some things, money can't buy!

Very Funny I can relate I'm also a angler (won't say fisherman) with the amount of money I have spent on fishing gear, fishing trips ect. I reckon every fish I catch has cost me about $40 a kilo
Cheers
Ron

As sweet potato is often $5 kilo down here in Victoria, aquaponically grown could still be viable once a system is up and going. As it would be in a controlled environment, I feel that there is more likelyhood of success.
My main problem, before I start, is convincing the MOTH ( a stick in the mud builder) that all this will be worth while setting up.
I am still investigating ways of doing a simple small trial system, so that I can show him what it's about. The initial cost is still a big factor, being cash-shy.
Despite this, I am still passionately interested in the whole system of aquaponics. It seems that there is so much publicity around, now, if one looks for it. I was even discussing it with my urban architecture/CAD lecturer DIL.
Meanwhile, Happy Christmas everyone! May peace, happiness, prosperity and safety be with you all.

In reading THE BOOK this morning, I envisioned a real simple setup. We have a raised paved area, with two steps down to the rest of the yard. I figured using odd bricks and pond liner, I could construct a low grow bed around the paved area that drained naturally into the tank/pond at yard level, which could also be partly submerged to achieve extra volume. Make sure the slope is slight, and add one pump to take the water from the tank to the bed ... easy!

My problem here is Dearly Beloved is a scientist with a physics degree ... he can't possibly think of following through on an idea without being sure he knows all he needs to know about a topic. While the simplicity and common sense of aquaponics stands out for me, it's an invitation to him to find out what's missing in the equation! GRRRR!?!

Hehehehe, did you give him the forum address?

He tells me next week he'll read the book ...
Actually he's not a scientist, I meant scientist mind. He's a computer programmer - looking for "bugs" in the system, pun intended