aquaponics
Aquaponics is a food production system that couples aquaculture (raising aquatic animals such as fish, crayfish, snails or prawns in tanks) with hydroponics (cultivating plants in water) whereby the nutrient-rich aquaculture water is fed to hydroponically grown plants.
Article
41 sectionsContents
- System types
- Deep water culture
- Nutrient film technique
- Media-based grow bed
- History
- Early beginnings: Aztecs and Chinese (6th century - 13th century)
- Modern developments (1930s-present)
- New Alchemy Institute
- North Carolina State University
- University of the Virgin Islands
- Other systems
- Terminology
- Parts of an aquaponic system
- Rearing tank
- Hydroponic subsystem
- Water pump
- Settling basin (optional)
- Biofilter (optional)
- Sump (optional)
- Live components
- Plants
- Fish (or other aquatic creatures)
- Bacteria
- Algae
- Biofilter
- Operation
- Feed source
- Plant nutrients
- Water usage
- Fish stocking
- Disease and pest management
- Automation, monitoring, and control
- Economic viability
- Current examples
- Europe
- Asia
- North America
- Caribbean
- See also
- References
- External links
Aquaponics is a food production system that couples aquaculture (raising aquatic animals such as fish, crayfish, snails or prawns in tanks) with hydroponics (cultivating plants in water) whereby the nutrient-rich aquaculture water is fed to hydroponically grown plants.
Plants are grown in hydroponics systems, with their roots immersed in the nutrient-rich effluent water. This enables them to filter out the ammonia that is toxic to the aquatic animals, or its metabolites. After the water has passed through the hydroponic subsystem, it is cleaned and oxygenated, and can return to the aquaculture vessels.