greenliving


fish waste provides fertilizer for the plants, while the plants clean the water for fish,” says Gina Cavaliero, owner of Green Acre Aquaponics, in Brooksville, Florida. The 2013 Aquaponics Associa- tion Conference, in Tucson, Arizona, reported that aquaponic plants grow faster and offer higher yields, plus the sustainable technology recycles 90 percent of the water. In Denver, JD Sawyer, president


Aquaponics Offers Year-Round Homegrown Fish and Veggies


Food Revolution in a Tank by Avery Mack P


icture a salad of mixed lettuces or romaine ac- cented with micro- greens and ripe, red tomatoes alongside an entrée of tilapia, complemented by a dessert of fresh strawberries—all organic, eco-friendly and freshly har- vested, even in the middle of winter. The ingredients for this meal don’t have to travel many miles to reach the table—they can be found just several feet away, thanks to aquaponics. “Aquaculture is fish farming, hydro- ponics is soilless gardening,” explains Becca Self, executive director of educa- tional nonprofit FoodChain, in down- town Lexington, Kentucky. “Aquaponics is a mutually beneficial blend of the two. Our indoor aquaponics system produces about 150 pounds of fresh tilapia every month, plus nearly 200 pounds of let- tuces, herbs and microgreens.” FoodChain, which shares produc- tion space in a former bread factory with Smithtown Seafood and West Sixth Brewing, hosted 2,000 guests and was the destination for 54 field trips last year by farmers, church groups, Rotary


40 Collier/Lee Counties


“We like to use heirloom varieties; we don’t want just pretty plants that have diluted flavor. Butter lettuce is the


tilapia of plants—it’s easy to grow for a good yield.”


~ Erik Oberholtzer, Tender Greens restaurants


clubs and students of all grade levels. The seafood restaurant’s website notes, “We can step outside our back door into the farm for our super- food salad greens, herbs and tilapia.” FoodChain is


also finding a way to use waste grain from the microbrewery as fish food. According


to brewmaster Robin Sither, the grain is free of genetic engineering, but not organic. He notes that it’s rare for a brewery to use organic grain. The general hydroponics concept


dates back to ancient practices in Chi- nese rice fields, Egyptian bottomlands flooded by the Nile River and Aztec float- ing gardens perched on low rafts layered with rich bottom muck. By the early 20th century, chemists had identified solutions of 13 specific nutrients which, added to water, could entirely substitute for fertile soil. That’s when William F. Gericke, Ph.D., of the University of California- Berkeley, took the science of hydroponics into commercial production. “In today’s space-efficient, closed,


recirculating aquaponic systems that combine fish tanks and plant troughs,


swfl.NaturalAwakeningsMag.com


Aquaponics Advantages


4 Enthusiasts can start small 4 No soil is needed


4 No fertilizer is needed (provided by the fish)


4 No toxic pesticides


4 Uses 90 percent less water than conventional methods


4 Plants help filter indoor air


4 Pests and diseases are easier to spot for treatment


4 Growing basil helps repel pests


4 Operator controls nutrition levels at less cost and waste


4 No nutrients pollute the larger environment


4 Stable, high yields of organic produce and safe-fed fish


4 Year-round production from indoor systems


4 Easy to harvest; fish harvesting is optional


4 Aesthetic enjoyment


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