With aquaponics, you merge hydroponics – growing plants with roots directly in water – with aquaculture – raising fish – and it yields an amazing bounty with very little space. But don’t let the jargon distract you from how truly simple the idea is. Aquaponics mimics Mother Nature. The fish provide nutrients and vitamins directly to the plants’ roots, and the plants filter the water, returning it back to the fish clean and pristine.
When you remove soil from the equation, you have a garden that requires NO weeding and plants that typically grow twice as fast with NO added fertilizer, pesticides, or toxic chemicals. All you have to do is provide a food source for your fish.
But what’s really exciting is the opportunity that aquaponics gives city dwellers to take self-sustainability into their own hands. Aquaponics’ effectiveness as a growing system is well suited for urban spaces. Each set-up can be individualized based on available space, whether indoors or out.
It goes without saying that with aquaponics, there’s no more waiting for your spot at the community garden.
APDC provides design and consultation services for small to medium-scale aquaponics systems. Our goal is to adapt aquaponics to the Mid-Atlantic US, with a focus on working within urban environments.
Aquaponic Gardening
With aquaponics, you merge hydroponics – growing plants with roots directly in water – with aquaculture – raising fish – and it yields an amazing bounty with very little space. But don’t let the jargon distract you from how truly simple the idea is. Aquaponics mimics Mother Nature. The fish provide nutrients and vitamins directly to the plants’ roots, and the plants filter the water, returning it back to the fish clean and pristine.
When you remove soil from the equation, you have a garden that requires NO weeding and plants that typically grow twice as fast with NO added fertilizer, pesticides, or toxic chemicals. All you have to do is provide a food source for your fish.
But what’s really exciting is the opportunity that aquaponics gives city dwellers to take self-sustainability into their own hands. Aquaponics’ effectiveness as a growing system is well suited for urban spaces. Each set-up can be individualized based on available space, whether indoors or out.
It goes without saying that with aquaponics, there’s no more waiting for your spot at the community garden.