# Aquaponics Plant bed idea



## seove (Sep 22, 2014)

*Aquaponics Grow Bed Idea*

I'm thinking of adding a grow bed to my sump. The stand will be made of pvc tubing and the bed made of "egg crate" light diffuser lined with window screen. The flood and drain will occur naturally during water changes (when I add the new water to the sump) and when water back fills into the sump from turning off the return pump.


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## discusbreeder (Oct 7, 2014)

it is a great working idea but you have to quit using most pet chemicals and antibiotics if you intend to eat the produce. They concentrate in the produce and can bet toxic or carcinogenic. Heavy metals, including mercury, and formaldehyde are the two worst offenders.


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## seove (Sep 22, 2014)

discusbreeder said:


> it is a great working idea but you have to quit using most pet chemicals and antibiotics if you intend to eat the produce. They concentrate in the produce and can bet toxic or carcinogenic. Heavy metals, including mercury, and formaldehyde are the two worst offenders.


I'm not doing it for food. I'm doing it for the aquarium.


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## discusbreeder (Oct 7, 2014)

Consider this: you can help your fish and reward your table at the same time. To maintain the viability of the plant bed it has to be producing new growth. If you use reverse osmosis water you can produce all the salad greens you can eat, and a couple of your friends, that are totally organic and without concentrations of heavy metals, agricultural hormones, and insecticides.


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## seove (Sep 22, 2014)

discusbreeder said:


> ....To maintain the viability of the plant bed it has to be producing new growth. .


I don't understand some of what you are meaning. Obviously, the point of making a grow bed is to grow plants or to have new growth.


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## discusbreeder (Oct 7, 2014)

When plants reach maturity their growth rate decreases and they utilize less nitrogen. If you harvest mature plants and replace with young plants they maintain nitrogen utilization. Nitrogen is a primary component in leaf production so the more leaves being produced the more nitrogen consumed; along with amounts of phosphorus, potassium, and carbon dioxide. For this reason salad greens are nearly ideal for growth beds and profitable for your table if correctly administered.


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## seove (Sep 22, 2014)

I completed the grow bed but need to make some upgrades. I need to raise it some so that the substrate will drain. I plan to do that tonight. The plants are really taking off since I took them out of water and put them in substrate. I will try to add additional plants soon. Preferably something that can be recycled back into the tank.


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## discusbreeder (Oct 7, 2014)

I generally use lava rock as a substrate. It adds minerals needed by the plants and keeps the plant base up out of the water. I use 4 inch pvc pipe for the grow beds and drill 2 inch plant holes every 8 inches. Four 10 foot pipes will yield eighty plants. Most salad greens mature in six weeks (lettuce, kale ,spinach, chard, bib lettuce) and if you utilize reverse osmosis water in your tanks and stop using meds that can be toxic to you a fifty five gallon tank can provide salad for you and a few friends year round. Your fish are healthier and you eat healthier, so where is the down side. And the constant harvest and replanting keeps a steady flow of fish waste contaminants out of the system and decreases need for water changes and cleanings.


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## seove (Sep 22, 2014)

discusbreeder said:


> I generally use lava rock as a substrate. It adds minerals needed by the plants and keeps the plant base up out of the water. I use 4 inch pvc pipe for the grow beds and drill 2 inch plant holes every 8 inches. Four 10 foot pipes will yield eighty plants. Most salad greens mature in six weeks (lettuce, kale ,spinach, chard, bib lettuce) and if you utilize reverse osmosis water in your tanks and stop using meds that can be toxic to you a fifty five gallon tank can provide salad for you and a few friends year round. Your fish are healthier and you eat healthier, so where is the down side. And the constant harvest and replanting keeps a steady flow of fish waste contaminants out of the system and decreases need for water changes and cleanings.


Thanks for sharing. I would like to see pics if you have some.


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