"Gravel Pit Self Reclaiming Aquaponics System"I knew When I ordered the book that there must be more to Aquaponic Gardening than using waste water from my fish tank,

[Larry Dale Smith]

and am enjoying getting started reading it! Especially since what I've learned about so far has confirmed what I decided would happen by my pumping water to flood irrigate from the free flowing liner-less pond in my gravel pit onto the gravel surface. I was sure this was a success of some kind despite of a huge increase of string algae (I must have 10,000 Japanese Trap Door Snails in there now from this) as the orchard grass which could barely grow there before filled in nice and thick with it getting 5 feet tall in places, and I was right the cottonwood trees growing in a stand next to the pond has taken off quite well now from having fish in there.

Now that I know my fish will do well and that the filtration system works,,,so to speak, can't wait find out/or figure out from the book and this forum what more to do, I will begin adding more fish (I spent around $10 on them to begin with, common goldfish and rosy red minnows as a test) I want to add Koi and edible fish of some kind, not sure how many goldfish I have now, but there appears to be plenty of minnows and snails to support many fish without extra feed, though the hoards of water boatman bugs have been scared off or eaten and only a few remain. I also have Water Sedge plants (quick former of peat) and bulrush plants (a wetland edible) ordered for spring planting along with quite a few of my spring planting trees that are on order being ones that will do well in the swampy condition/while making a nice wind break, so I should have a good start on my filtering of the water!

[TCLynx]

Yea, I think you are about a month early to be looking for spring aren't you?

And then it would just normally be the deepest part of winter and you would be having much wishful thinking.

Now where I am, I'm wondering when we will get some cooler weather as my lettuce is starting to bolt from the heat lately.

[Larry Dale Smith]

Can't even plant cold tolerant veggies around here till may,,,,I wish it were only a month early! 

Sure feels like spring though!! 

Lots to look forward to to give me hope of spring soon being here! 

[Larry Dale Smith]

The native moss is sure greening up and plenty of it! 

Two years ago late winter/early spring I noticed more moss than normal,,,,,much more, and decided to keep track of the moss every year to figure out if I could tell if it was going to be wet or dry years from how much of it I saw. 

A record wet year ensued following the large amount of moss, last year almost no moss and a record dry year, this year at least a several times multiple of two years ago in moss and a bit earlier, was later on in winter when the moss became most abundant before when I watched it grow. 

Not sure we could handle a several times wetter year than two years ago, so I'm hoping that the moss just multiplied and is just meaning that it will be wet,,,,,we had a good chunk of the state of Montana flooded out and were lucky only a few people died from the flooding.

I saw melted off holes in the ice at the edge, but no sign of any fish.

[Larry Dale Smith]

The ice was melting more today though not as warm, the only sign I saw of any fish was a dead bass about 5 inches long, but am sure most of my fish must be OK or I would be finding more dead ones as the one whole side is now melted off.

Here's a photo of some of the moss,

[Larry Dale Smith]

The moss is growing taller thicker as well as bigger and more numerous stands than it was the very wet two years ago. 

Here's a neat looking Lichen covered rock I always admire when I see it!

[Larry Dale Smith]

I've been over seeding my place with grass seed to fill in better, I put out 75 pounds of dry-land pasture mixed variety seeds, and have 200 pounds of rye grass seeds on order and can get them tomorrow to get them out just in time for the coming snow storm to soak them into the ground for quick germination. 

I had been going to get some each of annual and perennial rye, but was actually turning out to be cheaper to get the perennial rye. 

I've had good luck with rye so far and it seems to be the best grass to grow at my place. 

Annual rye grows more vigorously and seems to re-seed successively smaller crops of nutrient rich grass for a few years, as well as part of my property stays warm enough in the ground to keep from freezing and killing it, but the perennial rye seems to stay green in warm months better while making abundant seed heads and keeps growing long term while expanding its own population. 

The moss has been growing good. 

I made a priority out of getting grass over seeded on the moss covered hill figuring if the moss could grow there surely the grass would seed in good as well! 

[Larry Dale Smith]

Finally the ice got melted of a good chunk of the pond yesterday, I saw many of my fish though I don't believe I saw any bass, lots more minnows than there were at thaw last year but the water is much cleaner and the fish seem perkier this year. We have a little storm today, bipolar Montana weather, got up near 60 F then rain, then snow and rain at the same time, snow pellets, big fluffy flakes and wind, wind and sun with a chill.

What of my Goldfish and Koi I saw were twice as long as when I saw them last fall, the minnows seem vivid colors though as I figured many more brown minnows survived the winter under the ice than orange ones, but as I suspect the males are orange and females brown and one male should be able to fertilize for several females at least, I should have a pond over run with minnows again in no time even if the bass have grown enough to eat several times as much of the minnows when they come out of semi-dormancy as that they ate last fall and summer.

I guess my pond treatment I tried last summer and fall right before ice covered the pond must have kept the water more stable during the down time.

I finally got my whole place seeded in with rye, 200 pounds each of annual and perennial rye, the perennial rye is large grainy seed and covered what of my place I over seeded with annual rye several years ago and enriched the soil with several years of it growing successively smaller crops of clippings from re-seeding till all gone, and the annual was very fine seeds that covered much bigger of an area while being much more densely seed over new areas to enrich.

I cut down last years rye stand on the grow bed area with my weed eater and was happy to see a good layer of straw on most of it when done, this will hopefully give better performance while using the weekly pumping scheduled I developed last year from the refill time on the pond and the nitrogen levels/with compounded fungus issue from the original every two or three days to run the pump.

[Larry Dale Smith]

I think spring pumping will come early this year due to the mild winter, gotta wait till the ground thaws though or the water will get trapped in the grow bed.

My compost bin is starting to thaw enough to get to decomposing what I put in over the winter but not seeming to do this fast enough for me, it is chock full and I hope it settles soon so I can keep adding, but otherwise I guess I can live with emptying some of it to my raised beds since I haven't had as much fish water to spare to them as I hoped just yet,,,,otherwise the compost is all going to go to the regular garden or fruit trees.

Look out spring here I come!,,,,Cabin fever has had me shut in way to long! 

[Larry Dale Smith]

The storm skipped us over night, probably will do the same today.

I tried letting the flies out of the compost bin for the fish to get but they stayed put crawling around on some pumpkin rinds I put in there recently after saving the seeds.

Not sure yet If I will be able to catch my fish with a net when I start harvesting or if I will need to use my pole, just have to wait and see I guess, might depend on the fish I guess.

I'm hanging on by a thread waiting for spring but am doing better than I usually am this time of year!

I keep wondering when I'm going to see some sign of the bass, and how big they are, of course also how many are left is a concern that won't go away, I have found to dead bass floaters that looked more like they had gorged themselves than them bloating, fat from head to tail if that makes any sense?

My water from my aquarium is making my potatoes in my pots grow good, I have tomato cages holding them up. seems to be working.

I've still been debating about where I can squeeze in an aquaponic system in the house where it won't get to much sun on it or need to get rid of something, yet something may have to go for the better of things.

[Larry Dale Smith]

I guess I was mistaken on the color of the minnows having to do with male and female, I wonder if the bass will eventually destroy there being orange ones if they keep eating them more than the silvery brown ones?

[Larry Dale Smith]

The ice was almost gone today, should be warm all week, with any luck I can cycle the pump for a bit with this weather.

I saw 3 goldfish which have grown quite a bit over winter, and a bass about 6 inches long, the water is dirty down low and clean up high so I hope I can get the pump going soon rather than later.

[Larry Dale Smith]

Water felt cleaner when I got in than it did from looking at it.

I've seen several more bass but have found more dead ones than live ones.

I put some broken clay pipe in for my fish to hide from predators in side of, they will allow bigger fish than my plastic pipe and conduit I put in last summer.

Instead of lots of ammonia in the water this spring there is lots of muck, all at the end by the pump suction, so will be easy to get rid of so it won't pollute the pond water or take up space that could be inhabited by my fish.

I have more pipe I might be able to put in the pond, but am trying to decide how much is too much!

Most of the goldfish are 2 or 3 times as long as last fall from what I've seen.

Not as many snails are visible in the pond, but what of them I do see are bigger than last spring.

I put a scoop of feed out both yesterday and today.

I saw several geese take off from the hill past my pond, they seem to be hanging around closer to my place now that I have fish in the pond, but still have not actually seen them on my place, though once I found droppings.