Aquaponic Gardening

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Hi there! I am in love with the idea of aquaponics and am trying to learn more to possibly make it a reality.

We live in rural Michigan and have a 1/2 acre man dug pond- no liner- stocked with fish. Is it worth my time to utilize this, or should I just build my own fish tanks. ?? I love the idea of using the pond that is already there if possible- but I'm assuming there may be extra filtration needed since there is no liner and there would be more debris and dirt to deal with. ?? The pond is aerated using bubblers and we use a all natural dye to minimize excessive algae growth on the bottom of the pond (15 feet at deepest point).

We do have ducks, geese, deer, an awesome blue heron and of course frogs, snakes, etc. that utilize the pond for water and food. Will this be an issue since I'm sure they introduce non-fish bacteria (E.Coli??) to the pond?

Any suggestions or ideas would be helpful!

Thanks so much! Smile

AmandaK

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Trying to utilize a large farm pond as part of an aquaponics system might be possible, However I'm going to suggest that you start off with something a little more "backyard" for your first aquaponics system.  Like perhaps something between 300-1800 gallons of fish tank without the need to worry about dirt and debris and deer poop in your salad if you know what I mean.

Here are a few links that might help you get started with some design ideas.

http://www.aquaponiclynx.com/aquaponic-lynx-llc/aquaponics-in-detai...

http://www.aquaponiclynx.com/media-bed-aquaponic-design

Thanks for the response! I think starting small is also a great idea, but I wonder if utilizing the waste water from the pond would be a great option? Is there a way to test our water to see what's in it and if it has enough nutrients and if it's safe to use?

Unless you are actually some how having to do water changes on your 1/2 acre pond, I wouldn't say it has any "waste" water.

You could get a freshwater master test kit and see what the pond water tests out like.  If there is nitrate in it, you could use it to grow veggies but I don't know what effect adding the "natural" dye to your food system might have.

Thanks for all your input! I have lots to learn before implementing this but I'm very excited about it all!

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