A Community and Forum For Aquaponic Gardeners

Feeding

Information

What commercial feeds do you use, where do you get them?

What about growing/making your own feeds?

Home made fish feed recipes.

Fish nutrition?

Are worms and/or BSF larva good fish feeds?

Members: 177
Latest Activity: Dec 18, 2020

6 members like this

I've noticed there has been much talk about trying to feed fish sustainably as well as trying to make them healthy to eat. I thought perhaps this warranted a group. Another point to keep in mind is that the fish feed in aquaponics is not simply a means to grow fish, it is also our primary means of getting proper nutrients to our plants so one can't really expect to remove fish and veggies from a system into which no external feed is added. If you will be removing fish and veggies to eat, you will have to replace the nutrients you take so you can't expect to grow all the fish feed in the system and still have much nutrient left over to provide veggie growth and fish harvest. (No perpetual motion machine.)

That said, there is much that can be recycled within an aquaponics system or if not directly, it might go through worm or bsf bins before coming back to the fish.

I'm starting a list of links here to previous discussions on feed and related things

Worms

Alternative Fish feeds

Fish Feed

automatic duckweed feeder

Fish Feeders

What feed are you using

Discussion Forum

View All

Comment Wall

Comment

You need to be a member of Feeding to add comments!

Comment by Matthew on March 26, 2011 at 9:36am: I was planning on using wroms for the bullhead when I get them. Picked up around 100 from compost piles and will catch night crawlers when the snow is gone. Have them in a bucket with leaves. I read people sometimes dry worms to make chicken feed, I assume the same could be done for fish? What about dehydrating kale or swiss chard which grows huge?

Comment by halemart on March 26, 2011 at 9:31am: I am using fish food from the dollar store, but now I have two kinds of fish.

1) Talipia I feed this large adult fish 1 pinch of dollar store fish food, and 1/2 cup of cut up cabbage, with occasional dried leaves from the moringa tree, and garlic, and duckweed.

2) Blue gill, have been using the bug light for the 3 adult bluegill I have caught, today got some Black Soldier fly wooo hooo! but mainly have been doing fish food from the dollar store. I have started some night crawlers in my 200 gallon IBC worm bin, so hope they multiply fast!

Comment by Ron Thompson on March 26, 2011 at 8:48am: Fast answer - I'm using Aquamax Pond Plus 3000; bought at local feed store - 50 lbs for $30 (incl tax). It is a Purina product for Omnivores, so will feed both my Talipia and channel cats (which share a pond):

Pellet size : 3/16", extruded floating

Protein - 32%

Fat - 5%

Fiber - 5%

Comment by Rick Stillwagon on March 26, 2011 at 8:45am: Thanks for inviting me TC. I have started to ask some questions in this area myself. I have mentioned how I am developing my system, part of it is using a pellet mill. This is only for a convenient way to process and store the materials. One of my students husbands is an eco-biologist... (I hope that is the proper title) he studies fish in their native habitat here in the northwest. I have asked for his assistance as well as I am looking at a local college that is doing research in sustainable aquaculture. My concerns are the minerals, and nutrients that are depleted and how we can sustainably harvest them from local sources and provide them to our systems. I will share the information as I collect it. Take care.