Home Aquaponics in the Desert (Middle East)

[Yusuf Mario Germino]

Hello there everyone.

 

I have been learning and doing AP since late Jan this year.  Living in Saudi Arabia is a bit of a challenge to succeeed in AP.  I was able to grow cucumber, brocolli, bell pepper, okra, basil and peppermint in the past.  However, to date, the only surviving mature plants are basil, bell pepper and okra.  A month ago, I made the drastic decision to use a bigger growbed and in the process killed some plants because of transplantation. 

 

My okra gave a couple of fruits but seemed to have stalled in growth.  My brocolli died.  Peppermint very slow growth.  Bell pepper hanging on with some very healthy leaves and growing steadily.  Watermelon died when transplanted.  Basil, still there, but growth is slow. 

 

All my fish though are happy and healthy!  My pangasius have grown to almost 10" and nearing to hit the frying pan soon!   All godlfish are happy and healthy.. thank God, I did not lose a single fish since i started!

 

The heat here gets to the lower 40's nowadays and I am thinking of moving all 3 small systems indoors.  Hope that works.

 

Anybody have 'desert AP experience'  to share?

[David Waite]

Yusuf I am in the high desert here in Nevada. Elevation is at 4500 feet. The temps are in the high 90 at present. I am under a green house film with exhaust fans  and shade cloth to help with heat. If you can give some specs or particulars on your system I can help. I am having great success with tomatoes broccoli squash onions garlic radishes all the salad crops. I am really curious as to what fish you are using. Can you take some pics of your system and fish hehe.

[Yusuf Mario Germino]

hi david,

my systems are in the balcony and aren't getting direct sunlight as i am afraid that it will definitely toast them in no time, right now we are having mid 40's and believe me... it is hot! tomatoes stopped growing, but cucumber, bitter melon, bush beans, bell pepper, basil are all doing fine. for the fish i have pleco in each system, two of my fish tanks have koi and gold fish and one has 5 pangasius... i don't want to spend much money on gadgets like exhaust fan, nets etc... i want to keep it as simple and low cost as possible.. you see i am trying to learn cheaply because i want to do it extensively when i get back home to the philippines..where the weather is more nice!  however, my friends and those who are seeing me do it couldn't believe that i could grow plants.. without wasting much water..... just posted some pics...

[TCLynx]

system pH and the feed being used for the fish can have a huge impact on how well the plants do.  And of course growing plants that like the conditions.  I've actually still got some cool weather crops growing even through the hot part of summer here.  Now that our rains have started the temperatures actually are cooler but now we are into the humidity season where we have to watch out for mold, mildew and fungus problems but at least most things are not wilting so much anymore. 

Luffa might be a good plant to grow in the heat.  I would have expected the okra to have done better for you but I think it likes quite a bit of sun.  The luffa is a vine so you could train it out into the sun while keeping the beds and tanks under the shade.

Good Luck.

[David Waite]

Yusuf  I know what you mean by hot. I was there in the 1st gulf war. Makes Nevada seem cool. You will love doing aquaponics in Your homeland. The Phillipines are perfect for growing. I envy your climate and the girls hehe. Take care.

[Phill Sieg]

Being that both of you are in the desert how much evaporation do you have to deal with in your systems?

[Yusuf Mario Germino]

hi Phil.. i can't really say, but there are times I have to put 5 gallon every week in my small tank, it is because bitter melon and sweet potato have grown so much and drinks a lot!

[Phill Sieg]

That makes a lot of sense that those things would need to drink a lot. How many gallons is your system though?