A Community and Forum For Aquaponic Gardeners

Fruit Trees

I see lots of information growing vegetables in an aquaponics system, but not so much fruit trees. I want to give it a shot after I get my main system setup and working. I'm guessing each tree will need it's own grow bed. I plan to use only dwarf varieties of trees (like my banana tree that only get five feet tall) and employing espalier growing method for the branching trees. Is there anything that would keep this from working? I think I will need additional support when the trees grow taller, but I might be missing something.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Eric Warwick on September 20, 2012 at 8:54pm

He got ~50kg (I think) of Papaya (Paw-Paw's). He said he'd rather lose 60 fish than lose that tree.

Permalink Reply by Robert Rowe on September 20, 2012 at 9:39pm

@ Ashley Taylor

I am considering Grape vines.

Permalink Reply by TCLynx on September 22, 2012 at 7:45am

LOL, an American Paw Paw is a totally different thing to the Papaya (what they call Paw Paw in Oz) But I think most American Paw Paw might be a bit big for many pockets anyway.

Pretty much anything can be grown in Aquaponics, Including trees. Just keep in mind that you are giving up high value space in your grow beds to something that will usually only produce for a short time each year and otherwise be taking up space. Also, some things get so big they can crack a stock tank (my banana did and it was supposed to be a dwarf with it's stock only getting to between 3-4 foot high. Apparently it didn't read the catalog description and the AP water grew it really big.)

Permalink Reply by Ashley Taylor on September 22, 2012 at 8:18am

Oh! Okay I was actually thinking of growing the trees in soil and then just watering them from my aquaponics system, but if they can grow in a media bed...hmm something to think about.

I've got the space for them I think. Our household is just my husband and I. We don't plan on adding any other family members, so I think two growbeds will more then feed us. Which leaves me an entire other side of our sunroom that would look so empty without SOMETHING growing. ;-)

Permalink Reply by Phil Slaton on September 22, 2012 at 12:31pm

Ashley we are going to do the same thing , . . we have the space for them and we are just going watering them with aqua farming water once a week.

Permalink Reply by Eric Warwick on September 22, 2012 at 2:30pm

Yeah, TCLynx, NPR did a story on the emerging Paw Paw market. Because I'm part of BYAP, I'm able to read Papaya being called Paw Paw's without cringing. It's still fun to say either way!

Permalink Reply by TCLynx on September 22, 2012 at 5:43pm

Now I have grown the Papaya in aquaponics and their root masses are not so huge as to worry me much in aquaponics. Some other types of trees I would definitely do the plant off to the side and perhaps give AP water treats every now and then instead.

Paw Paw is a tree I've tried planting but I'm gonna have to try again cause I don't think any of them survived the move. Paw Paw needs shade as a seedling and can't handle much sun till it gets a bit bigger apparently so kinda tricky to figure out where/how to plant it to be sure it has shade for the first several years but that one will be able to get rid of the shade once the seedling is more mature.