"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!

[Larry Dale Smith]

I won a truckload of sawdust for much around my trees/bog garden next to the pond at a silent auction at a benifit dinner for $35, I had a good start getting it scattered out when it began snowing again, was a lot of snow in Dec and clear most of Jan till I got the sawdust, now it's been snowing every few days, loving it for the moisture but wanting to get that sawdust scattered out+ good roads again, no thaw to speak of inbetween, a few nights ago it was -38.7 deg over night. 

I bought two pounds of sumac seed and covered about two acres of the place with them. 

It was one pound each of smooth sumac and staghorn sumac, the shrub (smooth) I covered a 1/2 acre where I need snow drift deferment to keep it from barracading the driveway  and the tree (staghorn) I placed as wind break and covered an acre and 1/2. 

I may get more seed, thinking if some extra money comes through from sale of an old van I've been trying to sell: Russian Mullberry, Nanny Berry, Common Hackberry for this year, but will wait and see. 

[Larry Dale Smith]

I still need to get the engine for my water pump the rest of the way apart to re-build it since I blew it up last pumping in the fall. 

I ordered a bunch more tree and bush seed, some for the grow bed, some for elsewhere for wind break and shade, some food supply and some lumber producers years down the road when I'm an old old man then too some are just whimsical and if cut would only make firewood as well as no food for humans from.  They are all fine seeded weedy varieties: Russian Mullberry, American Cranberry, Red Pine, Norway Spruce, Concolor Fir, Dawn Redwood, and maybe some Common Hackberry which was only a smidgen left if any. 

After a wet summer we got a snowy winter, just need a few more inches for it to be the 2nd snowiest winter on record here, has been melting good between storms most of the time, so it should be a good spring to get things started! 

[Larry Dale Smith]

Snow down here in the lower elevations is melting good, a little too good! Ice jams all over the place flooding roads and at least one town. My pond is coming up nicely, should raise up plenty more as the neigboring feilds are flooded, the one closest to the pond is covered in more water than they irrigate with.

I ordered the same pond health booster I got a few years ago that has a mineral suplement included that I believe made so many minnows hatch in the pond they were pushing eachother out at the backs spawning. If the bass haven't eaten all the minnows over the winter, they should get a good feeding this spring and summer! 

[Steve R]

try chinese alge sharks for hair algae it is there favorite food, they can tolerate the same temps as koi and get along well with there tank mates even little ones.  Dont forget that your cottonwood trees are great for growing oyster mushrooms.

[Larry Dale Smith]

Never heard of those that I can recall, will have to check into!  And will be some time before the cottonwoods are big enough for that, but will be something to keep in mind. 

[Larry Dale Smith]

The whole pond eco-system seems in great shape after the winter.  No dead fish this spring, only a couple dead frogs, but I guess the frogs being there to winter kill is great because before there were no frogs there.

I got a new engine for my waterpump and parts for the pump re-build. 

I ordered some Black Thorn Plum seeds, similar to native plums only from Europe/Asia and black fruit instead of red or yellow like the native plums. Should be interesting to try using to grow a snow fence hedge to collect moisture for the pond. They are dense branched and get about the right hight for the hedge.

I figure my native plums seed in wonderfully after they bore fruit, can never have enough plum trees to ensure a good crop for syrup and plum butter! Besides the birds love them and so do other wildlife that need a snack as they pass through.

I snipped a bunch of willow and poplar cuttings and have them poked in where I hope them to grow.  I plan or doing many more too! 

Only saw fish once so far since the ice began melting, they are always slow to come out of hidding in the spring thaw, as well as many other times throughout the warm season for what ever reason they get spooked. That day when I did see some was only a few.

[Larry Dale Smith]

I saw a singular fish twice since, I know they will eventually come out of hiding, just takes patients! 

Snow melting as it comes down today, over a half inch of precipitaion measured so far from this storm and the pond had barely gone back to being contained in it's banks as it was. 

I ordered some Manchurian Appricot seeds which came today, should do well in my wind break and elsewhere around. 

The water is clearing up nicely from it's winter murk as the benificial bacteria added do their job. 

[Larry Dale Smith]

I had been seeing bugs near the pond the last few days and the fish hadn't been eating good, was warmer today and the bugs disapeared only to have a frog out and about calling more in. 

Extra warm tomorow, then snow storm again. 

[Larry Dale Smith]

Steve R said:

try chinese alge sharks for hair algae it is there favorite food, they can tolerate the same temps as koi and get along well with there tank mates even little ones.  Dont forget that your cottonwood trees are great for growing oyster mushrooms.

Any idea if Fir tree sawdust is good for mushrooms? That is what I've been mulching the cottonwoods with, will be a long time before the cottonwoods are big enough to harvest for mushroom logs unless can do so while alive.

[Larry Dale Smith]

Almost done with the sawdust, 120 wheelbarrows+ what I raked out without the wheelbarrow so far. 

I finally got the pump together and working, took several tries and is easy to see my mechanical skills really went downhill with my mental illness.  But at any rate the pump got fixed just at a good time for the first pumping as it was warm water in the pond yesterday and I needed to keep getting in to inclog the foot valve and to warm up despite the sunny warm day. 

I got some blue flax seed today and ordered some more red clover seed, already have the flax seed scattered out it is a wonderful wildflower. 

I found the new engine on the pump will run for over 2 hours on one tank of fuel, and it has plenty of power for running the pump where the old one had to little power. 

[Larry Dale Smith]

Today while running the pump something bazar was going on, the water was warm and was kind of like vaporizing when it was pressurized by the pump, I could run two lines but not all three or it would kind of like vaper lock with the steam. Not sure this was what was actually going on, but something was!

[Larry Dale Smith]

I have already got a start on keeping the place mowed for the year, did some with the push mower tuesday and yesterday got the tractor started and got a large area done with the gangreel mower. Being mid April, I think this is te earliest I've mowed since I have been here, I usually don'e mow any till the end of April to early May and I am usually just taking off last years stubble and nipping a few longer blades (both of which get the grass started growing faster). My main spot I mow with the tractor is going to be ready soon to, Im sure glad to see things green up so fast this year! 

I'm waiting for the pond to stay a more constant temp before ordering some of those algae sharks, they sound wonderful and look neat! Any fear my bass might eat those though?