Aquaponics is the combination of aquaculture and hydroponics. This combination closely mimics the natural relationship between fish and plants seen in certain aquatic ecosystems. Valhalla Valley Farms has experimented with many variants of aquaponics systems and have had amazing growth in fish and plants. We would love to talk to you about creating a food system for your home, school, or farm. We have scaled up and scaled down our basic process to include large tank and growing areas as well as aquarium based systems. We have made many mistakes, so let us help you avoid those and create great food for your family. Contact us today about our aquaponics systems.

Basic Components of Aquaponics Systems

Fish

Fish excrete ammonia and carbon dioxide as byproducts of metabolism. In excess, these compounds are toxic to fish, however, are essential in the aquaponics system.

Plants

Plants convert light and nutrients in to vegetation. While almost any plant can work (tomatoes from our system shown here), greens are ideally suited to aquaponics setups.

Bacteria

The unseen heroes of the aquaponics system are the host of nitrifying bacteria. There are several types of bacteria needed to make the system work. These bacteria are not harmful, and in fact, are naturally occurring in the air, soil, and water. The system depends on the bacteria to change the ammonia from the fish into nitrites and finally into nitrates the plants can use.

Light

At the heart of all biological systems on Earth is the Sun. Light is a source of energy allowing plants to grow. Light is especially important to indoor aquaponics systems. Certain plants rely on specific cues from the sun to know when to reproduce and grow.