"Tish" wrote in message
...
On that note, has anyone on this forum tried aquaponics? I saw it on
Gardening Australia a few months ago, did a follow-up google, and it
seems very interesting (although the literature all posted such a rosy
picture that my "too good to be true" indicator flashed). I would
imagine it would work well once you had sorted out contamination
problems and the balance between the number of fish and the biomass of
veggies needed to clean the fish-water of fishpoo and wasted feed.

i think one would try to replicate what you'd find in a natural pond with
fish. like, the water needs fish poo in it for the whole thing to work,
because that feeds the vegetation that oxygenates the water, (bla bla) so
you have to start out with sufficient levels of poo, and i'd assume that
like nature, it would be self-correcting (even if it corrects in a way you
don't like ;-).

i'd love to (sort-of intend to) try it one day. i don't eat fish though,
which could create a challenge ;-) although the rest of the family do, so no
worries there.

I
also had ethical queries about what to feed the fish.

what was the nature of your query?
according to one book i read (a permaculture oen actually), you can have
another pond next door for growing the creatures to feed to the fish (which
of course raises the question of what to feed _them_ g) speaking quite
ignorantly, it would be better to have a predator cycle working within the
pond itself, maybe. it certainly sounds like it takes some organising.
kylie