What are the Best Plants for Aquaponics

Reproduced from https://homeaquaponicssystem.com/plants/what-are-the-best-plants-for-aquaponics/ by Russell Brook

The fishes are what sets aquaponics apart from other forms of gardening but it’s the plants that provide most of the food. People always wonder, “what are the best plants for aquaponics?” I’ll be going through that in this section.

While you may decide to use fish as food perhaps once or twice per week, you have to bear in mind that amount of fish can actually provide enough fertilizer to grow enough plants to make a big difference on your grocery bill.

The Best Plants for Aquaponics

Let me just make things clear. Nearly all types of plants grow well in aquaponics, even the likes of papaya and banana trees have proven to be effective. Anything you can grow in soil, you can surely grow in aquaponics.

Plants that thrive side-by-side in an aquaponics media bed include (but not limited to):

Salad Greens
Tomatoes
Peppers
Strawberries
Lettuce
Many different types of herbs (e.g. basil & low-water thyme)

If you also wish to grow flows for decorative purposes, you can do so as well. As a matter of fact, no matter the color or size of the flower, they all do well in aquaponics so you can let your imagination run free.

Plants That Don’t Do Well In Aquaponics

The only type of plants that haven’t proven to effectively grow are plants that need a pH environment a lot higher or lower than neutral 7.0.

For Example:

Blueberries and azaleas prefer acidic soil of below 7.0
Chrysanthemums, calendula and zinnias prefer basic soil above 7.0

Though subterranean plants and root vegetables can be grown very efficiently in aquaponics, their final matured shape may not resemble what it’s supposed to look like, for instance a carrot or potato.

The reason for this is because they’ll find it more difficult to grow into its mature shape in gravel in comparison to soil. However, there’s no need to worry because it will taste just as good if not even better.

Conclusions

Aquaponics is a great alternative to the current farming methods and can improve food security. Here are several reasons why this is the case:

It doesn’t rely on oil
It doesn’t depend on low welfare standards
It doesn’t depend on high feedstuff input
Prolific chemical use to meet margins is not required

Aquaponics mimics biology and can be used on a small scale in your own backyard or house, and also on a community level which would educate and enable people to grow their own food to benefit many on a personal and economic scale.