What is aquaponics?

                   Aquaculture - Farming aquatic species in a controlled environment 
                   Hydroponics - The growing of plants in soil-less media

Aquaponics is the combination of aquaculture(fish farming) and hydroponics (soilless plant culture). In aquaponics, you grow fish and plants together in one integrated, soilless system. 

The nutrient-rich water that results from the fish waste provides a food source of natural fertilizer for the plants and the plants provide a natural filter for the water the fish live in. As the plants consume the nutrients, they help to purify the water that the fish live in. There are  microbes (nitrifying bacteria) and composting red worms that live on the surface of the growbed media. They do the job of converting the ammonia from the fish waste first into nitrites, then into nitrates and the solids into vermicompost that that are food for the plants. The conversion of ammonia into nitrates is often termed "The nitrogen cycle". A natural microbial process keeps both the fish and plants healthy. This creates a sustainable ecosystem where both plants and fish can thrive.

• Fish are raised in a tank

• Water from the fish tank is pumped to the plants

• Naturally occuring bacteria convert ammonia and nitrite to nitrate
• Plants absorb the nutrient rich water

• Filtered water is returned to the fish tank, clean