"If you're wanting to grow food that's nutritionally dense and reliable, aquaponics is it," says Alex Van Zandt, owner of Gunni Gal, a 2,400-square-foot aquaponics greenhouse in Gunnison Valley, Colorado. She focuses on growing herbs and leafy greens year-round to sell in her community.
Aquaponics uses a combination of hydroponics (growing plants in a soilless environment) and aquaculture (raising fish in a controlled environment). Once the tanks and growing trays are set up, feeding the fish is the main task, while their waste fertilizes the plants.
Aquaponics can produce a yield 20 times as large as that of field crops in the same amount of space while using only 10 percent of the water. Greens and herbs are well-suited for aquaponic growing and allow for a fast turnover, increasing the profitability of the aquaponics system.
Despite many of these benefits, some farmers may be hesitant to make the switch. "If you begin something new like aquaponics, you won't be getting all of that naturally filtered information like you have with traditional farming," says Van Zandt. "It's going to be a steep learning curve because you're creating an ecosystem, not just manipulating one that already exists."
Read more at Mother Earth News