For a while now we have been exploring the various ways of farming vertically, specifically focusing on soilless farming and aquaponics; which is a system of raising fish and producing crops in a symbiotic relationship.
The two systems seem very similar, but we find it important to further differentiate them in an effort to help you understand them better. This will help you make the right decision on the specific system you would wish to establish in your small farm, or in your commercial greenhouses.
The Methods Fall into Two Categories
Hydroponics
Is a type of horticulture and a subset of hydroculture that involves the technique of growing plants using a water-based nutrient solution rather than soil, whereas
Aquaponics
is the integration of hydroponics and aquaculture in a recirculating system where the waste and metabolites produced by cultured fish are removed by nitrification and taken up by plants as fertilizer.
While the two techniques are very effective growing methods for plants in soilless environments, there are significant differences between the two techniques, which should be noted before choosing the method to adopt.
Differences between hydroponics and aquaponics culture.
1. Nutrients used.
Hydroponics requires the use of artificial nutrients from the mixture of some artificial chemicals, which are man-made in nature, whereas aquaponics depends on nutrients naturally obtained from fish by-products.
2. Toxicity of Growing Nutrient Media.
Hydroponics uses highly concentrated synthetic chemicals to produce nutrient media. These chemicals reach a point where they become toxic to plants and should be removed from the system regularly and replaced by a fresh one.
In aquaponics, nitrogen is perfectly controlled in water and never reaches a point of toxicity for plants or animals because they are less concentrated, and require no regular replacement.
3. Organic farming approach.
Hydroponics relies absolutely on artificial chemicals, which are man-made in nature. Such chemicals are always considered to have some side effects on the environment, particularly when they reach the point of toxicity.
Aquaponics gives hope to organic agriculture because it depends on the natural ecosystem cycle, which is environmentally friendly.
4. Running cost.
Hydroponics has relatively high maintenance expenses in terms of media purchases and regular replacements relative to aquaponics which, once established, has lower maintenance expenses.
In aquaponics, there is no accumulation of toxicity, so there is substitution, the only routine is ammonia level monitoring. Furthermore, in aquaponics, they’re no pesticides application and if need to spray, they use organic pesticides which are cheap compared to inorganic ones.
5. PH level.
This is the most important element in any growing method that relies on water. When using a hydroponics system, the water should have a pH of 5.5 – 6.0 which is slightly acidic, while in aquaponics the pH should be 6.8 – 7.0 which is neutral for the survival of the fish.
6. Set-up.
Both techniques use culture beds, but aquaponics requires a large bed of approximately 12 inches (ca. 30 cm) depth to create enough space for fish to survive, relative to the hydroponic culture that requires 6-inch (15.24 cm) deep growth beds.
7. Initial cost of establishment.
Aquaponics, soilless farming, requires higher capital to start than hydroponics.
Hydroponics and aquaponics have some similarities.
1. Both techniques use soilless media.
Hydroponics and aquaponics technologies use nutrient-enriched media to support plant growth rather than soil. Both systems provide plants with the nutrients they need as an aqueous solution.
2. The Growth season is longer than the conventional method.
These farming techniques have all-year-round production and are not weather-dependent. You can use both techniques in an indoor or outdoor setting without rain feeding.
3. Less impact on the environment.
Both methods aim to minimize the impact of modern agriculture on the environment. Both techniques have shown great potential for alleviating problems related to modern soil agriculture methods associated with environmental pollution.
4. More rapid growth of plants.
In both systems, plant roots are brought into direct contact with nutrient media that grow plants more rapidly than traditional agricultural methods. As the roots of the plant are in direct contact with the nutrients, the energy that would have been used to reach the nutrients is used to mature the plant.
5. Higher yields.
Both techniques have a higher yield of about 30 -40% more than traditional growing methods. This is because each plant receives an optimum number of the nutrients they require. Furthermore, plants are less affected by diseases, pests, and weeds, which also lower yields in traditional methods.
6. Both methods rely on water.
In both systems’ water replaces the soil, and it is the water that transports nutrients required to the plants.
In a Nutshell
Soilless farming is gaining popularity in the Agricultural sector as an alternative method of growing crops, owing to the unfavorable climatic and soil conditions that are making traditional farming uneconomical and unable to produce the food required by the high population.
Many Kenyan farmers are now investing in hydroponic farming. But it is essential to understand each soilless culture method in terms of initial capital investment, space required for setting up the system, experience needed to run the system, and the purpose of the system. This is very critical before choosing the soilless farming or other method to invest in.
References.
https://gogreenaquaponics.com/blogs/news/hydroponics-with-fish-and-aquaponics
Image Credit: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Finhabitat.com%2F6-places-where-soil-less-farming-is-changing-how-we-grow-food%2F&psig=AOvVaw2xN4sdM1fR8E7CwQbNqw9m&ust=1685145586975000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CBMQjhxqFwoTCLCTnNLWkf8CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAH
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