Aquaponics Is Coming to Akumal

Aquaponics is coming to Akumal! You may not know about this form of gardening, but you will be enjoying the benefits at the restaurants of Hotel Akumal Caribe soon. An aquaponic garden is being built to continue the sustainable direction of owner Laura Bush Wolfe. On the grounds of the hotel, Lorrie Fossheim and volunteers will be overseeing this garden that will produce an aquaponic form of organic vegetables and fruits for the chefs of LolHa restaurants. Tilapia will be raised in a tank that cycles water through the growing plants to produce fresh products twice as fast as standard organic produce.

You will be welcome to tour the garden and watch this new form of gardening coming to Akumal. AkumalNow will be covering the progress of the garden, so check back soon.

With our ever growing concerning for eating “clean”, “healthy”, “chemical free”, this form of gardening is an easy way for us all to enjoy “clean eating”. Aquaponic gardening solves all the normal concerns with growing our own — no weeding, no insects, no watering!!! And the garden can be created in any size space.

The term aquaponics was developed in the 1970s, but the practice has ancient roots; there is debate about its first occurrence. It was recognized in sixth century China and also noted in use by the Incas in Peru. The earliest example may be the Lowland Maya, followed by the Aztecs, who raised plants on rafts on the surface of a lake in approximately 1000 A.D. The Aztecs cultivated a system of agricultural islands know as chinampas in a system considered by some to be the first form of aquaponics. Chinampas are networks of canals and stationary artificial islands. Crops were cultivated on the islands using nutrient-rich mud and water from the canals.

Aquaponics is, at its most basic level, the marriage of aquaculture (raising fish) and hydroponics (growing plants in water and without soil) together in one integrated system. The fish waste provides organic food for the growing plants and the plants naturally filter the water in which the fish live. The third and fourth critical, yet invisible actors in this symbiotic world are the beneficial bacteria and composting red worms. The beneficial bacteria exist on every moist surface of an Aquaponic system. They convert the ammonia from the fish waste that is toxic to the fish and useless to the plants, first into nitrites and then into nitrates. The nitrates are relatively harmless to the fish and most importantly, they make terrific plant food. At the same time, the worms convert the solid waste and decaying plant matter in the Aquaponic system.

So —

Aquaponic gardening enables home fish farming. You can now feel good about eating fish again.
Aquaponic gardening uses 90% less water than soil-based gardening because the water is re-circulated and only that which the plants take up or evaporates is ever replaced
Aquaponic systems only require a small amount of energy to run a pump and aeration for the fish
Aquaponic gardening is necessarily organic. Natural fish waste provides all the food the plants need. Pesticides would be harmful to the fish so they are never used. Hormones, antibiotics, and other fish additives would be harmful to the plants so they are never used. And the result is every bit as flavorful as soil-based organic produce, with the added benefit of fresh fish for a safe, healthy source of protein.
Aquaponics is completely scalable. The same basic principles apply to a system based on a 10 gallon aquarium and to a commercial operation.

You can find information on how to create your own Aquaponic Garden at http://www.friendlyaquaponics.com/

http://milkwood.net/2014/01/20/aquaponics-a-brief-history/