What Does Aquafarm Mean?
An aquafarm is a small tank (aquarium) filled with water, plants, and a fish. On top of the water's surface, edible plants are grown. The aquafarm is an entirely closed-loop system, meaning that the waste from the fish provides nutrients to the plants and, through the aquafarm, the fish have a ready supply of water.
An aquafarm is an entirely self-sustaining system that requires no cleaning. Aquafarms are popular with people wishing to grow their own herbs, lettuce, fresh sprouts, wheatgrass, and other delicacies in the kitchen. The system typically consists of a tank, a pump to aerate the water, and several pots or a simple trough to hold the plants that are suspended on the top of the water.
Maximum Yield Explains Aquafarm
The aquafarm’s space-saving small size makes it ideal for countertops. The variety of fish used in the aquafarm varies, but generally, most people opt to place a Siamese fighting fish (betta fish) in the tank because they are a solitary fish by nature. The plants and the fish form a natural symbiotic relationship where the fish provides the fertilizer and the plants aerate and cleanse the water that the fish lives within.
The aquafarm system is relatively easy to set up, and running it is straightforward. The small pump pumps water from the fish tank up to the small pots that hold the plants. The roots of the plant serve as a biofilter to remove ammonia in the fish waste so it does not build up to toxic levels in the water. The plants turn the ammonia into nitrates that the plants use as a food source.
A small countertop aquafarm differs from an aquaponics system. In an aquaponics system, the fish are much larger and are often raised to be eaten.
