Growth and development of herbaceous plants in aquaponic systems

Abstract

Aquaponics integrates aquaculture and hydroponic production using fish waste as nutrients for various vegetable crops. Herbaceous plants such as basil (Ocimum basilicum L.), peppermint (Mentha piperita L.) and spearmint (Mentha spicata L.) are in great demand due to their properties; however, there is very little information about their behavior in aquaponics. The objective of this study was to evaluate the growth and development of these species under aquaponic conditions. According to the results, the evaluated herbaceous plants suit crop conditionsand they can be used as part of the biological filters in aquaponic systems with tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus L. var. Stirling) production. Water quality could be maintained within appropriate ranges for both fish and plant production. Spearmint was the plant where the highest productivity was observed, suggesting that it assimilates the nutrients produced in this type of system more efficiently.

Biological filtration properties of selected herbs in an aquaponic system

“…The success of the herbs in this experiment (as in other aquaponic set‐ups) is mostly due to cumulative accumulation of bacteria co‐acting (with the plants) as biological filters that constantly transform ammonium and nitrite into nitrates, essential for plant nutrition (Pérez‐Rostro, Hernández‐Vergara, & Ronzón‐Ortega, ). Another variety of mint, Spearmint, showed the best adaptive response (Espinosa‐Moya, Álvarez‐González, Albertos‐Alpuche, Guzmán‐Mendoza, & Martínez‐Yáñez, ) with greater leaf numbers developed and a greater weight gain per day (AGR), similar to that observed by Salam, Prodhan, Sayem, and Islam () who consider such plants to be highly profitable for certain aquaponic systems. Furthermore, this study corroborates an assertion by (Campos‐Pulido, Alonso‐López, Avalos‐de la Cruz, Asiain‐ Hoyos, & Reta‐Mendiola, ) that plants can achieve greater development in aquaponic systems if the culture period is extended, which would result in greater crop production compared with conventional crop systems.…”

Efficiency of pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo), sweet wormwood (Artemisia annua) and amaranth (Amaranthus dubius) in removing nutrients from a smallscale recirculating aquaponic system

“…However, dissolved oxygen (DO) levels were slightly outside the recommended range considering that dissolved oxygen in fish tanks and hydroponic inlets should be maintained between 5 and 6 mg/L for optimum growth of most warm water fish and hydroponic plants (Wongkiew et al 2017). The low DO levels in the sump can be attributed to biological processes including fish respiration, oxidation of ammonia in the sand filter in addition to organic load production in the system (Espinosa-moya et al 2018;Wongkiew et al 2017). Furthermore, DO levels decreases in the biofilters and hydroponic subsystems due to the activities of microbial organisms including nitrifiers and heterotrophs as well as absorption by plant roots (Gichana et al 2019;Wongkiew et al 2017).…”

Growth and Nutrient Removal Efficiency of Sweet Wormwood (Artemisia annua) in a Recirculating Aquaculture System for Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

“…The pH can as well affect the absorption of phosphorus, magnesium, molybdenum and calcium and plant development [39]. Therefore, pH levels should be maintained between 5.5 and 6.5 to achieve optimum nutrient absorption and plant growth [42]. pH levels in this study were higher than 5.5 and 6.5 but slightly above the recommended level (7.0) for recirculating aquaponic water.…”

“…Dissolved oxygen (DO) levels were lower than 6.3-7.7 mg/L reported by [40] in an ebb and flood aquaponic system. The low DO levels could be attributed to the chemical transformation processes in the aquaponic system including fish respiration, production of high organic loads in the aquaponic system, activities of heterotrophs in addition to oxidation of nitrifying bacteria and oxygen absorption by plant roots [41,42]. Therefore, high DO levels should be maintained in these aquaponic systems for optimal plant growth.…”