AComparisonoftheEffectivenessofAquaponicGardeningto

TraditionalGardeningGrowthMethod
By:JasonYamamotoandAustinBrock

Abstract

LanddevelopmentinHawaiiisagrowingproblemcausingagriculturallandsand
resourcestobelimited.Currently,8590%ofHawaiisfoodsupplyisimported.Forcenturies,
Hawaiiansdevelopedwaystobesustainablesuchasbuildingfishpondsandloi(taro
plantations).Today,modernaquaponicsisaviableresourcetosustainabilitythatcombines
aquaculture(growingfishandplantsinacontrolledenvironment)andhydroponics(growing
plantswithoutsoil).Thesystemreliesonfishwastetoprovideorganicfoodandnutrientsto
helptheplantsgrown;inturn,theplantsclean,filter,andrecyclethewaterbacktothefish
creatingasymbioticrelationship(Dunn,2012).
Thepurposeofthisexperimentwastocompareandcontrastthegrowthoftomatoes,
beans,andpeaplantsinanaquaculturemediumwithfishandnofishbymonitoringthechanges
inammonia,pH,nitrate,phosphate,temperature,andsalinityofwaterovertime.Resultsshowed
thattherewerenosignificantgrowthdifferencesbyheightofpeas,tomatoes,andbeanswhen
growingbetweenaquaponicvs.traditionalsoil.However,thereweresignificantdifferences
betweengrowingplantsaquaponicallyvs.thecontrolhydroponicwithwateronly.Data
confirmedatDay7thatnitratesatitspeakandasammoniadecreased,causedtheaquaponic
plantstogrowrapidly.Thustheexperimentconfirmedacorrelationbetweennitrateandplant
growth.However,furtherstudiesinlengthandrepetitionisrequiredtoconfirmwhether
aquaponicsandnitrateshaveadirectcorrelationanddirectdevelopmentfortheplantgrowth.

Introduction

TheHawaiiansbeganagricultureonthe
HawaiianIslandsbygrowingtaro,sweetpotato,
breadfruit,bananas,andotherstaplefoodtosustain
thepeopleofHawaii.Fishpondswerealsocreated
alongthecoaststoraisefishandotherseafoodasa
meansofaquaculture.TraditionalHawaiian
aquaponicswerealsoinplacedwiththeloisystem
wherewettaro(Colocasiaesculenta)weregrownin
landpatchesfilledwithfishandprawnsasriver
watercycledfrompatchtopatch(Figure1).

However,asurbanizationsprawlsand Figure1:HawaiianAquaponicstheLoi
encroachesontolandareasinHawaii,theprecious
spaceforagriculture,fishponds,andforloihavediminished.Today,Hawaiiimportsover85
90%ofitsfoodsupplyfromothercountriesandcontinentalUnitedStates(HawaiiDepartment
ofAgriculture,2008).ItisveryalarmingforHawaiitobeverydependentonfood,supplies,oil,
andenergyoutsideofHawaii.Thus,itismoreimperativefortheconceptofsustainabilitythat
onceflourishedtheislandstoberevivedandinstilltoyoungandfuturegenerationstoensure
Hawaiiwillnotdepleteitsresources.

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 Onealternativesolutiontosustainability
ismodernaquaponics.Aquaponicstechnology
hasbeenrecognizedintheU.S.sincetheearly
1980s.Modernaquaponicscombines
aquaculture(growingfishandplantsina
controlledenvironment)andhydroponics
(growingplantswithoutsoil).Themostcommon
aquaponicsystemsemploymediafilledraised
bed,nutrientflowtechniquefortheplant
growingareaintegratedwitharecirculating
aquaculturetanksystem(Timmons,Ebeling,
Wheaton,Summerfelt,andVinci,2002)(Figure
2).Thesystemreliesonfishwastetoprovide Figure2:ModernAquaponics
organicfoodandnutrientstohelptheplants
grown;inturn,theplantsclean,filter,and
recyclethewaterbacktothefishcreatingasymbioticrelationship(Dunn,2012).Inaddition,
pollution,pesticides,anduseofchemicalsaredrasticallyreducedsinceonlyfishwasteand
freshwaterareusedasthegrowthmedium.Mostimportantly,modernaquaponicsusesasmall
amountoffreshwaterandspace.Sothesystemcanbeusedindoors,inagreenhouse,backyard,
andcanberesistanttoinfluxesofnaturalchangessuchastemperature,drought,wind,rain,
seasonalchanges,andotherfactorsifgrownindoors.Asaresult,aquaponicscanproducefood
insmallscaleandlargecommercialscalealso(Jones,2002).

Duringtheprocessoffishrespiration,oxygen
(O2)andcarbondioxide(CO2)areexchanged,while
ammonia(NH3)isreleasedbythefish.Tokeepthefish
healthy,nitrosomousbacteriaconverttheammoniato
nitrate(NO3)andnitrite(NO2),whichinturnisusedby
theplantasthemediumforgrowth(Ochmanski,2008)
(Figure3).Thisprocessiscallednitrification.

Figure3:NitrificationProcess
ConversionofAmmoniato
Nitrate(Jones,2002).
Researchshowedthatnitrificationtransforms
93%to96%ofnitrogenousfishwastesintonitrate
(PrinslooRoets,Theron,Hoffman,andSchoonbee,
1999).Unionizedammonianitrogenatconcentrations
aslowas0.020.07mg/Lhadshowntoslowfishgrowth
andcausetissuedamagetofish(Masser,Rakocy,and
Losordo,1999).Sincenitrateistheprimarysourcefor
Nitrogenforplantsinhydroponicoraquaponicsystems,
themanagementofthenitrificationprocessforaquaponic
systemsisimportantforthemaintenanceofwaterquality
andtheproductionofnitratenitrogen.

Inadditiontonitrate,pHisalsoanimportantwaterqualityparameterthatcanaffectthe
nitrifyingbacteriainaquaculturebiofilters.ThepHrecommendationsforaquaculturesystems
rangebetween6.5and8.5(Timmons,et.Al,2002),whereas,thepHtolerancesofplantscan
rangefrom5.0to7.6dependingonthespecies(MaynardandHochmuth,1997).

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 Tilapia(Oreochromisniloticus)andgoldfish(Carassiusauratusauratus)arethemost
commonfishusedinaquaponicsystems.Tilapiaandgoldfishbothproducehighlevelsof
ammonia,whichisgoodformaintainingnutrientlevelsfortheaquaponicprocess.Bothfishare
alsoveryresilienttochangesinpH,pollutants,andtemperature(Johanson,2009).Inaddition,
Tilapiagrowsquickly,hasagoodfoodconversionrate,andcanbeeatenaswell(Childress,
2003).

Thus,theobjectiveofthisexperimentwastocompareandcontrastthegrowthof
tomatoes,beans,andpeaplantsinanaquaculturemediumwithfishandnofishbymonitoring
thechangesinammonia,pH,nitrate,phosphate,temperature,andsalinityofwaterovertime.

ResearchQuestion:
Withthedecreasingoffarminglandandlandspace,willAquaponicsbeanalternativegrowth
mediumfortheplantssuchastomato(Solanumlycopersicum),bean(Phaseolusvulgaris),andthe
pea(Pisumsativum)andresultinfoodproduction?

Hypothesis
Ifaquaponicsisusedtogrowtomatoes(Solanumlycopersicum),beans(Phaseolusvulgaris),and
peas(Pisumsativum),thenthenitrateconvertedfromfishwastewillenhanceplantgrowthin
theaquaponicsystem.

Materials&Procedures

SeedlingsandCups:
Priortostartingtheexperiment,sixtyseedsofeach
typetomato,peas,andbeansweregerminated
undera32wattPhilipsfluorescentlightfor3days.
About5seedswereplacedonapetridishwith
moistpapertowelontopandonthebottomofthe
petridishtoallowtheseedstogrow.The
fluorescentlightwasonfor24hoursfor3daysto
allowtheseedstogerminate.Eachdaytheseeds
werecheckedandwaterwasaddedonthepaper
toweltomoistentheseeds.(Figure4)
Atotalof72Gatoradewatercupsweredrilledwith
holes.Fourpencilsizeholesweredrilledonthe Figure4:GerminationofSeeds
bottomofthecupand3rowsof8holesonthesides
ofthecupwerealsodrilledtoallowwatertodrain.
Thecupswerelabeledbytypeofseedandnumberedfrom18.Specifically,thecupswere
labeledfromPea18,Bean18,andTomato18.Atotalof3setsofcupswerelabeled
onesetfortraditionalgrowth,onesetforhydroponiccontrolwithtapwater,andoneset
foraquaponicswithgoldfish.

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 40gramsofpottingsoilwereaddedintoeachcup.Onlyseedsoftomato,beans,andpeas
thatgerminatedandcontainedrootswereplantedontopofthesoil,andanother20
gramsofpottingsoilwereplacedontopof3daygerminatedseed.Thetypeofseedsused
consistedoftomato(Solanumlycopersicum),gardenbeans(Phaseolusvulgaris),andpeas
(Pisumsativum)
100mLoftapwaterwasaddedtoeachcupbyusingagraduatedcylindertomoistenthe
soilandseedsandallowedtodrain

AquaponicsandHydroponic(ControlwithH20only)setup
2Plasticblacktubwithdimensions60cm
x85cmanddepth19cmwereused.
(Figure5)
A4cmwideholewasdrilledinthecenter
ofbothblacktubs
Eachholewaspluggedwithrubberanda
20cmwhitePVCpipetoactasdrainage.
Anadditional6cmPVCpipewithholes
wasaddedabovetheholesothatwater
woulddrainproperlyinthetuband
preventrocksfromcloggingthehole.
TwoPlasticstandswereusedtohold
aquaponictub.
Twoplastic18gallonbluetubswere
usedandfilledwith60Loftapwater Figure5:Plastictubs,pump,bluerocks,
PVCpipe,bluetubsforwaterandfish,and
Eachplasticbluetubhadawaterpump
twostands
torecyclewaterbacktotub.
Eachtubconsistedof1andbag
(60lbs=27.2kgeach)ofbluerocksthat
werethoroughlyrinsedandsundrieddays
priortotheexperiment.Thebluerocks
wereapproximately10cminheightinthe
tubandabovethewaterlineofthepump.
Thecupswiththegerminatedseedswere
placedinorder(Peas18,Beans18,and
Tomatoes18)inthetubsoitwillbeeasily
readtotakedataandheldbythebluerocks
(Figure6).
Bothaquaponicandhydroponic
experimentswereplacedinthesame32 Figure6:Setupofcupsinaquaponic
wattPhillipsfluorescentlightthroughout andhydroponicexperiment
theexperiment
andinthesameroomtemperature.Thiswasalsothesamelightfixtureasthetraditional
growth.Thefluorescentlightwason24hoursthroughouttheexperiment.
Theaquaponicexperimentcontained20goldfishandanAqueonQuietFilterPower
Filter55/75.

4

ControlTraditionalGrowthsetup
Thegerminatedseedlingscupswereplacedinthesame32wattPhilipsfluorescentlight
asaquaponicandhydroponic(controlwateronly)andsameroomtemperatureas
hydroponicandaquaponicexperiments.
Theseedlingswerewateredwith100mLoftapwatereverytwodays.Notethatthe
waterwasdrainedinthesinkbeforeplacingthecupsbackinthelight.

HeightMeasurements
EachplantgrowthheightwasmeasuredeverytwodayswiththeexceptionofDay5due
toholidayweekend.Anaverageheightwastakenforeachtypeofplant(tomatoes,bean,
andpeas)incentimeters.
Inaddition,qualitativeobservationswerealsotakenforeachplantforcomparison.

WaterQuality
pHandsalinityweremeasuredusingVerniersoftwareloggerproprobes.Ammonia,
phosphate,andnitratetestkitswereused.Astandardthermometerwasusedtomeasure
temperatureinCelsius

TTests
Ttestwerecalculatedtoensuresignificanceofdatap=<0.05.
Ttestforaverageheightforbean,peas,andtomatoesforaquaponicvs.hydroponic
(control)werecompared.Ttestforaverageheightforbean,peas,andtomatoesfor
aquaponicvs.traditionalgrowthwerealsocompared
Ttestfornitrate,pH,salinity,ammonia,phosphate,temperatureforaquaponicwaterand
hydroponiccontrolwerealsocompared.

5
 Results

Table1:AverageHeightofPlants(Tomato18,Peas18,&Beans18)forAquaponics,
HydroponicNofish,andTraditionalGrowthwithSoil.
HeightPlantwithFishincm

Day0 Day2 Day5 Day7 Day9 Day11 Day13 T=test

PeasAverageHeight 0 0 7.30625 14.875 19.7875 23.9875 28.1625 0.01464103
BeansAverageHeight 0 0 3.675 9.655625 12.375 15.26875 17.6625 0.000748905
TomatoAverageHeight 0 0 3.40625 4.0375 4.7625 5.39375 6.075 0.01980695

HeightPlantwithNoFish(Hydroponic)incm

Day0 Day2 Day5 Day7 Day9 Day11 Day13

PeasAverageHeight 0 0 5.9375 10.9 15.0875 17.6625 19.3125
BeansAverageHeight 0 0 6.125 13.875 15.6375 17.6625 19.41875
TomatoAverageHeight 0 0 3.4375 4.24375 5 5.575 6.13125


HeightofPlantTraditionalGrowthincm

Day0 Day2 Day5 Day7 Day9 Day11 Day13 T=test
PeasAverageHeight 0 0 9.8 17.525 20.5375 26.1875 39.2625 0.05448427
BeansAverageHeight 0 0 7.875 11.55625 12.7125 13.525 14.59375 0.40169031
TomatoAverageHeight 0 0 3.4625 4.6625 4.85 5.2875 6.375 0.0967402

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 Figure8&9:Day13ResultsforGrowth
ofPeas,Beans,Tomatoesforallthree
growthmediums(aquaponic,hydroponic,
&traditional).

Figure7:ExperimentSetupDay0

Graph1:TraditionalGrowthwas

muchmoresuccessfulinoverall
growthheightforPeasthanboth
aquaponicandhydroponic,but
Ttestdoesnotconfirmthegrowth
withresult0.05448.However,
aquaponichadanoverallhealthier
appearance,vibrancyincolor,and
muchmoreeffectiveingrowth
thanhydroponicmediumwith
Ttest=0.01464103confirming
growth.



7


Graph2:Hydroponicwas
moresuccessfulinoverall
growthheightforBeansthan
bothaquaponicandtraditional
growthwithTtest=
0.000748905confirmingthe
growth.However,aquaponic
hadanoverallhealthier
appearanceandvibrancyin
color.

Graph3:Basedonthegraph,
thereisnosignificant
differenceingrowthbasedon
allthreemediums.However,
Ttestconfirmedthatthere
wasadifferencegrowth
betweenaquaponicvs.
hydroponicwithTtest=
0.01980695.

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Table2:AcomparisonofWaterQualityofAquaponicgrowthmediumwithgoldfishvs.nofish

WithFishWaterQuality

Day0 Day2 Day5 Day7 Day9 Day11 Day13 T=test
pH 7.27 7.07 7.51 7.79 7.81 7.57 7.75 0.091500196
Nitratemg/L 3 5 10 20 10 5 5 0.004672502
Ammoniamg/L 0 0.4 0.4 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.002329607
Salinityppm 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 #DIV/0!
Phosphatemg/L 0.5 0.5 2 1 6 2 2 0.462428412
TemperatureC 24 24 24 24 25 24 24 0.177958842


WithoutFishWaterQuality

Day0 Day2 Day5 Day7 Day9 Day11 Day13
pH 7.12 7.46 7.7 7.78 7.8 7.75 7.86
Nitratemg/L 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ammoniamg/L 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Salinityppm 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1
Phosphatemg/L 1 1 1 1 3 0.25 0.1
TemperatureC 24 24 24 24 24 24 24

Graph4:Aquaponicmediumshoweda
dramaticincreaseanddecreaseof Graph5:Aquaponicmedium

nitrate,whereTtestconfirmedthis showedchangesinAmmoniadueto
increaseoffishwaste.Ttest
changeat0.000467.Theincreaseof
nitratewasduetotheconversionof confirmedthischangeat0.00232.
Ammoniawasconvertedtonitrate
ammoniatonitratebybacteriaandthe
decreaseofnitratedisplaystheplants bybacteria.
consumptionofnitrate.
9
DiscussionandConclusion

Intheexperimenttoexplorethegrowthofaquaponicscomparedtotraditionalgardening
andhydroponicgardening,thequantitativedatathatwastakenshowedacorrelationbetween
measurementsofplantheightandwaterquality.Observationsfoundthatthetraditionaland
hydroponicgardeninggrewanexceedingratemorethantheaquaponics.
InGraph1,traditionalgardeningshowedahighergrowthrateofthepeas
(Pisumsativum)withadifferenceof11centimetersbetweenaquaponicgardening.Although
growingatafasterratethanaquaponicgardening,traditionalgardeningsheightvariedfrom
Day2toDay11butthenincreasedrapidlythegrowthratefromDay11toDay13.Aquaponic
peasgrewinsteadatasteadypaceandaconstantslopefromDay2toDay7butonDay7
increasedrapidly.Inaddition,aquaponicpeashadanoverallhealthierappearance,vibrancyin
color,andmuchmoreeffectiveingrowththanhydroponicmediumwithTtest=0.01464103
confirmingthegrowth.
InGraph2,hydroponicgardeningofbeans(Phaseolusvulgaris)wasmuchmore
successfulthanaquaponicgardeningandtraditionalgardeningofwithadifferenceof2
centimetersbetweenhydroponicsandaquaponics.Hydroponicsbeansgrewataconstantrate
betweenthedaysofDay2toDay7butthegrowthratelessenedafterDay7.Although
aquaponicsgrowthratewasdiscretefromDay2toDay7,thegrowthrateofthebeanswasmuch
betterafterDay7,whichcorrelatedtotheincreaseofnitrates(Graph4)anddecreaseof
ammonia(Graph5)Day7.Thisconfirmedthatnitratescontributedtotheplantgrowth.
InGraph3,measurementstakenfortheheightoftomatoes(Solanumlycopersicum)for
traditional,hydroponic,andaquaponichadnosignificancedifferencesingrowth.However,
aquaponictomatoeslookedmuchhealthier.
Thusfromthisexperiment,resultsconfirmedthattherewasnodifferenceinplantgrowth
betweentraditional,aquaponic,andhydroponicgrowthofplants.However,itwasfoundthat
therewasacorrelationoftheincreaseofnitrateswiththeplantgrowthinaquaponicmedium.
Thus,thehypothesis,Ifaquaponicswereusedtogrowtomatoes(Solanumlycopersicum),beans
(Phaseolusvulgaris),andpeas(Pisumsativum),thenthenitrateconvertedfromfishwastewill
enhanceplantgrowthintheaquaponicsystemwassupportedasshownonDay7fromGraphs
15.Overall,growingplantsinanaquaponicmediumdoesshowsuccessinplantgrowth,
healthierappearance,andaviablealternativetogrowingfood(Figure8&9).

FutureResearch

Futureresearchsuggestionsincludefortheexperimenttobecontinuedandheldfora
longertimetoobservethechangesingrowthandrate.Inaddition,theamountofnitratesshould
befurtherresearchedbysettingupdifferentamountoffishineachaquaponicsystemtoseeif
theamountofammoniawastebythefish,hasadirectrelationshiptotheamountofnitrates
producedandgrowthoftheplants.

Withtheknowledgegainedandabundanceofdatagained,itisthehopethatwiththeloss
ofthelandonOahu,theaquaponicgardeningwillbesuccessfulingrowingproduceandpromote
healthyliving.

10

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