Aquaponics Digest - Wed 02/11/98






Message   1: Nutrients and additives
             from PeterJTheisen@eaton.com

Message   2: (no subject)
             from Bob Leader 

Message   3: Re: Nutrients and additives
             from james.rakocy@uvi.edu (James Rakocy, Ph.D.)


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| Message 1                                                           |
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Subject: Nutrients and additives
From:    PeterJTheisen@eaton.com
Date:    11 Feb 98 16:44:54 EST

First of all I want to thank you Jim Rakocy for your paper on the 
integrated aquaponic system you are working with.  I greatly appreciate the 
information.

As for the question.  Jim recommends that Potassium, Calcium and Iron need 
to be added to a aquaponics system for the best plant growth.  I have so 
far added nothing to my small system except fish food, and in the begining, 
some seaweed extract recommended by the Sperano's.  My PH is pretty stable, 
I believe due to the limestone in the gravel I use.  What do the rest of 
you do with your systems?  Do you add nutrients?  Are gravel systems 
different since a significant amount of solid wasted in added to the 
gravel?  I suppose that in my gravel system the plants are effectively 
growing in a very wet and very porous mud, where the mud is fish waste.  As 
this fish waste mineralized it could add nutrients that are not typically 
directly available from the culture water directly.

A request:  Please continue to let us/me know how the experiments are going 
with the Redclaw crayfish.  In particular how do they do when in a mixed 
Tilapia / Redclaw culture.  I am very interested, and so is my wife.  Since 
I informed her that I could be raising a "lobster" equivalent, she seems 
far more tolerant of my humid experiments in our basement.  

A second request:  I have been watching the introductions and looking for 
someone in the list from my neck of the woods.  Am I the only one on the 
list that is in the Milwaukee Wisconsin area?  

Pete T.



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| Message 2                                                           |
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Subject: (no subject)
From:    Bob Leader 
Date:    Wed, 11 Feb 1998 17:57:58 -0500

Subject:         Can you help?
  Date:         Tue, 10 Feb 1998 14:44:38 EST
  From:         LMBernett@aol.com
    To:         Leaderb@pnpi.com

I am a secondary breast cancer patient.
I'm looking for a fish oil, that is pure.  Free of chemicals and
processed correctly.

Can you recommend a good manufacturer?

Thanks Much 
Linda Bernett 

Linda,
---------------------------------
As you can tell, I have forwarded your message to others who may be able
to give some help. 

With the current state of our environment, I don't know if there is any
such thing as fish oil free of chemicals. I have been doing some limited
communications with an aquaponics group. This is a group of individuals
who are raising fish in tanks and circulating the water through a
hydroponics green house. The water from the fish tanks is apparently
rich in plant nutrients. Yet, I don't know of any aquaponic systems
feeding fish certified organic fish foods. Many fish feeds contain
preservatives; {ethoxiguin, BHT, BHA}, all considered carcinogens by the
FDA.  Consequently, not even tank fish can be considered "chemical
free".  

Not much can be praised about our system of what is and is not safe.
Take white bread for example. Many labels will show an ingredient called
potassium bromate, used to make bread "fluffy". Yet it is considered a
carcinogen and is outlawed in every country but the US. Even Mexico has
eliminated it's use, which should tell us of its dangers.

I can not give any advice on remedies. I am a farmer, not a
nutritionalist. But, ......IF...... you are looking for the 18 chain
Omega 3 fatty acid, and are using fish oil as its source, you will find
more (3.8 times) Omega 3 in flax oil. There are certified organic flax
oils on the market. I just came back from BAR Associates in Seymour IL
who was cold pressing tons of flax for a wholesale supplier. You might
check with him: rboodram@aol.com. His name is Ramlakhan Boodram. He may
also have some insight for you. 

PNP has a chemical engineer, (MIT), who is working with our company and
his own company called Nutritional Technology. Nutritional Technology is
extracting Vitamin E from Rice Brand, supposedly some real powerful
antioxidant. They do not have email and I do not want to pass out his
phone number. Ed was also telling me about the isoflavones in
mechanically pressed soybean meal. (I have been told isoflavones are
power anti-carcinogens.) You need to consume about 4 ounces of pressed
soybean meal daily, or wash out the isoflavones with vodka and have a
small drink each evening. (Don't tell anyone I am promoting alcohol
consumption. Isoflavones are soluble in alcohol.  If you don't like
vodka, let it evaporate and you will be left with the isoflavones.

Conjugated linoleic acids are anti-carcinogens and can be found in milk
and cheese products, BUT, only from cows feed from open grazing on
grasses, or mechanically extruded/expelled soybean. There are some
dairies that might be using certified organic soybean products for a
"chemical free" milk product. This is some work currently going on at
the University of Utah and has not yet been published. As a matter of
fact, I doubt if many certified organic dairies even know this study is
happening. Since it is still being researched, there are no concrete
facts, but someone with cancer doesn't want to wait for the prof to get
done writing his paper.

LOOK - I PROBABLY KNOW JUST ENOUGH TO BE DANGEROUS. I AM ONLY RESPONDING
TO YOUR QUESTION WITH SOMETHING I AM JUST NOW LEARNING.  

Call the SonRidge Health Center 704-669-7762

Bob Leader


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| Message 3                                                           |
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Subject: Re: Nutrients and additives
From:    james.rakocy@uvi.edu (James Rakocy, Ph.D.)
Date:    Wed, 11 Feb 1998 20:50:16 -0400 (AST)

Pete T., I was born and raised in Milwaukee and had my first aquaponic
system there in, I hate to say it, 1958. A man by the name of Len Pampel
introduced me to the subject. He had designed an aquaponic system for the
aviary building at the Milwaukee County zoo and obtained a patent on it in
the 50s, although then we didn't call it aquaponics then. 

The limestone is dissolving to neutralize the acid buildup from
nitrification and is providing calcium in the process. The solids buildup in
your gravel could cause a problem. If it goes anaerobic, it will kill the
plant roots. Jim Rakocy

>First of all I want to thank you Jim Rakocy for your paper on the 
>integrated aquaponic system you are working with.  I greatly appreciate the 
>information.
>
>As for the question.  Jim recommends that Potassium, Calcium and Iron need 
>to be added to a aquaponics system for the best plant growth.  I have so 
>far added nothing to my small system except fish food, and in the begining, 
>some seaweed extract recommended by the Sperano's.  My PH is pretty stable, 
>I believe due to the limestone in the gravel I use.  What do the rest of 
>you do with your systems?  Do you add nutrients?  Are gravel systems 
>different since a significant amount of solid wasted in added to the 
>gravel?  I suppose that in my gravel system the plants are effectively 
>growing in a very wet and very porous mud, where the mud is fish waste.  As 
>this fish waste mineralized it could add nutrients that are not typically 
>directly available from the culture water directly.
>
>A request:  Please continue to let us/me know how the experiments are going 
>with the Redclaw crayfish.  In particular how do they do when in a mixed 
>Tilapia / Redclaw culture.  I am very interested, and so is my wife.  Since 
>I informed her that I could be raising a "lobster" equivalent, she seems 
>far more tolerant of my humid experiments in our basement.  
>
>A second request:  I have been watching the introductions and looking for 
>someone in the list from my neck of the woods.  Am I the only one on the 
>list that is in the Milwaukee Wisconsin area?  
>
>Pete T.
>
>
>







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