When it comes to mixing your love for goldfish with your admiration for gardening, you need to keep in mind that the health and maintenance of your goldfish will play a major role in how successful your aquaponic system will run.
Aquaponic gardeners are realizing the great potential these beautiful ornamental fish have when it comes to contributing to a plant’s ecosystem. Caring for goldfish in an aquaponic system is relatively easy if you provide the goldfish with good water quality, ample swimming space, and the right type of vegetation growing in the aquaponics system.
What Is Goldfish Aquaponics?
Aquaponics is a special type of aquarium or pond that pushes water containing the goldfish up the plants that are growing above the system. Since there are goldfish in the water that are continuously consuming food and then producing waste in the water system, the excess nitrates are the perfect source of food to grow healthy plants.
In return, these plants help to remove waste products from the water by absorbing the nitrates and minerals produced from the fish’s waste which helps to improve the water quality. There is a variety of different plants you can grow in an aquaponics system such as lettuce, houseplants, and many types of herbs.
Most species of goldfish do well in aquaponic systems, but you should be mindful of the type of environment that you place the goldfish into. Delicate species such as fancy goldfish may have a difficult time thriving outdoors in comparison to an indoor aquarium that is run using an aquaponics system.
Housing a goldfish isn't as simple as buying a bowl. If you're a new or experienced goldfish keeper who wants to get the setup right for your goldfish family, check out the best-selling book, The Truth About Goldfish, on Amazon.
It covers all you need to know about the ideal tank setup, tank size, substrate, ornaments, plants, and so much more!
How Do You Raise Goldfish In Aquaponics?
When it comes to raising goldfish in an aquaponics system, you first want to ensure that you have the right species of goldfish and stocking ratio so that your system can run smoothly.
Overcrowding an aquaponics system with lots of goldfish and few plants will only result in the goldfish becoming stressed because the plants are unable to keep up with the bioload of the aquarium (the amount of waste produced by the goldfish).
Creating the perfect goldfish aquaponic environment means that you should consider how healthy the fish are. The goldfish should be fed high-quality meals regularly and the body of water they are kept in should be as large as possible. Even if your intentions are focused on the health of the plants, it is also important to consider how well the goldfish are being stocked and cared for. If you carelessly mix different species of goldfish or place them in conditions where they are unable to thrive, you will most likely deal with poor water quality, sick goldfish, and an unbalanced aquaponic system which will make it more difficult for you to maintain the health of your goldfish and plants that rely on the goldfish’s nutrients to grow.
How Many Goldfish Per Gallon In An Aquaponics System?
The stocking ratio you follow for your aquaponic system will depend on:
A general rule of thumb is to stock your goldfish aquaponics system with 1 adult goldfish per 10 gallons of water. This should be an absolute minimum and bigger is always better when it comes to stocking your goldfish aquaponics system.
Slim-bodied goldfish such as the Comet or common goldfish grow much larger in comparison to fancy goldfish such as Ranchu, Fantails, and Moors. It is not generally recommended to mix two of these species because when it comes to feeding time, slim-bodied goldfish are much faster to the food than the slow-moving fancy goldfish varieties which can lead to issues with bullying.
The size of your aquaponic system will determine how much goldfish you can keep in it. You also want to ensure that you provide each goldfish with enough swimming room so that they each have enough space to swim separately without the aquarium becoming too cramped.
Conclusion
Always aim to stock your aquaponics system appropriately when it comes to housing goldfish. These are large-growing fish that enjoy swimming around their aquarium. Providing your goldfish with a large volume of water that they can comfortably display their natural behaviors without producing too much waste for the plants to absorb quickly will help keep your goldfish and plants thriving better longer.
Featured Image Credit: seaonweb, Shutterstock
