Aquaponics Digest - Mon 03/02/98
Message 1: Re: What is "sex reversed"?
from "William S. Snyder"
Message 2: Re: Tilapia
from S & S Aqua Farm
Message 3: Some abbreviated introductions
from S & S Aqua Farm
Message 4: visit
from "Candace"
Message 5: Mail list replies
from S & S Aqua Farm
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| Message 1 |
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Subject: Re: What is "sex reversed"?
From: "William S. Snyder"
Date: Mon, 02 Mar 1998 08:38:44 -0500
> Subject: Re: Tilapia
> From: "Wendy Nagurny"
> Date: Fri, 27 Feb 1998 09:40:31 -0500
>
> What is "sex reversed"?
> Wendy
>
> ----------
> > From: William S. Snyder
> >
> > I have had immense success with sex reversed all-male tilapia (aurea x
> nilotica)
Tilapia are incredibly prolific little devils. They can begin spawning at
sizes as small as 3 to 4 inches or so. When they
do beginning spawning, energy which could go into flesh production goes into
gonad maturation instead.
In order to prevent this, work has been attempted with same sex stocks.
Some work with hybridization has taken place but
there have been success and failures there, which I won't take the bandwidth
here to discuss.
The best success has been with hormonally induced sex reversal. Shortly
after hatching, tilapia fry are exposed to the
steroid methyl-testosterone (this is synthetic testosterone, the male sex
hormone, and is the same stuff weight lifters shoot
up; for the tilapia it is mixed in their food). For the genetic males, it
does nothing; for the genetic females, however,
the become males. Although they still carry the chromosomes for being
females, in all other aspects they are males. With an
all-male stock, there is never the alluring presence of estrogen, and the
fish continue to put their energy into growth and
not gonads.
(As you can imagine, my students get a lot of humor and mileage out of this
topic)
Interestingly, if the fish are fed estradiol, the synthetic analog of the
female sex hormone estrogen, they will become
all-female. Generally the male achieve higher growth rates than females and
the all-male stocks are preferred.
As a caveat, the procedure is not 100% successful, and a female or two might
show up (you may see fry in your clarifier), but
overall I have had good success with the sex-reversed stocks.
Cheers, Bill
--
> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >
William Snyder, Aquaculture and Aquatic Sciences
State University of New York - Morrisville
Morrisville, New York 13408
tel: 315-684-6237 fax: 315-684-6125 in%: SnyderW@Morrisville.edu
web: www.snymor.edu/pages/aquaculture/
"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and
looks like work." --Edison
> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >
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| Message 2 |
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Subject: Re: Tilapia
From: S & S Aqua Farm
Date: Mon, 02 Mar 1998 09:12:49 -0600
At 06:59 AM 2/24/98 -0500, Devon Williams wrote:
>
>Hi All,
>
>I am new to this aquaponics stuff, and I am currently pricing out a system
>for my middle school technology education classroom. I've gotten great
>response from this group on ideas for the hardware end of the system, so I
>thought I would ask about the "software" end.
>
AND, what
>type of food do they eat?
>
Devon - we feed our fish on Purina 5106 Trout Chow (40% protein). Others
are using catfish chow at 32% protein. Our experience has been that the
fish will consume the higher protein feed more completely, reducing the
amount of excess feed in the water (also taking the nutrients one step
closer to use by the plants).
Paula
S&S Aqua Farm, 8386 County Road 8820, West Plains, MO 65775 417-256-5124
Web page http://www.townsqr.com/snsaqua/
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| Message 3 |
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Subject: Some abbreviated introductions
From: S & S Aqua Farm
Date: Mon, 02 Mar 1998 09:49:29 -0600
In order to re-introduce some of our currently operating members to the
newest part of our group, I've selected a few posts from the introductions.
I've cut out much of the text to keep it short. =20
From: "Geoffrey Stone"
Date: Wed, 26 Nov 1997 22:49:20 -0600
We are Geoffrey & Susan Stone located in Ozark, AR. We have a small
integrated system in a 12 X 20 greenhouse. It consists of one 400 gallon
tank with 1 and 1/2 beds containing "block chips". It is a "green" system
in that the tank allows sunlight in which promotes algae growth. This was
deliberate as I understand the algae can be a significant source of food for
fish.
We obtained 50 Tilapia from S&S Aqua on Labor Day on '96. Since then we
have had good luck getting them to reproduce. First in a breeder tank and
then in the main tank. I used floating nets to confine and protect the fry.
While on vacation recently there was a power failure during which I lost
about 50 or so of my larger fish due I assume to oxygen depletion.
I use a 24V PV system for pumping the water back and forth between the tank
and the beds. I use an air pump on AC for extra areation as I'm not ready
to increase my PV system at this time.
>----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: "Harrop"
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 13:00:21 -0500
Hello all. Great to see a dedicated list for aquaponics! My wife and I are
in the process (near completion) of operating an aquaponics system near
Kingston, Ontario in Canada. Our pilot system is a heated 10 x 24 lean-to
greenhouse which is connected to our home. We have a 400 imperial gallon
tank and an NFT system. Much effort and resources have gone into building a
heating shed outside the greenhouse which contains a woodstove fitted with
an air-to-water heat exchange system. We expect to introduce Tilapia spp.
sometime in the second week in December...along with chives and catnip.
Hoping to talk with other enthusiasts....Bye for now. Rob & Jane :-)
---------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 01 Dec 1997 08:35:22 -0600
From: Gordon Watkins
Organization: Rivendell Gardens
Hello Aquaponderers,
By way of introduction to this great new list, I'm an organic farmer in
the Ozarks of NW Arkansas and I've just completed an experimental
prototype for an aquaponics system that I hope someday to expand to a
commercial scale.=20
My 14 x 22 attached greenhouse is based on a design from North Carolina
State Univ which they call an Integrated Aqua-Vegiculture System (IAVS)
and it's a little different from other designs I've seen. I'm growing
tilapia (all-male hybrids which I produce myself) and a few Pacu in 4 x
22 x 2.5 ft deep, partitioned, concrete vat below a walkway of slatted
wood panels. The bottom of the vat is sloped for detritus accumulation
and 5 small submersible pumps on a timer distribute the waste to the
beds. The 2 x 4 black locust walkway panels can easily be removed to
observe or access the fish but feeding is done through the slats.=20
Adjacent to the walkway and above grade is a 8 x 22 x 1 ft deep bed of
sand and gravel in which crops are grown. The bed is atop a concrete
floor which slopes back toward the vat and the gravel is contained by a
concrete block retaining wall under which the water flows into the vat.=20
The beds are contoured in a hill-and-furrow pattern with plants on the
ridge to keep stems dry. Water-loving crops (chives, cress, etc) are
planted in the furrows. When the pumps cut on (every 2 hours for 15
minutes, 7 am-7 pm) the water and waste is distributed down the furrows
where it percolates through and flows back into the vat.
I'm taking a shotgun approach to crop varieties, growing a little of
everything including citrus, tomatoes, peppers, cukes, melons, lettuce,
spinach, mustard, chives, basil, aquarium plants, etc and I'm also
trying hard and soft wood propagation.
I initially stocked the system on 10/10/97 with 12 lbs (250 fish) of
tilapia and planted the beds 2 weeks later. Everything looks pretty
good, so far, and I'm ready to add more fish as soon as my fry are big
enough.
A big advantage of this system, IMO, is that it maximizes use of
greenhouse space by placing the fish underneath the walkway. My
greenhouse is a semi-solar design and is heated with a hydronic system
powered by an lp water heater. I hope to supplement it by connecting the
water jacket of my wood furnace and possibly adding a solar water panel.
I havent't used enough gas yet to see if this system is really cost
effective, an issue I'm anxious to analyse, but it does a great job of
maintaining water temp of 82 and bed temp of 65 so my tomatoes, cukes,
and melons are thriving and the tilapia are growing rapidly.
I look forward to hearing from others on this list, particularly anyone
who's working with the IAVS design, and I have lots of questions I'm
hoping some of you have answers to. Many thanks to Tom and Paula for
getting this list up and running.
Aquatically yours,
Gordon Watkins
Parthenon, AR
----------------------------
Date: Mon, 01 Dec 1997 12:17:13 -0800
From: Rebecca Nelson
Hello aquaponics list members,
My name is Rebecca Nelson and I am the editor of the Aquaponics Journal,
Our sister company, Western Hydroponic Produce, grows hydroponic
tomatoes in a 7,000 sq foot controlled environment greenhouse. We have
set up a 400 gallon aquaponic system and have grown trout and crappie in
pond culture.
----------------------------------
Date: Mon, 01 Dec 1997 17:02:04 -0500
From: "William S. Snyder"
I am the aquaculture professor at a small a&t college in central New
York.. Although I specialize in single pass culture of brook, brown,
rainbow and tiger trout, and chinook salmon, I have been working with
tilapia (aurea x nilotica) for about three years now in various
aquaponic setups. Most of my work is instructional, for my students,
but aside from that I am working in the technology transfer aspect of
aquaponics. Specifically, developing small, noncommercial, home-based
fish culture systems (cheap, simple, cheap, productive, and cheap).
-------------------------
Date: 2 Dec 97 11:22:11 EST
From: PeterJTheisen@eaton.com
My name is Peter Theisen, I live near Milwaukee Wisconsin. I have a small=
=20
system running at the present time in my basement. It is made up of a 40=20
gallon tank (the bottom 2/3 of a 55 gallon barrel) and a 2ft. times 2ft=20
growing bed filled with pea gravel (a single plastic laundry tub). The=20
system is controlled by electronic timers. A pump in the tank goes on=20
about every 15 to 20 minutes to distribute water over the top of the gravel=
=20
bed, it pumps for about 6 minutes. In the 6 minutes the gravel bed is=20
filled with fish water. It does not actually fill, we have an float switch=
=20
that shuts off the pump and keeps the water level in the gravel bed to a=20
maximum of .5 inches below the top of the gravel. This keeps the top of=20
the gravel dry and keeps the algae growth down. The water drains from the=
=20
gravel bed to the fish tank through a 1.5 inch drain pipe and ultimately=20
through an end cap drilled with a series of holes. This spray of water is=
=20
aimed in such a fashion to aerate the water in the fish tank and to cause=20
the water to flow in a circular fashion around the tank. This circular=20
flow keeps the tank clean and moves the fish waste and excess food to the=20
pump to allow it to be delivered to the gravel bed. This means that the=20
gravel bed is alternately filled with water and then filled with air. The=
=20
result is that when the water fills the gravel bed it forces out the carbon=
=20
dioxide that is the result of bacterial action and when the water drains=20
out, the gravel bed is filled with air and therefore oxygen which is=20
necessary for the bacteria to do their thing. A thin film of water remains=
=20
on the gravel to facilitate the bacteria action and to provide the plant=20
roots with the water necessary to not dry out. The water is held at 82=20
degrees, the optimum for the growth of the tilapia, using a submersible=20
heater.
Above the gravel bed I have a 250 watt HID metal halide lamp. This=20
provides 1000 to 2500 lumens over the surface of the gravel bed. This is=20
sufficient for growth of most plants. I am primarily growing a variety of=
=20
lettuces.=20
I originally started raising Rocky Mountain White Tilapia that I purchased=
=20
from the Sperano's. My system is very much like theirs, in principle. At=
=20
present I am also raising some of the all male tilapia hybrids. =20
The system works well and I am planning to expand into a larger system. My=
=20
main concern about my present system is that I really should have made a=20
larger plant growing bed. the present one is too small to take care of all=
=20
the fish waste. This limits the amount of food I can feed my fish.
I am interested in learning more and trying new things in the area of=20
aquaponics. What really interests me about aquaponics is that it is a=20
larger biological system that can be continually optimized to generate the=
=20
maximum amount of output for the given input. The interactions among the=20
components of the total system are a pleasure to think about and experiment=
=20
with. =20
--------------------------
From: Mark Andrus =20
Date: Tue, 2 Dec 1997 11:49:16 -0500
As a new subscriber I would like to introduce myself to the group. My=20
name is Mark Andrus and I live in the Knoxville Tennessee area. I am,=20
by profession, the director of a computer department.
Approximately 4 years ago I read an article in "Backwoods magazine",=20
about Tom and Paula and their interesting approach to fish farming and=20
hydroponics. This interested me enough to travel 13 hours one very=20
cold day (9 degrees), to West Plains. I spent time with Tom and his=20
wife asking many questions about their unique operation. I was=20
impressed with the Speraneos and what they had accomplished as=20
pioneers in this area.
About 1 year later I began building my 30' x 24' greenhouse. I=20
decided to take Toms recommendation to build a smaller greenhouse=20
initially. The completed cost of the greenhouse and everything else=20
involved to make it operational was approximately $6,000. I did=20
everything myself so I could keep the expenses to a minimum. The=20
first year of operation we paid off the greenhouse. I was amazed!=20
Almost at the start of operation people had heard about us and the=20
demand for the herbs was more than we could produce.
In February it will be 2 years in full operation. I learned a lot=20
over this period of time. We have had a few problems that were=20
frustrating at the time but have worked out most of them. My fish are=20
around 1 to 1 =BD pounds and very healthy.
-----------------------------------
Date: Tue, 06 Jan 1998 13:01:44 -0800
From: John Greer
To the group,
My name is John Greer. I am an agriculture instructor in Pleasant Hope
Mo. I have a background in dairy and beef cattle and crop production.=20
Somehow I end up at a school with a greenhouse 5 years ago. Since that
time I have come to greatly enjoy horticulture and now have built an
additional greenhouse that houses an entire aquaponic system like the
one at S&S aquafarm. For a farm boy that has never had a horticulture
class in his life I am learning fast. I never thought I would be
involved in horticulture of any kind. And I sure never thought it would
be my favorite thing to teach.
What I am really interested in is seeds and plants that work well in
both a conventional 22 X 48 greenhouse and a nonconventional aquaponics
system. =20
With working with high school students we get the chance to kill plants
at an alarming rate for one reason or another. We also have a chance to
discover strange things that I never thought I would see.
Each year in my conventional greenhouse we grow impatiens, begonias,
various hanging baskets and other bedding plants. Then in the spring we
sell these plants here to community members. Now that we have the new
aquaponics lab we also grow these same plants in there. Usually using
them as stock plants for cuttings. Some do well and some not so well.
The ones that do well seem to grow and reproduce faster than we can keep
up. For example yeaterday we took 550 cuttings in one class period that
have grown since the 10th of December. Now I have impatiens running out
of my ears in the middle of January. Oh well better than everything
dying I suppose.
---------------------------------------------------
From: LC543119@aol.com
Date: Tue, 3 Feb 1998 23:17:34 EST
To: aquaponics@townsqr.com
Hi... my name is Gordon Creaser. I began my hobby and career in=
Hydroponics
when I started using soilless culture to grow tomato plants on my Father's
farm in the North of England, and also in aquaculture when I cultured fish=
in
over two hundred tanks in a specially built fish house at home. =20
I designed my first commercial hydroponic system in 1953 for an English
pharmaceutical company and since then have designed and established many=
large
operations worldwide.
I now work as a consultant to many large and small operations, some of those
being overseas, such as Micronesia, Australia, South America, Canada, the
Bahamas, and in many of the Caribbean islands. These operations practice
aquaponics, hydroponics and aquaculture in a variety of climates and growing
systems. =20
Many of these systems have been featured in my articles printed in such well
known magazines as The Growing Edge, Aquaponics Journal, Practical=
Hydroponics
and Greenhouse Manager
The ever growing and popular field of Hydroponics, Aquaponics and=
Aquaculture
is not only my field of consultation, but has always been my keen hobby and
love. I am always available to talk with those who are interested in=
getting
into this exciting field, as well as those who are currently either in the
commercial or the home growing field, who encounter problems and need=
advice.
I currently have "Question and Answer" columns in several magazines, or you
can always E-mail your questions and I will be happy to answer them.
------------------------------------
>Date: Tue, 24 Feb 1998 10:59:32 +0100
>From: Stefan Goes
>Subject: New web
>
>Hello Tom and Paula!
>
>Pekka and me are buzy building a greenhouse here in Harnosand, Sweden.
>We are a bit shy but we read and save all info we find interesting from
>the discussiongroup in a lokal database on my computer. Latly we have
>build a generator in Delphi, which produces everything in the database
>as homepages on internet. We have dedicatet these homepages to You.
>Thanks for everything. We have also stolen some sentenses and a picture
>from your site. We hope it is all right. You can see it on adress
>http://www.itv.se/rainbow .
>
>We hope to publish more of our own results later and perhaps we will
>participate in the discussiongroup later as well. If You find our site
>allright, You can perhaps mention it to the discussiongroup. Otherwise
>tell us if we have offended You or anybody else.
>Stefan and Pekka
>in snowy Sweden
--------------------------------
Hope this short synopsis helps. Paula
S&S Aqua Farm, 8386 County Road 8820, West Plains, MO 65775 417-256-5124
Web page http://www.townsqr.com/snsaqua/
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| Message 4 |
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Subject: visit
From: "Candace"
Date: Mon, 2 Mar 1998 10:55:53 +0000
Hi Paula-
My name is Holly, I'm Candace Turners daughter. she told me to write
you and tell you that my dad Les Turner left Newbern, Tenn about
10:00 am. He should be calling you if he plans on comming to vist
today or if he decides not to.
Thanks
Holly
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| Message 5 |
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Subject: Mail list replies
From: S & S Aqua Farm
Date: Mon, 02 Mar 1998 11:26:43 -0600
Please be certain that only messages intended for the entire group are
posted to aquaponics@townsqr.com. When sending private messages, be sure
your "To:" line is appropriate.
Thanks
Paula Speraneo
S&S Aqua Farm, 8386 County Road 8820, West Plains, MO 65775 417-256-5124
Web page http://www.townsqr.com/snsaqua/
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