[Pil-pc-oceania] Hydroponics

[pacific-edge]

Hi Graeme...
Just got back from Queensland and found your email.

You are right that hydropononics has been criticised in Permaculture circles
on account of the artificiality of the culture of plants within it and on
account of the greater energy expenditure involved. The question used to
come up for discussion in courses. This was some time ago. I do not know
whether that critique is so strongly held today.

If it is less-strongly held, that could be related to the interest in the
potential of hydroponics in urban agriculture, to cities feeding themselves.
As you may know, hydroponics may have application as a form of rooftop
garden agriculture. Soil-based growing might not suit rooftop cultivation
where the building structure is unsuitable due to the weight of moist
growing medium and equipment. In rooftop hydroponics, the pumping energy
needed to circulate the plant nutrients in solution may be derived from
photovoltaic electrical energy and in cold climates the hydroponic farm may
be enclosed in a greenhouse. Furthermore, a method of organic hydroponic
cultivation has been developed, though I no longer have the reference to
that.

Of interest might be the early work of the Todds. They experimented in
integrated water cleansing, fish and food growing in their Ark building in
the US. This was done in an enclosed greenhouse-type structure, though this
was an accommodation to the cold climate. It was an exercise in the
downstream utilisation of the wastes of preceding processes.

...Russ



From: pil-pc-oceania-bounces at lists.permacultureinternational.org
[mailto:pil-pc-oceania-bounces at lists.permacultureinternational.org] On
Behalf Of Graeme George - Earthcare Permaculture
Sent: Saturday, 6 January 2007 4:55 PM
To: pil-pc-oceania at lists.permacultureinternational.org
Subject: Re: [Pil-pc-oceania] Aeroponics
 
Penny & Tom

I'm curious to know where you see hydroponic, aquaponic and aeroponic
systems fitting in with Permaculture. I've always viewed Permaculture
systems of growing food as being totally natural and hydroponic systems as
being totally artificial, though I know many people curiously confuse the
two. I have presumed until Penny's latest posting that aquaponics and
aeroponics sat somewhere between these totally opposed systems, but the
additional step of spraying solution onto bare roots would require
additional energy expenditure and therefore make them even less sustainable.
I don't see how these modified hydroponic systems can be seen as a part of a
Permaculture solution.

Regards

Graeme

Graeme George
Earthcare Permaculture
35 Deering Ave, Healesville, Vic, 3777
(03) 5962 5070




Tom Duncan wrote: 
Hi Penny,
Joel of Backyard Aquaponics has put together a system and a book that would
be helpful for you.
Aeroponics compared to Aquaponics is not so straightforward I believe.
 
I consult in this area and can design and construct a system if your
interested, but if you get Joel's book with DVD you can pretty much build
your own.
 
Best Regards,
Tom
 
Manager
Ecoplan
http://www.ecoplan.net.au
tom at ecoplan.net.au
 
Global Aquaponics
http://www.aquaponicsglobal.com
 
  
>  
> Date: Wed, 3 Jan 2007 12:32:30 +1100
> From: "P Ferguson" <pennyfer at bigpond.net.au> <mailto:pennyfer at bigpond.net.au>
> Subject: [Pil-pc-oceania] AEROPONICS
> To: <pil-pc-oceania at lists.permacultureinternational.org>
> <mailto:pil-pc-oceania at lists.permacultureinternational.org>
>  
> In a 1991 copy of Aust Horticulture was an article titled AEROPONICS - a
> growing role in future production systems
> about Jeff Fivash's Aeroball Gro-nab system.  However, neither he nor his
> business name Gro-nab Biotechnical come up either as a website nor in
> Telstra's white pages.
>  
> So what did happen to the Aeroponic Gro-nab Ball?
>  
> I was interested as I have been looking for a small simple hydroponic
> system for a corner of my backyard.
>  
> P Ferguson
> Illawarra NSW 
>     
 
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