Potted Plants in Aquaponics

Most planting in aquaponics is in rafts, channels or media beds that are directly connected to the system, but you can also grow plants by putting them in pots that are not connected to the aquaponic system.

Using potted plants in aquaponics is extremely simple. You just plant anything like you would normally, except instead of soil, use expanded clay pebbles or other grow media. Giving water from the fish tanks gives the plants extra nutrients and helps them grow better.

Some of the things grown in the Nelson & Pade greenhouses using this method include coconut palms, citrus trees like limes and oranges, dinosaur kale, various herbs, aloe vera, and banana trees. In the photo on the right, a banana tree is growing in a pot. This method is a good way to grow things that you might not be able to grow in a raft because they need root support or are too big. 

Because of the diversity of the types of plants you can grow like this and how easy it is to do, I recommend using this method to try to grow some stuff you can’t grow using a normal aquaponics set up.

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