Aquaponics

Hydroponic growing, or growing plants without soil, is a well-known method of raising plants like tomatoes and orchids. Less well-known is a similar system, called aquaponics, that integrates the raising of fish for food into the hydroponic system.Most people have heard of hydroponics, even if they don?t know exactly what it is. In short, hydroponic agriculture is a way to grow plants without planting them in traditional soil-based configurations. Hydroponic systems are often used indoors to grow tomatoes, orchids, marijuana, and other sensitive plants. Other plants, including vegetables and herbs, can be grown hydroponically, though it?s less common. Basically, hydroponic agriculture involves the setup of an indoor system, which can range from very simple to very complex. At its most uncomplicated, a hydroponic system consists of a fluorescent light designed to help plants grow, and a water system that circulates through the plant roots. More complicated systems include methods of aerating roots, suspending plants, distributing nutrients, and so on.

Now, with that basic level of knowledge about hydroponics, you?re ready to learn a little about a new, relatively little-known type of agriculture known as aquaponics. As the name suggests, aquaponics bears certain important similarities to hydroponics. You may have noticed that the roots "aqua" and "hydro" both refer to water, indicating how crucial water is to both systems. The difference is this: while hydroponic systems focus on plants and how best to grow them indoors, aquaponic systems incorporate not only growing indoors but also raising fish indoors. Read more on how to build aquaponics at home in this Buzzle article.

The essential idea behind aquaponics is that freshwater fish like tilapia, in addition to being used for food, can be integrated into a mini-ecosystem with hydroponically grown plants. In their natural habitats, plants interact with all other organisms and elements in their ecosystems, forming a sort of "circle of life" in which all the elements of the system interact. For example, tomato plants grown outdoors interact with other plants in the area, various types of bugs, larger animals (who might eat the fruit), and microorganisms that help or hinder their growing. But, this is just the beginning. The plants need nutrients, which they get from the soil. The soil, in turn, can get nutrients from dead plants, animal waste, or any number of other sources. Moving part of this system indoors in the goal of hydroponics, and aquaponics expands on that idea.

In a typical hydroponic system, growers add nutrients to the water, to soil, or to another growing medium to help the plants grow to their fullest potential. These nutrients can come from a wide range of sources, but man-made nutrient solutions that come in bottles are very common. The ingredients of these nutrient solutions vary widely, from organic plant material to animal based concoctions, chemicals, and everything in between. Aquaponic growers try not to use these man-made solutions, preferring to create a holistic system where fish provide the nutrients for the plants in the system.

Fish are a good source of plant nutrition for a number of reasons. Animal waste can be high in chemicals that plants need, such as nitrogen and potassium. Bacteria can break down nutrients in the water, making them usable for plants. As fish inhabit freshwater tanks, the nutrition content of the water in the tanks changes, becoming less sterile and more beneficial to plants. (This, it goes without saying, is why plants grow so well in fresh, unpolluted water in their natural environments.) The water from the fish tanks can be cycled to water plants. Plants, in turn, have their own effect on the quality of the water, acting as a natural water filtering system, along with the growing medium and the bacteria. The water, newly cleaned by thirsty plants, can be added back to the fish tanks, promoting the health of the fish.

Of course, aquaponic systems aren?t perfect: the fish still need to be fed, and the fish food typically must come from an outside source. Because aquaponics is such a new science, there is little agreement about what, exactly, is the best way to feed the fish in the system. What is clear, though, is that this type of indoor agriculture has great potential. Natural principles are being used to raise fish and grow healthy food crops, and indoor growing technology allows aquaponics to work in densely populated urban areas or harsh landscapes where raising edible fish and growing vegetables would otherwise be impossible. As a method of creating local, sustainable, organic, and healthy food that doesn?t have to be transported long distances and doesn?t require harsh industrial chemicals or processes, aquaponics has great potential.

By Buzzle Staff and Agencies
Published: 4/1/2011Use the form below to email this article to your friends.

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How to Get Organized

Being a well-organized person can affect every area of your life and make day-to-day living easier and more fun.

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Organize My House - Organize My Life

Many people look around and feel by the amount of " overwhelmed; " stuff ; in their lives. They feel like they can not get ahead because this "stuff" keeps holding them back. They want to do something, but I'm not sure where to start. Some might only need a hint or two to spark them into action, so this article is designed with those people in mind. My goal is to help you organize a house, and this, start small.

Feeling overrun by clutter only adds to negative emotions. The more negativity you feel less likely to act. The biggest step in reducing this stress is beginning to act on it. But you look around, see everything piling up and not know where to start.

You know that you need to get an organized home, but sometimes you think it is too much to handle.

Did I mention that you need to start small?

That is important on many levels. Before going into the importance of starting small, select an area you want to organize. Make sure it is small enough that you can handle it in a few hours. Maybe cleaning your desk. Or uncovering the recliner in your living room that suspiciously looks like a dumping ground for coats and junk mail.

Choose something that you know, you can see the end of the project. Avoid areas like "the kitchen" or "my child's bedroom. " and you get to these areas soon enough, but it could take days to complete a large area, the more they are always in use.

Now with that said, organizing your kitchen can be fun!

A smaller area can be cleaned and the result can be immediate. First, completing a small project will psychologically propel you forward. Time will tell whether the problem is not overwhelming. You will know that you can take measures to regain the control in your life you feel has been buried under the mess.

Second, to address other areas in the house, you must use "staging" areas where you can temporarily transfer tag as you sort through all your items. Starting small allows you to have this space, thus encourage you to move forward to the next area and then the next area. At this point, what you want to do with area of your choice.

The basic idea is to return everything to it's proper storage area.

If you are cleaning your desk, file everything away and make sure you have workspace available. You have the desk as if it were looking like it belong in a catalog of furniture. Anything that is not supposed to be on the desk, move it to the area of your home where it is supposed to be.

Move "everything that doesn't belong" from your desk and make sure items that should be are arranged neatly.

If you are cleaning that "catch-all" chair, make sure you can sit in it and relax once you are done. Hang your coat in the closet or on a coat tree. Throw away your junk mail and relocate any other items to their proper locations in your house.

At the end of the day when every room and area of your house is free from clutter and will serve as an example of the kind of clarity you can have in your life.

Yes, you can get an organized home and life, you just need to start small.

Develop a Plan to Get Your Life Organized

Did you know that with your life being organized.You will find life a lot happier and more productive. If you are interested in getting organized, and you should be, you will have to get the mindset down pat. After all, being organized is the first step to an organized life.

Simply, you have to develop a plan, and then you have to set goals which will guide you through the organizational process. This is a necessary step to organize and by doing this, you will greatly decrease the time it takes for you to get everything around you organized. Always be prepared before something serious, and always organize your house and life.

First, develop a plan for your organizational adventure. Determine where you want to start organizing and where you want to end up. Think about the room that will be the easiest to organize, and set that as the room you will start organizing the garage. Then select the room that the most difficult to organize and set it as last. If you start on the easier rooms, it will give you a lot of practice and sense of accomplishment before you start on the hardest room.

This can flight plan.

You need to understand the specific objectives and clearly defined in writing. Very likely, you will find it most successful to set long and short term goals. For example, would your long-term goal will always be organized at home in a year.

Your short term goal could be getting one room in order within a month. Do you have your goals in order of importance. Write them on paper and post them in a place you can see everyday. Knowing a target in your head is simply not enough, it needs to be in a place where you can view it often and constantly motivate you to achieve your goals.

Finally, it is necessary to determine why you do something. It's not enough to simply want to get organized-you need to know why you have this desire. Without wanting to do with all your heart, it is nearly impossible to achieve.

While the above tips may seem simple, it is incredible how many people set out to achieve a target without knowing what they want to get done. The force even more powerful and easier to your goals is to know where you are going to achieve and why you go in this direction. Follow these tips, and you will organize your life faster than you ever thought possible.

Help is Just a click away Get Your Life Organized Today

Clear the Clutter and Get Your Life Organized

Have you ever felt that more time in the day need?

Have you ever been the day was out of control?

You wish you could be more organized in life?

Your house is a mess. Your car is like a garbage disposal. Your office looks like a tornado hit. You have papers and magazines all over your office. There are some dated back from 2008.

Why are some people so organized in their life and other people struggle with being organized in their life?

What do they do differently?

Well, you think the difference between organized and unorganized people? Or maybe they had great role models. They must be perfect. Well, it is no surprise. It is actually a skill that can be learned by anyone.

Yes that's right by anyone. If you choose to step up and learn the skill. In fact, it is also easy to learn skills, taking one little step at a time.


Here are two easy steps to get yourself organized:

1. A step back and take a look at yourself. First go around your house in each room.

What do you see?

Ask yourself: "What kind of person lives here?"

Then you can drive your car?.

Ask yourself, "What kind of person drives this car?"

Then go to your office.

Ask yourself: "Would I take that person for a job or task?"

Your answers surprise you?.

Please be honest with yourself. To evaluate yourself, you can see which part of your life must be cleaned up.


2.Stop excuses. Many people work in a messy work environment. These people who say they are "I work best in a casino", or "I know where everything is."

I am sure you don't know anyone like that.

You can work 1 to 3 hours per day from a clean desk. I challenge you to work from a clean desk for two days. See what your results are after two days. It might amaze you.

Your life is disorganized?

Do not look at the day and have no time?

Your life is out of control?

These two simple steps means being honest with yourself and remember no excuses.

Yes, It will be a challenge.

Yes, It could be a burden. However, in the end, the results will simply amaze you.

Help is Just a click away Get Life Organized today.