Aquaponics v traditional veggie patch in Canberra?

I started a vegetable patch last year, Soil, raised beds, hanging baskets, plants, stakes, power feed and pea straw cost about $400 and a few weekends in planning. Had to rip out existing tress (which where dead), got rid of about 2Tonnes of little rocks. This year I’ll be building my own bed from Sleepers (not pine) and more hanging baskets and a irrigation system, this with soil i’m expecting about another $400 but I did save abut $400 on tomato’s over the summer and have made enough sauce to get me through til end of the next season (when i’ll make more).

All the best, It is a great feeling growing and eating your own produce!

Contact Fusion Canberra: they’re just down in Tuggeranong and have an extensive aquaponic set up and lots of information and contacts. Details here: http://fusioncanberra.org.au/contact/

Thanks for the advice guys.

The soil I have is pretty crappy and to get the bed up and running properly might cost me a bit. Thats why I was thinking of aquaponics.

All you need to do to get a veggie patch up and running is to dig in some fertiliser. Start digging in your vegetable scraps now, add some manure and it’ll be ready to plant by spring. Plant your plants closer together than recommended, mix them with other – native and/or flowering – plants, mulch with whatever you have lying about and dig in the old plants when they’re finished.

You do need a watering system. Unless you have nothing better to do than to hand water daily and are less forgetful than I am. You can install one for about $50.

“I’ve noticed that building a traditional veggie patch might cost me about the same as a Aquaponics one. I’m not sure which way to go????”

Either aquaponics is really cheap or a shovel, cow dung and some seeds have become really expensive.

I know some people who are into aquaponics in a big way. They are just over the border at Sutton. Their email address is zanil.design@clubtelco..com. They will be happy to talk to you.