Aquaponic Gardening: Discover the Dual Benefits of Raising Fish and Plants Together (Idiot's Guides) (Complete Idiot's Guide to)

In this book, Meg Stout provides an accessible step-by-step guide for those new to aquaponics. If you are just starting out or mildly interested in the subject, this book will help you understand the how-to basics of aquaculture and the science behind why these techniques work. For example, Stout explains everything you should take into account for each step of the way (lighting, tanks, location, indoor/outdoor, etc.). For a beginner's guide, this book provides the reader with an abundance of options. This guide is also particularly helpful in helping you determine what you should plant and how to plant it, along with the pros and cons of different techniques, plants, tanks, and settings. Unlike other beginner guides, Stout stresses the importance of long-term maintenance, and she explains techniques of how to elicit seeds for the next harvest, safely control different types of pests, use fish waste as fertilizer, and extend growing the season. Stout does not assume that all growers are alike and thus provides a wide variety of options to meet any new grower's needs. For instance, she addresses a variety of untypical situations, such as what growers should do when public electricity and water are unavailable. Below are the chapter topics (I wrote this up before seeing it is available by clicking the cover photo). I hope you find it helpful: Ch. 1. - What Is Your Vision? Ch. 2. - Giving Your Plants the Right Light Ch. 3. - Water: Vital to All Forms of Life Ch. 4. - Fish Tanks, Grow Beds, and Plumbing Ch. 5. - Making Water Move: Pumps and Standpipes Ch. 6. - Growing in Gravel: Using Media Beds Ch. 7. - Flooding and Draining a Media Bed Ch. 8. - Taking Advantage of Vertical Space Ch. 9. - Growing in Water Ch. 10. - Making Fertilizer Out of Fish Waste Ch. 11. - Which Plants Grow Best? Ch. 12. - Starting, Planting, and Propagating Plants Ch. 13. - Fish-Safe Pest Control Ch. 14. - Growing Abundant Amounts of Healthy Produce Ch. 15. - Adding Fish to Your Aquaponic Garden Ch. 16. - Other Useful Animals Ch. 17. - Taking Care of Your Fish Ch. 18. - Extend Your Growing Season with a Greenhous Ch. 19. - Heating and Cooling Your Garden Ch. 20. - Automating Your Garden Ch. 21. - When You Can't Use Public Electricity Ch. 22. - Maintaining Your Garden Ch. 23. - Integrated Aquaponic Systems Ch. 24. - Do-It-Yourself Systems Please note: if you are interested in going into more depth with Acquaculture, I recently received a copy of Freshwater Aquaculture: A Handbook for Small Scale Fish Culture in North America for review. The book is a reprint from the 1990s, so there are parts that are a bit dated if you want to be cutting edge, but it is extremely well illustrated and diagrammed,accessible to those new to aquaculture, and was long the definitive book on the topic.

This is a great resource for anyone interested in getting started in aquaponics, as well as a valuable reference for those who have long been bit by the aquapon bug. Meg Stout has a writing style that makes the information easy to absorb and work from. Her endeavors in aquaponics have focused largely on showing people how they can grow fish and plants together at home without having to spend large amounts of money, and this comes through clearly in her book. Don't let the 'Idiot's Guide' in the title fool you. Meg has done an outstanding job of covering the necessary topics including ready made kits & inexpensive DIY systems, water chemistry, selecting fish & plants, fish-safe pest control, heating/cooling, and proper lighting considerations. -Jesse Hull, Imagine Aquaponics

This is a relatively thorough BASIC guide to Aquaponics but it leaves a lot of questions unanswered. It gives a good explanation of what aquaponics is and why someone would want to participate and good basic explanation of how things work. It then gets rather light on specifics such as all the different options there are for aquaria setups, garden containers, etc. However the greatest shortfall I found was (as I suspect it is intended to be) it is too general in scope. The issues faced by someone in Minnesota are not the same as someone in the southern coast. The choices of fish are very cursory--one of the significant advantages of aquaponics is the available protein provided by harvesting mature fish as well as vegetables. Lots of space spent on goldfish and koi. And the author really does not address large yard systems which are available widely. If you are looking for a primer as to what aquaponics is and why you would even consider learning more, this is an excellent book and a very inexpensive way to learn about an exciting area. If you are looking for a detailed guide to step-by-step lead you through deciding how big a tank and a plant field, what parts to buy, what fish to raise, how to handle problems of all year tanks when temperatures range from 15 to 100 degrees, this is not sufficiently detailed. Although I have not found that book either.

Aquaponics is the hottest topic today in survivalist circles, and this book is the best of the best. I've built several systems from scratch, and previous to this gem, it took three other books plus a video to get all the pieces that are included here. Those steps include: 1. Building the framework system, including possibly indoors (this book is one of the few that extensively covers indoor water and lighting). 2. Cost saving alternatives so the entire system is under $200. 3. Picking the right fish/vegetable combination. 4. Figuring out how to prime and recycle (which most of the books either don't cover or cover too little, which can destroy your system). 5. Longer term maintenance, reseeding and multiple harvests. A lot of the online hype about feeding a family of four full time with a small 10 foot square (even high vertical) system is, well, hype! The combination of hydroponics and fish farming and the claims that this is better than both is NOT hype-- the sybiosis involved does make these types of systems much easier and more efficient. I taught a class in this at a local college, and the campus built several demo systems that are still, 5 years later, producing extensive harvests year round. Most of the online buzz on this is about surviving food shortages, but some also say that you can grow food in these for far less than you can buy it at the supermarket. That is just a plain lie! IF food prices really do go through the roof, or per pack quantities do continue to shrink, this might be borderline true, but to be very honest, these really are a lot of work and do produce $2 tomatoes when you look at all your costs, especially if you go with indoor heating and lighting. On the other hand, you CAN control quality and quantity in ways you can't by shopping! Highly recommend this comprehensive book. A few of the other top picks are: -- Aquaponic Gardening: A Step-By-Step Guide to Raising Vegetables and Fish Together -- Building An Aquaponics System (The Backyard Prepper Series) (Volume 1) -- Aquaponic Food Product - Raising fish and plants for food and profit What about the "kit" systems vs. using your own components? That depends on how close you are to a Home Depot or Lowes! I don't recommend scrounging the yard for materials, but if you're close to a big box store, you can get the components, well detailed in this book, for far less than buying one of the commercial kits. Library Picks reviews only for the benefit of Amazon shoppers and has nothing to do with Amazon, the authors, manufacturers or publishers of the items we review. We always buy the items we review for the sake of objectivity, and although we search for gems, are not shy about trashing an item if it's a waste of time or money for Amazon shoppers. If the reviewer identifies herself, her job or her field, it is only as a point of reference to help you gauge the background and any biases.

Meg Stout is an enthusiastic proponent of aquaponics and a charter member of the Aquaponics Association. She has no ax to grind as far as promoting system types or methods. With a mind wide open to possibilities and an eager approach to various methods,she betrays her background as a scientist. Her primary investment of time and energy is to pursue knowledge and recommend the best of what she has discovered. Meg got me started in aquaponics and as another reviewer states,this is not a way to grow cheap food. It has been a way for me to enjoy tomatoes in December and save water in a desert climate. It is a great area for people interested in DIY as well as those who simply want to purchase a kit and forget about trips to the hardware store. If there are deficiencies in the book they may result from its nature as an Idiots Guide. Meg had to discard a lot of copy that would appeal to more experienced or in depth users. As it stands, it is still far more than I can encompass with my limited resources of time and energy.

I enjoyed the book and found it quite useful. I thought it was a little light on the fish culture part but there are thousands of books on that topic. My interest in aquaponics is to use the plants to improve the water quality of my koi ponds, not so much for food.

Aquaponics is intriguing, but there are so many considerations. This book explains a lot, and gives a number of solutions. I did find that there are better solutions available now because the movement is growing. This book gives a realistic view of the complexities involved. If you are making a decision about whether or not to get into aquaponics, this book is a good reality check. Once you make the decision to go ahead, there are other more scholarly books.

I read this book cover to cover. It reads well and covers a lot of useful material. Some coverage was pretty superficial and a couple descriptions were pretty confusing (like how to make a bell siphon). My only real complaint had to do with the art program--photos and drawings. I disappointed by the paucity of drawings and photos to illustrate key concepts and technologies, especially descriptions on how to make certain components. If the book is revised, I'd suggest the publisher pay special attention to this. When the author describes how to build something, show us a photo or drawing of the product so we have a better idea of what we're trying to build.

this book is for beginners and i use it even today i built my system with this book i still had the freedom to make my way........i wanted to build it with scrap material you don't need to buy expensive items once you get the basics which this book provides

I read this whole book. There are some interesting topics you wouldn't expect like breeding soldier flyes as fish food, but the descriptions are very short. There are a lot of DIY plans in it, but WITHOUT any pictures. Sometimes you do not even know the exact function of the construct you're supposed to build or even what it will look like. I just can't recommand this book.

Arrived and was very good. not really what I wanted but that's okay cus its in my library now.

Good information and easy to read

Great book for begginer!