Posted by & filed under water.

Can you tell me When do you use nets for Aquaculture?

Nets are used all of the time in aquaculture.  Nets for Aquaculture are used in all aspects of capturing, testing, moving fish as well as nets for cages themselves.

Most Fish Farming operations will use non-capturing nets.  The fishing fleet uses entanglement nets or gill nets which have been in the news for decades.But I am talking about the fish farms that grow in tanks, ponds Lakes or even in the ocean with a Net used as a cage.  Smaller nets are used to capture test fish to ensure health and proper nutritional status.

nets for aquaculture

Some of the nets used in Aquaculture are: fish traps, Seines, bucket nets, fyke nets, tunnel nets, dip nets and research nets. Nets are used to raise fish from Koi to Trout, and Tilapia to Salmon.Aquaculture netting solutions are used by fish hatcheries, fish farms, and research institutes across North America and the world.

Badinotti, a fish net manufacturer had this to say about their products and why they are providing nets for Aquaculture:

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In Fish farming, due to ever stricter environmental regulations and the desire for cost reduction, there is a distinct trend towards using bigger, offshore cages. Furthermore, provided living conditions can be kept good, more fish per cage will be farmed. The consequences of these trends are:

Production in rougher conditions;

Higher risk due to the increased value of fish

Fewer possibilities for inspection and maintenance;

In view of these trends, high reliability of the net cages is a prerequisite.

The reliability of the net cages, i.e. the capability  to retain fish avoiding therefore the risk of escape, depends on the following factors:

1. Netting breaking strength;

2. Loss of strength due to wear and tear of net for use;

3. High quality of  assembled products;

The above elements can be hugely affected by raw materials used for nets manufacture as well as the method adopted for construction. wide range of knotless netting in nylon, polyester, polypropylene, and polyethylene for aquaculture application.

information provide by www.badinotti.com/acquaculture%20fish%20farming%20nets.html
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There have been all sorts of nets for aquaculture during the years.  Hand woven traps and nets were used in Australia. Some of the Native American nations would make nets and place them across a creek or river to catch fish.  I have included some information from Wikipedia here,
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The indigenous Gunditjmara people in Victoria, Australia may have raised eels as early as 6000 BC. There is evidence that they developed about 100 square kilometers (39 sq mi) of volcanic floodplains in the vicinity of Lake Condah into a complex of channels and dams, that they used woven traps to capture eels, and that capturing and smoking eels supported them year round.

Aquaculture was operating in China circa 2500 BC.[9] When the waters subsided after river floods, some fishes, mainly carp, were trapped in lakes. Early aquaculturists fed their brood using nymphs and silkworm feces, and ate them. A fortunate genetic mutation of carp led to the emergence of goldfish during the Tang Dynasty.

Japanese cultivated seaweed by providing bamboo poles and, later, nets and oyster shells to serve as anchoring surfaces for spores.

Romans bred fish in ponds.

In central Europe, early Christian monasteries adopted Roman aquacultural practices.[11] Aquaculture spread in Europe during the Middle Ages, since away from the seacoasts and the big rivers, fish were scarce/expensive. Improvements in transportation during the 19th century made fish easily available and inexpensive, even in inland areas, making aquaculture less popular.

Hawaiians constructed oceanic fish ponds (see Hawaiian aquaculture). A remarkable example is a fish pond dating from at least 1,000 years ago, at Alekoko. Legend says that it was constructed by the mythical Menehune dwarf people.

In 1859 Stephen Ainsworth of West Bloomfield, New York, began experiments with brook trout. By 1864 Seth Green had established a commercial fish hatching operation at Caledonia Springs, near Rochester, New York.

By 1866, with the involvement of Dr. W. W. Fletcher of Concord, Massachusetts, artificial fish hatcheries were under way in both Canada and the United States. When the Dildo Island fish hatchery opened in Newfoundland in 1889, it was the largest and most advanced in the world.

source http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquaculture
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As you can see, there is a lot of variables to consider when deciding on nets for aquaculture.

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Turning Your Dreams into the Life of Your Dreams

Chris Downs, the Caretaker

Founder hisfarm.org and Ambassador of Natural News and Sustainable Living on How to Live on Purpose.com

Posted by & filed under Organic Gardening.

When Do I Use Grow Lights for Indoor Plants?  I am just starting my Aquaculture system, and am using both aquaponics and hydroponics together.  I want to grow the plants in a hydroponic environment inside close to the aquaponic system that I am building.  However,  the place that I have available will not get a full 8 hours of sunlight.  Also, we want to start producing in stages to provide for a constant harvest of produce.

With that in mind, these are the items that could be a concern, as we experimented with hydroponics growing indoors in the early 1980’s.

  • What is the life cycle of the plants you are growing?
  • What is the UV absorption and rest periods needed during all phases of growth?
  • What temperatures do the plants need to flourish?
  • How do we conserve electricity with the lights?
  • Are there solar and battery powered lighting systems available?

Alternating light and dark conditions are extremely important to indoor growing.  With Aquaponics, the nutrients needed can be more readily available to the growth cycle in a hydroponic growth environment.  Regular light is important to the growth and development of any plant, but so is the rest or dark cycle of the light equation. Most plants need light cycles that correspond to certain grow cycles inherent to the plant itself.  The night shade family of plants tend to store up light during the day, and tend to grow more in the dark cycle.

When Do I Use Grow Lights for Indoor Plants?

Some plants can withstand 24-hour light while seedlings and during vegetative growth cycles, but  most plants require shorter light times while flowering, producing fruit and ripening.  Plants need light to photosynthesize, but darkness is just as important to give a plant time to convert photosynthesized nutrients into plant growth.  Remember to research what plants you want to grow, and what their specific light cycle is for them during different stages of growth.

 

Temperature also plays an important part of the growth cycle. 

There is a natural flow of temperature changes during the day and night cycle of plants.  The Circadian Clocks, which is a name for a natural phenomenon,  provide organisms with a means of temporally organizing their daily metabolic and physiological activities relative to the day/night cycle.  You need to remember that some plants and fruits will not even produce their best until after a frost.

All of these things come together in Aquaculture as well as hydroponics or any production of plants that you are looking to produce the healthiest most nutrient rich product for yourself and your customer.  During the breeding cycle of  horses, we would bring the mare into the barn at night, and change the length of light to help with the horses breeding cycle.  Even the birthing of their foals can be adjusted with the proper lighting in the birthing cycle also.

Now How about the important thing that we always work to get less of?  That is right, electric bills for when you use your grow lights for indoor plants!  As we discussed earlier, there are different cycles of light and dark as well as temperatures for your plants.  Wow,  Lots of stuff, but that is the fun part of creating your own mini-ecosystem!  You control it all!  So lets talk about controlling your cost of your grow lights power consumption.

LED Grow Lights For Indoor Plants Cost Comparison to HID Lighting

To save you time, and allow you to do some research on your own also,  I am giving you this link and sharing the information from LED Grow Master Global.

I have never used LED grow lights, but I do see an experiment in the making!
Grow lights for indoor plants are always in the research and development stage, even as new products are being produced.  It is a life cycle for businesses that care for their customers.

Look at these state on the comparison of different items.

Heat Management

LED Grow Master lighting puts off only trace amounts of heat.  High pressure sodium lighting creates a great deal of waste heat that must be ventilated in warm weather when the price of electricity is at its peak.

Disposal Costs HPS and fluorescent lighting are considered hazardous waste and require special disposal that includes disposal fees.  LED Grow Master lighting contains no lead, mercury, or glass parts.  This not only saves money in disposal fees but also makes them a safer lighting option for gardeners and the environment.

Water Use

Plants will use far less water under a non-radiant light source.

Nutrient Use

We recommend cutting nutrient use in half when gardening under LEDs. Again, I shared that I have not grown with these lights yet, but I do love the reduced electric bills!

Question is this though:  Can You use them in your Aquaculture , hydroponic or indoor growing system?  That is for you to decide.  Oh yes, one more answer on electricity.  You CAN have a solar,water,  wind or combination of power generation to supply all of your needs.   I know that I am going to tell you your favorite words, it depends upon your resources, both monetarily, creatively and environmentally.

 

I will share more about power in a future post for you.

As all of life is a cycle, I would like for you to consider investing in your knowledge base.  By going to this link here and learn about the 4Brothers and how when we are aware of these cycles in our lives, we prosper in all areas of our life.

 

Turning Your Dreams into the Life of Your Dreams

Chris Downs, the Caretaker

Founder hisfarm.org and Ambassador of Natural News and Sustainable Living on How to Live on Purpose.com

Posted by & filed under Organic Gardening.

Are you tired of the rat race and you wonder how can I get started with small scale farming?

More and more people are looking to get away from their high pressure jobs, and they fantasize about living the life of small scale farming.  They can experience the joy of waking up in the morning, sitting down at a kitchen table and having a cup of coffee with breakfast while they look out upon their farm and garden.

The day starts, they enjoy the fresh air as they tend to their crops which grow almost by themselves as they enjoy the exercise and lifestyle of a small scale farmer.

How Can I Get  Started With Small Scale Farming?

  • Have you dreamed the same dream?
  • Are you ready to move to the farming lifestyle?

If you are, Do you know everything that you need to know to turn your dream of small scale farming into the life of your dreams?

  • Where do you want your farm to be located?
  • What will it cost for the land?
  • What kind of home do you dream of?
  • Do you have the experience you need to be successful?
  • What does it take to be USDA Organically Certified?
  • What are the options to still be an organic farm and not be USDA Certified?
  • Do you know someone that has the expertise or the time to coach you ?
  • Do you have a plan of action and the help you need?

As you can see, there are many aspects of small scale farming for you to consider.  Keep your dream alive.  Find answers for all of these questions, go for drives in the area that you would like to live and discover what others are doing to build successful, sustainable small scale farms.

Here is a list of questions that you may consider discovering about yourself before decide what you would like build for yourself.

  1. Do you want to have an urban farm? Yes, you can live in a city and successfully create sustainable small scale farming.
  2. Do you want to start from scratch or purchase a farm from someone who is looking to retire?
  3. Can you find a mentor to help you?  Yes, either online or offline there is coaching available.  We are in the process of finalizing our online membership site to help you build your dream.
  4. Are there any resources to help me if I want to build an Urban farm?  Lots of them, and we will share some of those with you in future posts.
  5. How about financing?  There are some available, even grants for some of your expenses, but the answer is like asking for medical advice without talking or seeing a doctor.  Sorry, for you, you need more help, but we can point you in the right direction.
  6. How do I know which way to go, how much do I have to research before starting the journey to my dream life?  The answer is in you, one of the joys of the sustainable lifestyle of farming/gardening or raising fish, is learning to be fluid and your willingness to learn

 

My recommendation is for you to actively search and learn what lifestyle is truly going to become your dream life.  Get a mentor, join an online community, go to a few webinars.  But one of the best things you can do, is to be active in taking the action needed to become the person that can live the lifestyle that you want to live.

I have lived and worked on farms and ranches.  If you can, sign up for an apprenticeship.  Nothing works better to learn then to help someone else with their dream.  But do not lose site of yours.

Join us here to learn more and find answers to your questions.  Start your journey to Your Dream life Now!

 

Turning Your Dreams into the Life of Your Dreams

Chris Downs, the Caretaker

Founder hisfarm.org and Ambassador of Natural News and Sustainable Living on How to Live on Purpose.com

Posted by & filed under Organic Gardening.

Growing an Aloe Vera plant can be really easy or hard depending on your environment. In this article you will learn the basic things that you need to know to grow an Aloe Vera Plant.

I live in southern California and Aloe Vera plants spring up from the ground with ease. We have them in pots and in the ground outside of our house. Currently they have these pretty yellow flowers on them. These flowers also attract birds with the same colors as the flowers.

how to grow an aloe vera plant

 

So if you want to grow an Aloe Vera Plant you need to do the following things.

  1.  If you live in a cold environment then most likely will have to keep your aloe vera plant indoors as they are a desert plant. Southern California is a desert so they grow great here. While growing tomatoes here is a bit tougher.
  2.  If you’re going to use a pot they choose a pot that is more than four times the times of the root ball. Also you will want to make sure that pot has proper drainage. An aloe vera plants won’t grow well in sour soil.
  3. Be careful with the water that you put on your plant. An Aloe Vera Plant will rot if you put too much water on it. In our backyard we water them once a month in the winter time and usually about once a week in the summer time. The deciding factor is the leaves start to turn brown, when they do we water the plants.
  4. As far as sunlight we keep our plants in direct sunlight, while some recommend indirect sunlight for an Aloe Vera Plant we keep ours in direct sunlight. As you can see from the picture they are growing great.

 

As you might have noticed they are a lot of Aloe Vera Products on the market. So if you grow enough of them it is possible that you could make a good deal of money selling them. We at hisfarm.org are in the business of helping small farms become more profitable and in that spirit I would like to offer you our free e-book “4 Ways To Increase Your Organic Farming Profits To Pay For Dream Home” so your can build your dream home from the profits that you will make from your farm.

 

David Jeters

Hisfarm.org
Google
 

Posted by & filed under Permaculture.

What is the best way to grow soilless, Hydroponics or Aquaculture?

For a basic overview of both hydroponics and aquaponics, I was told I go into too much detail and can bore some people with all of the

Hydroponics or Aquaculture, which one to choose?
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The term hydroponic is an overarching term that refers to a wide variety of soilless gardening systems; hydroponic systems use other mediums to support the roots of plants and supply them with nutrients. Aquaponic systems are a type of hydroponic system that rely on water-based systems to get nutrients to the plants.

Hydroponic Systems

There are a wide variety of soilless gardening systems, from aquaponics to aggregate systems that use rocks, sand, wood chips or some other supporting system to grow plants. Hydroponic systems rely on nutrient mixes to transport nutrients to the roots of the plants, and systems of flushing the aggregate with a nutrient mixture are used. The various types of hydroponic systems are modified and changed to support different types of plant growth and accommodate different growing locations.

Aquaponics

Aquaponics are a branch of hydroponic growing that rely heavily on placing the roots of plants directly in water to supply them with nutrients. Nutrient mixtures are added to the water that is circulated over the roots, which ensures the plants have faster access to the nutrients they need to grow. Some aquaponic systems include aeroponics, in which plant roots are suspended in a nutrient-enriched mist, and gravity-based systems, in which nutrient-rich water flows through angled troughs.

Effluent Systems

Some aquaponic systems approach hydroponic growing through a cooperative system, by pairing plants grown in water that also supports a fish population. For example, the University of Arizona website describes a system in which hydroponic plants receive nutrients from fish effluent, in a practice referred to as aquaculture. Aquaculture mimics the natural system of plants and animals and creates a symbiotic system that keeps fish and plants productive. The effluent provides the plants with nutrients, which also removes nitrates from the water, which keeps the fish healthy.

Provided by Ehow at http://www.essortment.com/aquaponic-vs-hydroponic-107530.html

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To Give you  an idea of what type of training is available.  I will include some information about Cabrillo Community College Horticulture studies.  This is just one possibility for some college credit if you are just starting out in hydroponics.

 

There is also a Aquaponics course and they do have online classes also.  They are located at in Aptos California and you can go online or check them out.  They have some pretty creative ways to grow different plants, and I ever heard that one of their innovative hydroponic greenhouses produces aroung 300 pounds of tomatoes per week!!

 

For over thirty years the Horticulture Program has served both career students and home gardeners.

The do  offer a diverse range of programs,  including

  • Arboriculture
  • Basic Horticulture
  • Business Aspects of Horticulture
  • Crop Management & Nursery Production
  • Edible Landscaping
  • Greenhouse Operation and Design
  • Irrigation
  • Sustainable Landscaping
  • Landscape Design
  • Landscape Restoration
  • Native Plants
  • Organic Agriculture
  • Hydroponic
  • Pest Management
  • Plant Material
  • Permaculture

I have looked at their website, it is somewhat informative of all of the things they do, but if you are in the area, I highly recommend going and visiting at the least.  You can get some great ideas for what you want to do to increase your output and possibly add new techniques that will make your life easier!

 

My opinion, is that Aquaponics is the best way to grow soilless crops.  The reason I say that, is because of the lower costs of purchasing special nutrients.  The Aquaponics system will be more expensive to start, but after automating the majority of the work, it will cost less in the long run in manhours.  Aquaponics also has the advantage of having a second added crop:  Fish!

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Turning Your Dreams into the Life of Your Dreams

Chris Downs, the Caretaker

Founder hisfarm.org and Ambassador of Natural News and Sustainable Living on How to Live on Purpose.com

Posted by & filed under water.

In the Colorado Fires, what went right? Quite a bit actually! Here is what I know.

I live in Monument Colorado and I have had to leave the area a few times due to smoke levels being so intense from the Colorado Fires. I could not breath in the smoke as I am healing from severe congestive heart failure.

I have been working on the garden, as long as the smoke is not excessive. We were also able to get some food to the local food bank as there is over 30,000 people evacuated from their homes. We are in a pre-evacuation area, as the fire is heading toward our area.

Colorado Wildfires

 

Reuters reported the following: writing by Steve Gorman and Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Eric Walsh)

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Firefighters struggled on Wednesday to beat back a wildfire raging at the edge of Colorado Springs that doubled in size overnight, forced more than 32,000 people from their homes and was nipping at the edges of the U.S. Air Force Academy.

The blaze, fanned by hot winds, has charred a number of homes on the wooded edges of the city and was prompting fresh evacuations on Wednesday. President Barack Obama plans to travel to the area on Friday to view the damage. But in the chaos of the fire’s advance, officials could not say exactly how many homes were lost or how many more people might join the ranks of the displaced. Colorado Springs Fire Chief Rich Brown called the firestorm threatening his city – in a metropolitan area of more than 650,000 people – “a monster” and said at this point flames were “not even remotely close to being contained.”

The fire, which has charred 15,517 acres in the shadow of the famed Pikes Peak mountaintop, was not as intense early on Wednesday as the day before, but would likely build up again as the temperature rises during the day, fire information officer Rob Deyerberg said.

The number of evacuees stood at 32,000 on Tuesday night, before some residents in Woodland Park, population 7,600, and surrounding areas were also told to leave their homes, Deyerberg said. He could not provide a total number of evacuees.

“The evacuation area is expanding as a precaution,” he said.

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President Obama is coming to survey the damage that was caused by Colorado fires according to the news also. I usually do not watch much news, but with all that is at stake with the fire, we have had to keep track of the fire and the evacuation processes. I have helped a few of my friends move their equipment out of the pre-evacuation area, a long way away. So the heavy equipment and animals are moved and safe in their temporary home.

What went right with the Colorado Fires?

  • The City, State and Forest Service worked together as a Team, along with military personnel also.
  • The City of Colorado Springs had been working on fire mitigation due to the fire danger in the city and areas that needed the help
  • All of the services worked together to get the correct information out to the public
  • The news crews were respectful and took turns asking questions instead of the mob like scenes in other news conferences that I had watched in Washington DC or other larger cities.
  • The local citizens helped each other out, prayed together and did what ever they could to ensure everyone had shelter, food and most importantly emotional support.
  • The utilities company had gas and electric off to the evacuated areas to protect the firefighters as well as surrounding homes and businesses.
  • The firefighters were supported, prayed for and lifted up as they continue to be lifted up during this entire operation
  • The number one reason things are going well, Cooperation and Love for one another.

When adversity comes your way, May you also be blessed with friends, neighbors and a community that shows love for one another, as well as being the Caretaker of those around them.

For updates click here

Turning Your Dreams into the Life of Your Dreams

Chris Downs, the Caretaker

Founder hisfarm.org and Ambassador of Natural News and Sustainable Living on How to Live on Purpose.com