Can you imagine how wonderful it would be if you can have your garden and an aquarium all in one? The AquaSprouts Garden offers the perfect symbiotic relationship where both plants and animals can live side by side.
Having the opportunity to experience nature in your living room is both fun and educational opportunity for you and your family. Here, a regular aquarium is converted into a functional miniature ecosystem.
In this AquaSprouts Garden review, we will highlight a few of its amazing features, and discuss the potentials and drawbacks of this product.
Things to Consider Before Buying
The way this machinery works is pretty straightforward; however, there are a few key points that one needs to be mindful of before proceeding with the garden.
· Size of the Tank
The kit is well-suited for any regular aquarium that has the capacity for ten gallons of water. However, if you choose an aquarium that is much smaller in size, and then this can cause two different issues.
· Smaller grow bed
Since the grow bed is mounted directly above the aquarium, the length and width of the grow bed is equal to the dimensions of the tank.
With a limited and small size, you will have few options to select the type of plants that you can grow, and at the same time, the roots of the plants don’t get enough room to spread out in the clay medium.
· Roaming area for the fishes
Smaller dimensions of the tank also reduce your choices in the type and the number of fishes that you introduce into it.
Typically, a fish requires a gallon of water to swim around; however, to keep the fishes healthy, they need more room and versatility to roam around.
· Type of Plants
Plants with deeper roots absorb more nutrients. This aspect, along with the bio-filtration system, helps clean the tank water quicker.
However, with this system, plants that are sprouting from seeds or are seedlings may not thrive. So, you can first grow them in soil plugs, and later when having grown enough, plant them in the garden.
· Insect Control
Whitefly, thrips, and spider mites are the common enemies of household plants. These types of insects tend to feed upon the leaves of plants.
But you would have to be careful about the nature of pest control that you use to keep these insects from ruining your garden. Some of the pesticides that are available at stores can be harmful to the aquarium fishes.
That’s why it is essential to research about a pesticide before purchasing it. The bacterial ones are comparatively preferable.
Presenting The AquaSprouts Garden
The AquaSprouts Garden is a modern and unique way of combining aquaculture and hydroponics.
Aquaculture is the practice of cultivating or breeding fishes or crustaceans like prawns, snails, etc. In hydroponics, you can grow plants in water solvent beds. In this method, you don’t need soil to nourish the plants.
It is a very self-sufficient ecosystem. The mechanism behind this system is straightforward. The aquarium is at the base and is connected to the grow bed on top via a pump.
The waste products from the fishes in the aquarium fertilize the plants in the grow bed. Furthermore, the grow bed is a mixture of clay pebbles and tank water, and the water is then re-circulated back into the tank.
For those who want an aquarium and a mini-garden, this is the perfect solution. It can meet both your needs with the price of one!
Pros:
- Minimal waste
- Less cleaning of the tank
- Visually appealing
- Is a self-sufficient ecosystem
Cons:
- Limited fishes can be kept in the aquarium
- Plants with deeper roots need more space in the grow-bed to survive
AquaSprouts Garden Review: Features and Benefits
· Grow Bed
The grow bed is designed in such a manner that you can easily install it on top of the aquarium. Here, you can grow different types of plants ranging from fruits, vegetables, and even herbs.
The product comes with adjustable risers so you can customize the level or the depth of the grow bed. The height of the risers needs to be set according to the type of plants you are planning to grow.
· Light Bar
Plants require sunlight for photosynthesis; however, it is not always possible to find an ideal spot to set up the tank where it can get ample natural light.
So, if you are setting the garden in your living room or any other area where there isn’t sufficient natural light, you can install the hanging light bar on top of the garden.
The light bar can be easily mounted on top of the tank using the light bar legs and hooks that are available with the package. You can also customize the height of the light bar according to the height of your plants.
· Timer and Pump
The pump serves the purpose of pumping the water upwards to the garden where the excreta from the fishes break down into pure nitrates. The nitrates then fertilize the plants; so, you don’t need any extra fertilizer for your garden.
In addition to this, it also purifies the water, which circulates back into the tank. The pump is connected to the timer, which regulates the flow of water. The standard cycle lasts for 15 minutes. Therefore, you don’t have to clean the tank as frequently compared to a regular aquarium.
· Clay Pebbles
The clay pebbles act as a medium for the plants to get nourishment. Before setting up the grow bed, the clay pebbles need to be soaked beforehand.
The toxic-free ammonia, which tends to accumulate in the aquarium, can be harmful to the fishes and be the cause of their death when its level exceeds.
This mineral is broken down by two different types of bacterial species – Nitrosospiras and Nitrosomonas. Both these bacteria help in deconstructing ammonia into nitrates.
Nitrosomonas break down free ammonia into nitrites, which are further broken down into nitrates by Nitrosospiras. This two-fold process of oxidation is called the nitrification process.
AquaSprouts Garden Setup
Final Words
The aquaponics garden is a great way to grow plants and cultivate fishes using modern techniques.
Unlike a conventional garden or an aquarium, which demands more labor, here, most of the work is done for you- such as fertilizing and watering the plants regularly, cleaning the tank, and changing the water frequently.
This is why it can be an incredible addition to your home decoration.
We hope the AquaSprouts Garden review was instructive. An amalgamation of land and ocean, you can’t go wrong with this purchase, it’s a win-win!
