Correlation of Root Length of Kohlrabi as a Seedling to Its Growth Within an Aquaponics

System

Correlation of Root Length of Kohlrabi as a Seedling to Its Growth Within an Aquaponics

System
Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic High School
Andrew Allen, Josh Ball, Alex Dudash, Chris McFayden, Tim Roos
Carly Steininger
December 18, 2017

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 Correlation of Root Length of Kohlrabi as a Seedling to Its Growth Within an Aquaponics
System

Introduction
In an aquaponics system, aquaculture is combined with hydroponics to create a mutually

beneficial system in which both fish and plants are grown. Essentially, the plants receive the

fish’s waste as a form of nutrients, and in exchange filter the water for the fish. In the system,

you are taking the negative aspects of one procedure to benefit its counterpart. For example,

aquaculture requires the removal of nutrients in the form of waste for the safety of the fish, but

the plants of hydroponics consume these nutrients, helping both the fish, and the plants. Also,

while being expensive, it is said that an aquaponics system, “uses only 10 percent of the water

that traditional soil-based agriculture uses and can function year-round indoors.” (Ulin, n.d.)

Aquaponics systems work in a relatively simple cycle with few steps. Mechanically, the

aquaponics system pumps the water in which the fish dwell up to the plants. Through this the

fish waste and nutrients are transported to the plants, which sit partially in the water and capture

the waste and nutrients with their roots. By doing this, the plants filter the water so that it may

flow back down to the fish, and begin the cycle again.

Various different types of plants can be grown in an aquaponics system, but the sizes of

the fish containment area and the depth of the grow bed can limit the type of plant which you

use. The grow bed is the medium which holds the plant. “Shallow grow beds work great for

shallow rooted and/or short lived plants such as lettuces and greens, but won’t work for longer

lived, deeply rooted plants such as indeterminate tomatoes, cucumbers, corn, melons, etc.”

(Sawyer, 2010) The complications of growing the larger plants in shallow grow beds include not

just a lack of space, but also, the shallow beds are incapable of producing enough nutrients and

bacteria for sufficient growth. In our project we used the Nutrient Film Technique, where the

plants sit in small containers that line a pipe, which the water flows through. Being a shallow

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 Correlation of Root Length of Kohlrabi as a Seedling to Its Growth Within an Aquaponics
System

grow bed, this limited our plant options, but also came with some benefits. This method is simple

to make, and has, “No concerns for pH changes related to media” (Sawyer J. , n.d.). We selected

kohlrabi to experiment on primarily due to its fast growth. Kohlrabi plants can generally be

harvested just a couple of weeks after they are planted, allowing us to derive results quickly. It is

also important to note that kohlrabi is often listed as a good crop to use in aquaponics systems,

meaning it should be relatively reliable.

In our aquaponics system we utilized Zebra fish because they were easily obtainable.

Despite not being the best option, zebrafish do hold some qualities which are beneficial in an

aquaponics system. Zebrafish are quite small with both a quick reproduction and a rapid growth

rate. Another quality of zebrafish is that they are not very demanding. Caring for zebrafish has

even been said to be “cheaper to maintain than mice” (Avdesh Avdesh, n.d.)These factors allow

more frequent harvests, while reducing the amount of resources required to invest. However,

when looking after zebrafish, “The room temperature or the tank temperature is generally

maintained between 26-28.5 °C”. In Fahrenheit, this would be a temperature between 78.8-83.3°.

This is not ideal when considering conservation. Depending on climate, it can require large

energy consumption to sustain a high enough temperature.

Materials

− Aquaponic Systems

− Zebra Fish

− 6 Kohlrabi seeds

− 6 small 250-500ml pots

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 Correlation of Root Length of Kohlrabi as a Seedling to Its Growth Within an Aquaponics
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− 1000-1500 cm^3 Perlite

− Fish Food

− Distilled Water

Procedure

1. Acquire all materials needed for the project

2. Fill the small pots with perlite about ¾ of the way full

3. Plant seeds ½ inch into the soil

4. Wait until one week after seeds sprout

5. Carefully take seedlings out of soil, wash roots and categorize them by length

6. Place seedlings inside of aquaponics system

7. Mark down growth for all seedlings in centimeters three times in every week for six

weeks (Mon,Wed,Fri)

8. Compare Results according to beginning root length

Variables

Independent Variable - Length of the roots as a seedling

Dependent variable – Plant growth following introduction to aquaponics system

Constants- Water pH and temperature, zebrafish, lighting, size of container for each plant

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 Correlation of Root Length of Kohlrabi as a Seedling to Its Growth Within an Aquaponics
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https://www.yourgenome.org/facts/why-use-the-zebrafish-in-research

https://www.theaquaponicsource.com/blog/grow-bed-depth/

http://www.olin.edu/the-wire/2015/olin-expo-z-aquaponics-zebrafish-and-everything-between/

http://fisheries.tamu.edu/files/2013/10/Aquaponics-Growing-Fish-and-Plants-Together.pdf

https://bonnieplants.com/growing/growing-kohlrabi/

https://aquaponics.com/see/what-we-grow/

https://www.friendlyaquaponics.com/docs/SuperchargedVegetables.pdf