potassium thru bannana or multivitamin adding

[fishing1234]

to increase potassium in system could it be done by feeding high potassium food like banana to your fish. also has anyone thought of adding a multi vitam like centrum to add trace elements. ie calcium potassium etc... any thoughts on this anyone

[RupertofOZ]

to increase potassium in system could it be done by feeding high potassium food like banana to your fish.

Yes bananas are high in Potassium... and are used by many to provide a Potassium boost when needed...

Don't feed them to your fish though.... just bury them in your grow beds... the worms will do the rest... ;)

[Murray]

Some add a trace element blend from time to time, but really not necessary. You are better to make a compost tea or a worm tea to provide this. You can process all your veggie scraps even some road kill via a well found compost heap and when fully composted manufacture your compost tea.

If you are concerned about the purity of the compost make sure it is then transferred to a worm farm to get the worms to do the rest and drain a worm tea from that.

Of course there will be worms in your media grow beds that will be breaking down your fish waste and releasing all kinds of elements.

The other way is to use black soldier fly to process all kinds of veggie scraps and use the "tea" that comes off that process. It is a bit smelly but works ok as another way to get a wide variety of nutrient into your plants.

[fishing1234]

any tips on making compost tea. i have a compost bin ive put all sorts of scraps in... seafood dead birds bones vegies. then it was full of maggots.. i think their mostly gone now... can this be used to make the tea. i also have a worm farm. i drain that water for plants regularly. do u just scoop out the worm breakdown and whatever else is in their.. some dirt and soil and unprocesssed scraps, take out worms, add water..(how much) then strain via rag or stocking.. i have chooks any thing u can do with there wastes...
thanks for all the help u guys are great for taking the time to educate people.

[fishing1234]

oh and how often would u do this... say once a month

[Murray]

Composting , if done correctly breaks down and destroys any pathogenic material that might be in the compost pile. If this composted material is placed in a mesh bag, then hung into , say, an IBC full of water, like a great big tea bag and vigorously aerated for 24 hours or more then you have an IBC full of compost tea. The water needs to be pH neutral or at least in that range and it needs to be in the temp range that is suitable to encourage beneficial bacterial and fungal multiplication.

Some people add molasses and other ingredients to make their " brew" a little more potent.

There are dozens of web sites that describe many different ways to make " compost tea" (http://heartgarden.com.au/composttea.asp) Here is just one example.

Because AP is an ECO system we can do these kinds of good things. Just be careful not to overdo things. Some people just want to keep adding stuff...:)

[fishman]

i use the following for compost tea and let it brew for 24hrs in 20litres with aeration
handful compost/worm castings
tablespoon dissolved molassas
dash of seasol
tablespoon bran
table spoon fish pellet dust
cup of worm juice
what ever else is lying around
cheers
byron

[fishing1234]

thanx guys.. sound easy enough.. where do u get molasses..
hey i been readn thru here lots and dont know all the abbreviations yet. no matter how much i go thru it.. what is ibc, chop etc

[Yabbies4me]

IBC = Intermediate Bulk Container... the square plastic 1000L bulk liquid containers that come on a pallet with a steel cage around them.
CHOP = Constant Height One Pump... a type of AP system

...and some of the others you'll come across on this here forum:

AP = Aquaponics
FT = Fish Tank
GB = Grow Bed
ST = Sump Tank
SLO = Solids Lifting Outlet, or Solids Lifting Overflow
CF = Constant Flood
F&D = Flood and Drain
Amm = Ammonia
IMO = In My Opinion

...and let's not forget:

FND = Friday Night Dribble
Pies = Collingwood

[fishing1234]

cheers now it makes sense...