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AQUAPONICS

Course Code	BHT319
Fee Code	S1
Duration (approx)	100 hours
Qualification	Statement of Attainment

Study Aquaponics -learn to grow crops in hydroponics and fish or crayfish in the runoff waste water

Course Structure

This is being developed as a 100 hour course, with ten lessons as follows:

1. Introduction
2. Aquaponic System Options
3. The Science of Animal and Plant Growth
4.   Nutrition and Controlling Growth
5.   Selecting and Managing Animal Production –Fish & Crustaceans
6.   Setting up and Aquaculture System
7.   Aquaponic Plant Culture
8.   Applications and Opportunities
9.   Managing an Aquaponics Venture -including a PBL
10. Troubleshooting

Lesson Structure

There are 10 lessons in this course:

Introduction
- What is aquaponics
- History of aquaponics
- Why aquaponics
- World food
- Urban farming
- Cost benefit analysis
- Is aquaponics organic
- The aquaponics system
- Can it be used with salt water
- Types of Systems:constant flow closed reciprocating, open, deep water, floating raft
- Outdoor or indoor systems
- Barrel ponics, wick, NFT, etc
- Advantages and disadvantages of aquaponics
- Scale of operation
Aquaponic System Options
- Recirculating systems
- Non recirculating (open loop systems or micropnics)
- Components of commercial fish rearing systems
- Aquaponic sub systems
- Deep water culture (DWC)
- Intermittent flow (Ebb and flow)
- Nutrient film technique (NFT)
- Gravel bed systems
- Barrel ponics systems
- Equipment: commercial and backyard
- System components
- Tanks
- Aeration devices
- Solids removal: clarifiers, solids tanks, filters,screens
- Biofilters
- Sump and pH adjustment tank
- Water heaters and chillers
- Greenhouse houses and fish rearingfacilities
- Alarm and back up systems
- Hydroponic grow beds and types of media
- Maintenance, water monitoring and adjustment
- Organic vs non organic
- Combining worms with growing beds
The Science of Animal and Plant Growth
- Plant growth factors
- How plants grow
- Plant structure: roots, stems, leaves, reproductive parts
- Biochemistry and aquaponics
- Biochemical processes in a cell
- Photosynthesis
- Mechanisms of nutrient uptake
- Plant nutrients
- Role of pH in plant growth
- Animal science
- Bony fish (Osteichthyes) and their biology
- Crustaceans: crabs, lobsters, shrimp and prawns
Nutrition and Controlling Growth
- Water soluble chemical compounds: ions
- Less water soluble chemicals
- Complex chemical compounds
- Understanding nutrient formulae
- Hydroponic nutrient formulae
- Atoms, elements and componds
- How are chemical names written
- What does a plant need
- Calculating formulae
- Mixing nutrients
- Case study
- Symptoms of nutrient deficiency
- Nutrients in aquaponics
- Variables in aquaponics: conductivity, ph control, oxygenation, beneficial bacteria in aquaponics
Selecting and Managing Animal Production: Fish and Crustaceans
- Choosing what to farm
- Climate
- Water
- Finance
- Scale of operation
- Other resources
- Market
- Availability of animals
- Risk considerations
- Overview of main species to grow: in Asia, South Africa, Australia, U.K., Europe, North America, South America
- Trout: Rainbow, Brown
- Bass
- Tilapia
- Catfish
- Barramundi
- Carp
- Mullet
- Sunfish
- Eels
- Marron
- Other species: ornamental fish, crustaceans and molluscs, lgae
- Sourcing fish and crustaceans
- Fish food
- Which type of fish food to use: pellets, live food, daphnia, brine shrimp, tubifex worms, earthworms, oil meals
- Other food
- Fish food production: beef heartlegumes, seafood and vegetable mix,
- Earthworms: setting up, adding worms
- Compost: understanding, making, conditions for compost production
- Fish health
- Common pests and diseasesin aquaponics
- Penaeid shrimp diseases
- Fish diseases
- Salinity and system health
Setting up an Aquaculture System
- Choosing the right sized system
- Selecting the right components
- Setting up the system
- Getting started
- Threats to the system
- Using a greenhouse
- Greenhouses: passive systems, active systems
- Active solaqr heating
- Greenhouse management
- Controlling the growing environment
- Light control
- Air temperature control
- Root temperature control
- Relative humidity and vapour pressure deficit
- Controlling humidity
- Carbon dioxide and oxygen
- Computer controls
Aquaponic Plant Culture
- Selecting media for aquaponic plant culture
- Types of media Growing seedlings
- Seed sources
- Sowing seed
- Seed propagating media
- Sowing seed direct
- Vegetables in aquaponics
- Herbs
- Successional planting
- Flow charting a cropControlling plant growth: stopping, spacing, disbudding, trimming, training
- Pollination
- Pest, disease and other crop problems: overview, identification
- Pest, disease and disorder control in aquaponics
Applications and Opportunities
- Aquaponics for profit
- Economic thresholds
- Harvest and post harvest management of fish
- Harvest and post harvest management of vegetables and herbs
- Harvested crop physiology: fruit ripening, respiration, when to harvesy
- How to prepare salad mixes from harvested vegetables: chlorine levels in water for washing produce, preventing bruising and rots, packaging
- CA and MA storage
- Chilling damage and storage temperature
- Harvesting and grading vegetables
- Fruit grading systems
- Marketing
Managing an Aquaponics Venture -including a PBL
- Case study: University of the Virgin Islands system
- Case study: North Carolina State University system
- Case study: Speraneo system
- What is an aquaponic trial?
- Running an aquaponic trial
- Research methodology
- PBL Project: Create and present a plan with specific strategies for improving the crop production of an aquaponics system in terms of amount and quality of produce harvested based on a clear understanding of the system’s requirements and its location (greenhouse or open air; temperate, subtropical, or tropical climate).
Troubleshooting
- Water supply problems
- pH problems
- Algae growth
- Dirty, cloudy water
- Water imbalances; high levels of ammonia or nitrite
- Imbalances in gases
- Fish troubleshooting
- Controlling salinity and nutrients without damaging fish
- Plant troubleshooting
- Diseases
- Pythium in aquaponics
- Pests
- Environmental physiological disorders
- Nutrition problems in aquaponics
- Deficiency symptoms
- Correcting nutrient problems in aquaponics
- Fruit set management: pollinationfloral initiation, fruit growth
- Flower and fruit development problems
- Fish eating plant roots
- Power losses
- Clogging with sediment
- Fish to plant imbalances
- Pathogenic contamination issues

Each lesson culminates in an assignment which is submitted to the school, marked by the school's tutors and returned to you with any relevant suggestions, comments, and if necessary, extra reading.

REASONS TO STUDY WITH ACS DISTANCE EDUCATION

Reputation:
-teaching Horticulture since 1979
-exceptional faculty staff (see below)
Hands on: develop practical as well as theoretical skills
Uniqueness:
-successful people are always those who can offer a skill or service that others can't
-this course is different; our graduates have different skills to set them apart.
Relevance -curriculum developed in response to industry needs
Lots of help: personal, prompt attention from tutors
Holistic Courses: We teach more than just "facts"
-success is only 20% about intelligence (and what you know)
-you also need to build networking, problem solving & communication skills, and more!
-this course helps you develop all of these things and more
Value: courses compare very favorably on a cost per study hour basis
Up to date: courses under constant review
Student amenities: This school is backed by over one of the most unique and comprehensive private collections of intellectual property in the horticultural industry. The principal and staff have written and published over 50 books and 150 gardening magazines, as well as 20,000 hours horticultural study programs. A team of 5 horticultural writers continue to develop and update new material continually. These resources together with web sites, an online student room, social media etc. provide a unique and comprehensive facility to support students studying with the school.

OUR FACULTY
These are just some of the people involved with developing and updating courses; and tutoring our horticulture students

John Mason Dip.Hort.Sc.
40 years + in horticulture Graduated from Burnley Horticultural College in 1971,Nurseryman, Landscape Designer and Parks Director through the 1970's. One of Australia's most published garden writers, author of books published by Simon and Schuster, Harper Collins, CSIRO and other major publishers; Editor for 4 different national gardening magazines; honored as a fellow of both the Institute of Horticulture in Australia and the Institute of Horticulture in the UK.

Gavin Cole B.Sc., M.Psych.
30 years + in horticulture. Renowned horticulturist and psychologist. Former operations manager for the highly regarded "Chelsea Gardener" landscape firm in London, garden writer and landscaper in both Brisbane and Adelaide in Australia.

Maggi Brown
40 years + in horticulture. Former education manager for "Garden Organic"; England's peak organic gardening and farming body.

Dr Lyn Morgan Phd
25 years + in horticulture. New Zealand based hydroponic consultant and author, with experience working everywhere from Asia to America.

Rosemary Davies Dip.Hort.Sc.
30 years + in horticulture; including Victorian Department of Agriculture Gradening Advisor, Gardening Editor/writer/author for major publishers and newspapers.

Diana Cole B,A., RHS Dip Hort, NTEC Higher Dip in Garden Design
15 years + in horticulture and landscaping

Adriana Fraser Adv.Dip.Hort.
30 years + in horticulture. Consultant, teacher, garden write, manager of plant collections

Bob James B.App.Sc(Hort), M. Env.Sc., Grad.Dip.Mgt., PDC, Dip.An.Husb.

Yvonne Sharpe Dip.Hort., M.Hort.

Martin Powdrill B.Sc(Hons), M.Sc. PDC

Marie Beerman B.Sc., M.Hort.

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Home Gardening, Horticultural Resource Management, Horticultural Marketing, Practical Horticulture, Trees For Rehabilitation, Soil Management, Plant Pathology, Amenity Horticulture, Certificate in Horticulture, RHS Certificate II in Horticulture, RHS Certificate III in Horticulture, RHS Diploma in Horticulture, RHS Master of Horticulture, Diploma in Horticulture, Turf Care, Sports Turf Management, Greenkeeping, Turf Repair and Renovation, Arboriculture I, Landscape Styles, Natural Garden Design, Water Gardening, Landscape Construction, Cottage Garden Design, Playground Design, Restoring Established Ornamental Gardens, Diploma in Landscaping Propagation, Cutting Propagation, Wholesale Nursery Management, landscaping, Diploma in Landscping Garden Centre Management, Hydroponics, Certificate in Hydroponics, Weed Control, Permaculture, Self Sufficiency, Tissue Culture, Plant Breeding, Nursery Sales Assistant, Hydroponics, Cut Flower Production, Greenhouse Cut Flowers, Outdoor Plant Production, Commercial Vegetable Production, Protected Plant Production, Mushroom Production, Fruit Production, Nut Production, Viticulture, Berry Production, Culture, Lavender, Medicinal Herbs, Culinary Herbs, Scented Plants, Cacti and Succulents, Roses, Interior Plants, Orchid Culture, Tropical Plants, Australian Natives I, plus many others including ecotourism, ecology, plant ecology, adventure tourism,

The information given is for general information and should not be regarded as advice in any matter. ACS Distance Education disclaims all and any liability in relation to any act or omission which is done in reliance to the information provided in this web site. While every effort is made to ensure that we display correct information on our website, errors can occur. ACS Distance Education disclaims liability or responsibility for orders or complaints arising from such errors, including (but not limited to): pricing, fees and course requirements. ACS Distance Education reserves the right to decline orders arising from such errors.