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I'm thinking about adding a rain collector to use in my garden but I have some concerns about construction materials.

One concern is that I'm not a huge fan of using a plastic container to store water. The idea of water sitting in a plastic barrel that could be exposed to heat from direct sunlight doesn't fill me with excitement. I was wondering what other materials or containers I could use that might be better for storing rain water. One idea I had was to modify a metal keg to collect water. They would be smaller but I could use multiple if I wanted.

The other concern I have is about roofing materials. Is it safe to use water collected from a roof with shingles in a garden for vegetables? I'm wondering if there might be any run off from the materials used for roofing.

Extra double bonus points for greenhouse production.

Thanks!!

Aquaponics is similar to hydroponics, but makes use of fish to create fertilizer-rich (fish waste 💩) water for the plants to thrive. In turn, the plants help clean the water for the fish.

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You can put the pumps and fish feeders on a timer to automate them, and even use fish types people eat for fish farming.

My only ask is that you remember to make the tank nice for the fish. A stressed fish is a dead fish, and way too many aquaponic users just throw a bunch of fish in an empty(no stimulation) and overcrowded tank.

The below videos talk about using the systems to grow food in urban spaces.

https://youtu.be/9ZLDDhFLWCY >“Ever heard of aquaponics? In urban areas, aquaponics helps combat barriers that come with farming in cities, like lack of access to space. “

https://youtu.be/_YmkWODcqbA >“There are so many barriers in place when it comes to growing food in cities, but education and lack of access to space are the hardest to overcome. Yemi Amu has dedicated her life as a farmer to solving this problem, by starting the only Aquaponics farm in NYC. Oko Farms in Brooklyn is both a working farm which provides fresh food to surrounding neighborhoods, while also actively engaging the public in education on how to grow food for yourself in urban environments.”

https://youtu.be/hKWREFjNWX4 >"What's up everyone, in this video i build part 1 of an indoor DIY aquaponics system for my 10 gallon fish tank! I have been interested in aquaponics for a while now and know i wanted to build an indoor DIY aquaponics system early on when i saw the price of most retail aquaponics kits. This DIY aquaponics system was built using all materials found either on Amazon or at local hardware stores and came in under $50 total! "

>"Recent research has shown that red nets are more effective than black or white nets in preventing onion thrip damage to crops, reducing the reliance on harmful chemical pesticides by up to 50%. This approach supports sustainable farming by minimizing environmental impact."

From this post: https://scitechdaily.com/the-science-behind-red-nets-a-new-dawn-in-eco-friendly-farming/

If you are looking for a way to both conserve water but also have a healthy garden, an Olla might help.

While surface watering, some of the water will be lost to evaporation, and you may not get the soil damp enough to encourage the roots to spread deeper.

This is when the Olla becomes helpful; made from porous clay, this pottery can be filled with water, which it will then gradually seep into the surrounding soil. While most of it is burred, enough of the neck is out of the soil to fill it.

You can make your own for your outdoor garden using terracotta pots and water-proof adhesive. Simply glue two pots together, and fill the hole on one side. When the glue is set, just bury the pots (with the unfilled hole up), fill with water, and cover the hole with a saucer, cork, or rock.

If, however, you only have indoor plants, you have an option, too! You can get terracotta watering spikes that work in a similar way, but a glass bottle fills it.

While they might not be suitable for all plants, for many plants they are suitable, and can help with your gardening chores.

While they might not be suitable for all plants(such as plants that prefer dry soil), for many, they are.

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Images from Permaculture Research Institute

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/15830343

> Our retention pond in our neighborhood has a lot of algae and problematic plant growth due to the surrounding farms and lawn runoff, so we're experimenting with a floating island to pull nutrients out before they can cause problems. This will also provide some interesting flowering plants, and more fish habitats. > > Will be an interesting experiment to see what survives and what does poorly. > > Zinnias, sunflowers, marigolds, and a few others are in net pots, inserted into cutouts in EVA foam mats. > > Design is from: > http://www.beemats.com/ > > More reading: > https://arstechnica.com/science/2024/02/flowers-grown-floating-on-polluted-waterways-can-help-clean-up-nutrient-runoff/ > > https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666765723000637?via%3Dihub >

The Science Behind It Projects

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/9575309

> Very cool project and glad to see it’s still going strong. Fun fact: I actually helped plant some of the very first trees here when it was just an empty field.

Canonical YouTube link

Apparently it also integrates with Home Assistant: https://github.com/vinteo/hass-opensprinkler

At the height of the pandemic, farmers were forced to dump millions of pounds of perfectly edible produce. Four years later, they still need help with their surpluses.

Hey y'all,

I stumbled across this free extensive course on permaculture by Oregon state university on YouTube. Thought y'all might be interested.