New hobby

So I think I officially have a new hobby....Irrigation and spray systems! It's like LEGO for adults. A lot of people have been asking for an update, so here is a brief one.

Firstly the Organic AP dream is still very much alive. We have just had a lot to get done in order to make room for the Greenhouse. The platform built for the greenhouse had an issue which meant I had to de-construct part of the retaining wall. Essentially I needed to add a new H beam in the center of the back wall as the 2 meter span was a bit much for the wall to handle. The new H beam is in the ground, and I just need to reconstruct that section of wall and we are back on track.

We are also building a new room on the back of the house, and with the access path being just in front of the proposed greenhouse site we really need to get the room mostly finished before we can construct the greenhouse. That way we don't risk knocking it over with a bobcat. We have the footings for the new back room poured so bricking will begin soon. Once bricking is done, we can build the Greenhouse! Yay!.

Onto more exciting things...I have setup a new irrigation system to help control and deliver the right pressure to the various zones of the property. I have attached a pic to this post to check out. I got a little fancy and added a master solenoid valve (so that the infrastructure is not under mains pressure when its not doing anything). I also created a Fertilized distributor. Essentially this works by first filling the canister with Seasol (or any powerfeed) before a given schedule is going to run, then opening the ratio valve (blue valve in photo) slightly. With the canister mostly full, water will rush past the valve, and Seasol will be sucked out into the main water stream (diluting the Seasol in the canister at the same time). Its a very effective way to distribute power feed automatically to your garden. I love it. I originally had a prototype of this which was a PVC storm water beast, but this is much nicer, and I added the ratio valve. Whats more exciting is I have added the worm farms to the drip system to keep them moist. The excess fluid that drains to the bottom of the worm farm and is collected will be used as my fertilizer! Genius!

Water flows down through the filter (As front and rear zones are drip feeds and I am adding powerfeed, I don't want drip feeders blocking up) then onto each solenoid.

I must say the Rain Bird is very easy to configure, and has all the features anyone could need. Next I am going to add a rain sensor so the system cancels days schedule if it detects rain. Also looking at moisture meeter for the new turf lawn so it will not water it if the Rain Bird thinks the soil is moist enough.

So many options!

Stay tuned folks. More updates to come.  

Sulphur Dioxide grapes

Snapped this at the local supermarket today. Am I the only one who find this a little distressing???

Thats all the motivation I need to get my aquaponics setup ASAP! 

Ordered drainage kits

Just ordered my drainage kits here:

http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/shop.html?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=201&category_id=10

Above ground growbeds

Part of our endeavour is to not only grown fresh produce in our aquaponic greenhouse, but also have several above ground grow beds to grow root dwelling veggies like carrots, potatoes, and the like. After hunting around for an economical way to add above ground beds, I quickly discovered this is an expensive exercise. The primary options are:

1.     Treated pine sleepers. This option may appear to be cheap, but costs quickly escalate. For example, a simple one meter by one meter grows bed; at 600mm height will cost around $150.

2.     Corrugated iron/Color Bond Steel. This option is also quite pricey with most planter boxes coming in at $150+ per box.

3.     IBC. I managed to pickup three food grade IBC’s at $110 each delivered. This is by far the cheapest option.

I like the idea of using IBC’s as they are strong, robust, and can be moved easily. My biggest concern was getting something that was actually food grade as many claim to be, but are not. I was certainly proven wrong after ordering three units from Jack, who also sells these on ebay. I ordered them on Sunday morning by sending him a text, and they were delivered at 4.30pm that same afternoon!

The IBC’s provided had only been used ONCE! They contained, and have a small amount of syrup left in the bottom of them, and are literally brand new. They even have an FDA approved sticker on them which leads me to believe these are from the USA. The IBC’s were so new in fact they even has a sealed delivery docket and order form for more IBC’s from the manufacturer, SCHÜTZ. The price includes delivery, and Jack helped offload the IBC’s before getting back on the road. I strongly recommend if you need certified food grade IBC’s, and are in Melbourne, give Jack a call on 0417-777-706 and he will help you out. I don’t know Jack, nor had I met him prior to this transaction, but I am very satisfied with the service, and the quality of the delivered product.

I have already cut the cages up, and just need to cut the IBC’s in half now so stay tuned for an update in the next couple of days.

Aquaponic Animation

For those that don't quite know how an aquaponics system fits together I found this cool animation on the type of setup I will be implementing. This setup type is called CHOP2, or constant height one pump (version 2). Essentially the sump pump feeds the grow beds, and the fish tanks, both of which then drain back into the sump. This process just goes around and around and around essentially providing the plants with nutrients all night and all day, which is why aquuponics works so well! Check it out (Dont forget to click the red "Start Pump" button on the animation):

http://www.aquaponics.net.au/ChopMk2.html

Reasons to go Green

We all know we should and can do more to help the planet, but often are not present with reasons to do so. Here is a great site I found backed with sources for the information on why going vegetarian or vegan helps the planet in more ways than you might think. A great read:

http://michaelbluejay.com/veg/environment.html

Vital Greens Super Food

Just thought I would share something I recently discovered, and that is Vital Greens Super food. Previously I had been taking a multitude of tablets thinking I was getting what my body needed, but not really concerned about where it came from (source of the vitamins), nor if complementing minerals and vitamins to make absorption work properly were present. I then discovered this wonderful product that is all natural, and as organic as they can be (some things like minerals are not able to be certified as organic). This is all I take now first thing in the morning, and already in day two I am feeling great. Highly advised for anyone looking to replace multivitamins and other pills. Vital Greens includes naturally occurring whole food source vitamins, trace minerals, antioxidants, pro-biotics, essential amino acids, omega 3 and omega 6 essential fatty acids, digestive enzymes, cell pigments, plant sterols and fibres. And no I have no affiliation or connection with Vital Greens, I just think it’s a great product worth knowing about.