Lettuce Plant

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa)– Butterhead variety– Quick turnover

5 weeks– Cultivars

Rex Tom Thumb

Varieties of Romaine and Bibb

Data collection and analysis

Light measurements (PAR) Computer monitoring

Nutrient Balance

Nutrient Balance– Feed

32% Protein 2-4% System Biomass FCR 2:1

– Filtration Clarifier Nitrification

– Hydroponics Nutrient uptake Water

Water Chemistry

N, TAN, NH4, NO2, NO3, K, P, Ca, Fe, pH, alkalinity, T, EC

Aquaponic Inputs

Inputs:– Water– Fish Food

Star Milling Co. 1/8” Floating Tilapia Feed

– Dolomite 65 Ag CaCO3 46.0% MgCO3 38.5% Ca 22.7% Mg 11.8%

– Biomins Biomin Fe+ (5%) Biomin Mn+ (5%) Biomin Zn+ (7%)

Crude Protein 32%

Crude Fat 5%

Crude Fiber 3.5%

Ash 9%

FISH FEED  

% N 5.97

% P 1.53

% K 1.46

% Ca 1.61

% Mg 0.26

% Na 0.24

% S 0.46

mg/L Cu 15

mg/L Zn 143

mg/L Mn 93

mg/L Fe 461

mg/L B 18

– Nutrient Content Analysis

pH & Oxygen

pH Range Tilapia 6.5-9– Fish = 6.5 – 8.5– Plant = 5.0 – 7.5

Diurnal pH Flux– Reduce shifts to stabilize pH

Shifts can inhibit organism's physiology thus reducing growth Acidic pH can effect solubility of Fertilizers

– Alkalinity Optimal: 75-150 mg/L Stabilizes pH ; provides nutrients for growth

Dissolved Oxygen– > 4 mg/l (ppm)

UAAQ CEACMethodology

Data Collection– Fish : Lettuce

Fish FCR Fish Biomass (1 kg) Plant Wet/Dry Weight Plant Height/Diameter

– Lettuce quality Apogee CCM-200 Chlorophyll Concentration

Index (CCI)– Relative chlorophyll value– Compare a cultivar of

lettuce growing in different systems

UAAQ CEACBiomass Density

CEAC GH#3118– Tilapia Density

0.04 – 0.06 kg/L 2% Biomass / day 1.6 – 1.8 kg feed / day Harvest weight 1kg

– Lettuce 32 plants / m2

6” off center Harvest head wet weight

150-200 grams

UAAQ CEACWater Chemistry

Nutrient Deficiency Succession– [ Fe+, Mn+, Mo+] <– [Ca+, Mg+]<– [Zn+]

Hydroponic Water Parameters– pH 6.5-6.7 – EC 1.5 – 2.0 – DO 4-7mg/L– T = 23-25oC

Water Chemistry (mg/L)CEAC

Lettuce GH#3118

Target

NITROGEN    

Ammonia NH3-N 0 0

Nitrate NO3-N 180 50

Boron (B) 0.35 <1

Calcium (Ca) 200 60

Copper (Cu) 0.05 <0.05

Iron (Fe) 2.4 2

Magnesium (Mg) 40 20

Manganese (Mn) 0.55 0.5

Molybdenum (Mo) 0.05 0.05

PO4-P 50 50

Potassium (K) 198 150

Sulfate (SO4)-S 52 20< >100

Zinc (Zn) 0.34 0.3

Data and video live on Internethttp://ag.arizona.edu/tomlive/gh3118_idx.html

UAAQ CEACEnvironmental Data

Set Points:– Hydroponic Treatment

Day Tair = 20 - 22oC

Night Tair = 16 - 18oC

TH2O = 23 - 25oC pH = 6.5 - 6.8 DO = 4 - 7 mg/L

UAAQ 2009 Daily PAR

0

10

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30

40

50

60

1/1 1/15 1/29 2/12 2/26 3/12 3/26 4/9Time

Mo

les

M-2

d-1

UAAQ 2009 Environmental Data Exp. 1

Mean Daily PAR 16.60 moles/m2

Total PAR Exp.2 829.82 moles/m2

Mean Night Ta 17.09oC

Mean Day Ta 21.19oC

Daily Mean Ta 19.14oC

Daily Mean RH% 59.47%

Exp.1Exp.2

Exp.3

UAAQ 2009 Environmental Data Exp. 2

Mean Daily PAR 19.33 moles/m2

Total PAR Exp.2 924.00 moles/m2

Mean Night Ta 17.14oC

Mean Day Ta 21.56oC

Daily Mean Ta 19.35oC

Daily Mean RH% 60.85%

UAAQ 2009 Water Parameters Exp. 1

Mean Water Temperature 24.29oC

pH 6.75

Dissolved Oxygen 5.89 mg/L

Electrical Conductivity 0.97 dS/cm

UAAQ 2009 Water Parameters Exp. 2

Mean Water Temperature 24.22oC

pH 6.73

Dissolved Oxygen 6.74 mg/L

Electrical Conductivity 0.93 dS/cm

UAAQ CEACNitrogen Mass Flow

Fish Feed – % N = 5.97

1800 grams/day 107 grams nitrogen/day

Sludge– N = 3.38% per g dry weight

5 Liters day produced Collect dry weight / day

Fish – 27% nitrogen retention

Lettuce – Samples to be analyzed

Water– 40-60 mg/L Nitrate

UAAQ Water ChemstryNPK

0.00

50.00

100.00

150.00

200.00

250.00

1/1 1/15 1/29 2/12 2/26 3/12

Time

mg

/L

NH3-N

NO3-N

K

PO4-P

Exp.1Exp.2

Exp.3

UAAQ CEACWater Chemistry

Macronutrients– Accumulation reaching steady state– Calcium and magnesium supplementation

Experiments 2-8

Micronutrients– Biomin Iron supplementation

Experiment s 4-8– Biomin Zinc supplementation

Experiments 5-8– Biomin Manganese supplementation

Experiments 6-8

UAAQ Water ChemistryMacronutrients

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1/1 1/15 1/29 2/12 2/26 3/12

Time

mg

/L

SO4-S

Ca

Mg

UAAQ Water Chemistry Micronutrients

0.00

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40

0.50

1/1 1/15 1/29 2/12 2/26 3/12

Time

mg

/LB

Cu

Fe

Mn

Mo

Zn

Exp.1Exp.2

Exp.3

Exp.1Exp.2

Exp.3

UAAQ Exp. 2 Aquaponics vs. Hydroponics

Hydroponic Solution– Nitrogen uptake– Experiment 2 Data

40-60 mg/L NO3-N 10-20 mg/L P 100+ mg/L K

UAAQ 2009 Water ChemistryH1 Primary Nutrients

0

50

100

150

200

250

Feb-09 Mar-09

Time

mg

/L

NH3-N

NO3-N

K

PO4-P

UAAQ 2009 Hydroponics WaterH2 Primary Nutrients

0

50

100

150

200

250

Feb-09 Mar-09

Time

mg

/L

NH3-N

NO3-N

K

PO4-P

Arizona Aquaculture Websiteag.arizona.edu/azaqua

What’s needed next? Investment in production

and more research Best technologies of ag

and aquaculture Limited governmental

regulation Trained production staff

and semi-skilled farming staff