Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXV, Issue 1
Written by Mirela CREȚU, Lorena Dediu, Marian-Tiberiu COADĂ, Cristian RÎMNICEANU, Săndița PLĂCINTĂ, Maria Desimira STROE, Ion VASILEAN
This experiment aimed to compare the growth and development of two aromatic herbs, thyme (Thymus vulgaris) and basil (Ocimum basilicum var Aristotle) in an aquaponic system with Carassius auratus, versus a hydroponic system. The experiment took place at the pilot system from University Dunărea de Jos, Galați, Faculty of Food Science and Engineering. The system consists of six rearing units for fish and twelve units for plants (filled with substrate light expanded clay aggregate L.E.C.A.), led lamps for plants with purple light (36 W), biological and mechanical filters, and pumps for water recirculation. Three rearing units were populated with Carassius auratus at a stocking density of 20.93± 0.11 kg m-3 and the other three were left without fish. For the hydroponic treatment, a nutritive solution was added daily to support plant growth. Plants units were populated with seedlings of thyme and basil. The physico-chemical parameters of water were measured twice per week during the trial. At the end of the trial, the fresh weight of the plants was measured, and it was concluded that the productivity of the plants was higher in the aquaponics units comparing the hydroponic units.
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