First Aquaponics Project 1/15/15. Update #2

Hello again.  In my last post I did not formally post a picture of my system.  Well, here's a picture to give you a glimpse of my simple but functional system.

*My system was completed and running on 12/21/14.

My simple Aquaponics design is, and again, a 80 gallon pond equipped with a 50 gallon 13" tall grow bed.  In the grow bed I have roughly 5" of lava rock and 7" of pea gravel.  To my dismay I discovered today while browsing online that gravel between 3/4"-1" is preferred for the grow media.  My gravel ranges between 1/2"-3/4", not ideal, but doable.  Knowing this though, I sure as hell will not remove 3.5 cubic feet of gravel and do who knows what with it!  :)  As far as I'm concerned though, my system is working right now.  The veg is growing, the stronger and healthier fish are hanging in there, and my water quality is looking good. 





Getting back on track, my grow bed is equipped with a bell siphon (auto siphon). The stand pipe of the bell siphon is 10" tall and 1" in diameter, while the bell housing is 2" in diameter and roughly 12" tall.  Surrounding bell siphon is a large PVC pipe that acts as a protective cage, roughly 6" in diameter and 13" tall.

My flood time for the bed is roughly 7 minutes while the drain is around 1.5 minutes.  They're short time frames, but it's working right now as far as I can see.

Update #2

12/23/14- planted 2 rows of 白通菜 (White Ipomoea), 1 row of
菜心 (Choy Sum), 1 row of Spinach (Bloomsdale Long Standing), and 1 row of Lettuce (Black Seeded Simpson).

13 Spinach and Lettuce on 1/7/15
17 Spinach and Lettuce on 1/8/15

 1/9/15

 Lettuce

 Spinach

1/11/15

Added 6 shallots.  I'm hoping to harvest the greens from these if they manage to root and thrive.  For now this is merely a test and me screwing around.

1/12/15

The Lettuce is now significantly larger compared to 14 days ago.

The Spinach as well

1/15/15

19 Spinach on 1/15/15
21 Lettuce on 1/15/15

I decided to plant more seeds to have a consistent harvest and to keep my system in balance.  Added 1 row of scarlet globe radish was planted,  1 row of Mesclun (baby green mix), and more seeds back to the 菜心 (Choy Sum) row.  The
白通菜 (White Ipomoea) row was scraped and as I did that the seeds I dug up were beginning to rot.  Apparently, this type of vegetable seed does best in the warmer months.  That was a poor decision on my behalf. 

While separating the grow media I realized the supposed 菜心 Choy Sum that I had previously identified was actually a lettuce.  That was a buzz kill for me.  Fortunately, after removing the hermit lettuce I noticed a pair of familiar green leaves.  It was in fact a 菜心 Choy Sum!  Stoked!

This species of vegetable has been causing all kinds of misery for me, but it looks like the fruits (or should it be vegetable?) of my labor have finally begun to pay off.  lol hopefully I don't have to wait too long for this tasty veg to mature.   
More pics to come in the coming weeks.  The veg are growing much faster now due to warmer weather, consistent sunlight, and increased nitrite levels.