Seasonal Produce in Aquaponics

As much as we love a good challenge, sometimes, replicating a certain climate can become too expensive and simply, just too much admin. Therefore, we highly recommend skipping the fuss and planting seasonal crops in your aquaponics system. Let’s take a look at a year-round guide for seasonal produce in aquaponics based on our South African climate.

Basil
Basil loves warmer weather, so we recommend planting after your last frost.

Cucumber
Early September is the best time to plant cucumbers in South Africa.

Brinjals
Brinjals are best planted as the temperature starts to rise.

Tomato
Seeds should be sown in the first week of September or anywhere between 6 to 8 weeks before the last frost.

Watercress
Can be planted from early spring onwards as it prefers a warmer climate.

Celery
Make sure to plant your celery mid to late Summer. You can use a DWC or a Media Bed to grow celery in your system.

Green Beans
With the right amount of trellising, you can grow some delicious green beans in your Media Beds.

Artichokes
This crop is a great addition to your media bed, especially if you have Tilapia in your fish tank.

Asparagus
They love warmer weather and are easy to grow in your DWC setup.

Cauliflower
Thanks to our South African Winters our cauliflower plants can be planted in Autumn and grown throughout the Winter.

Chives
We recommend planting your chives in April so they can be harvested before the cool extremities of Winter.

Kale
This crop loves a little chill in the air. Which means that it’ll grow happily throughout the Winter.

Spinach
 Another cool-weather vegetable that should be planted in early autumn.

Cabbage
Cabbage doesn’t like warmer temperatures so this plant makes for a great addition to your Autumn crop.

Spring Onions
This vegetable is high in nutritional value and makes for a great winter crop. Their highly concentrated onion flavour also makes for a great punch of flavour in a homemade dish.

Perpetual Spinach
This spinach actually falls part of the chard family and it’s packed full of Vitamin K.

Garlic
An easy winter vegetable to plant in your media bed! They take a while to mature so if you plant your garlic in early winter, you should have your garlic by the end of spring.

Peppers
Late winter to early spring is the best time to plant your peppers as they prefer warmer climates.

Parsley, Lettuce and Rocket seem to do well all year round. However, if you have a greenhouse that is climate controlled then you can plant quite a few crops all year round! Just make sure to do your research first so you can fully understand the crop requirements and be realistic about meeting those requirements.

There you have it! A seasonal guide to planting produce in your aquaponics system. There are many choices when it comes to choosing a crop for your aquaponics system. Therefore, if you can’t find your desired crop on this list then make sure to contact us. We would be happy to give you some planting guidelines and advice for your seasonal produce in your aquaponic system.