Effects of molasses and compost tea as foliar spray on water spinach (Ipomoea aquatica) in aquaponics syste

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of foliar spray with molasses and compost tea on water spinach in aquaponics system. Nutrient Film Technique was employed for water spinach culture under three different treatments with molasses (T1), compost tea (T2) and no spray as control (T3). Tilapia fingerlings, fed on a commercial diet, were reared in the aquaponics system. Waste water from the fish tank was re-circulated through the plant grow bed where nitrifying bacteria resided to convert toxic elements into plant available nutrients and supplied clean water to fish tank in return. 180 days trial revealed that T2 yielded the highest production of 5.56 kg water spinach, followed by T1 (4.73 kg) and T3 (4.39 kg). The average productions of water spinach (2.17 kg/m2/month) and tilapia (22.38 ton/ha/month) with an FCR of 2.33 suggest a prospective use of compost tea and molasses as foliar spray to produce organic vegetables