If you have a pond in your backyard, it can serve as a center of attraction as well as a way to raise a valuable source of protein, right in your own backyard. With the price of sea food rising every day, raising your own fish could significantly lower your grocery bills. It could also feed your family, while you make some extra cash, if you can take your home farm a step further and sell your fish in your neighborhood, at your local farmer’s market or at grocery stores. Growing fish in your backyard can be fun, and a simple way to gather your family in the garden to take care of your home pond. If you cannot have an in-ground pond, you could easily install a raised, above the ground swimming pool, and use it to raise fish.
“By raising your own fish, you can achieve a higher level of self-sufficiency and provide a healthier diet for your family,”- Steven Van Gorder, author of Small-Scale Aquaculture
Backyard fish farming is just as simple and fun as backyard gardening, and you can produce a wide variety of food in your own backyard garden if you do both. There are also other benefits of having a backyard pond. You could use waste from your pond for irrigation, and the waste from your kitchen could be used as fertilizer in your garden. This technique of growing plants and fish together has been used in China for a long time. With increasing populations comes shortages of resources and scarcity of food. Using aquaponic systems can really address these problems and allow you to grow more food in limited spaces using limited amounts of resources.
You can also keep edible fish indoors in your fish tank. If you do not own enough land, you can buy a large enough fish tank or aquarium to keep several fish, indoors. If you do not have any prior experience, it can be a daunting task, but once you start raising fish in your house, or in your backyard, you will find that it’s quite simple.
Choosing the right kind of fish
Deciding on what species of fish to raise is very important. There are a wide variety of fish you could grow at home using aquaponic systems. Choose a suitable species that grows in your local climate. It will also depend on how much space and budget you have. If you live in a cold area, where your pond can freeze in the winter, consider a pond size deeper than three feet, and also install a water heater. Koi is ideal for cold weather, while tilapia don’t grow very well in cold climates. Several species of trout are suitable for winter fish farming. Barramundi is an ideal fish for the warmer months during the summer.
A list of fish you could grow with aquaponics system
To decide what fish to grow, consider several factors first. Ask yourself what do you want to achieve from your system? If you want to grow fish for eating, then you should get more edible fish that can grow year round in your area. If you are growing fish for their beauty and want to keep them inside in your indoor fish tank or aquarium, buying goldfish or Koi could serve the purpose. Finding fish that are available in your area is another important factor. You should be able to stock your aquaponic system with fish that are locally available. Even tilapia, which is a rapidly breading species of fish, need fish stock from the hatchery to start farming.
Below is a list of aquaponic species of fish:
1. Barramundi:
These are ideal species for growing in warmer climates or during the summer through your aquaponic system. You will need to buy a fairly mature stock of fish to grow in your backyard pond. Barramundi grown in an aquarium or fish tank have an extra clean, crisp taste.
2. Catfish
Catfish 
is another ideal species of fish that you can grow in your backyard or aquarium. There are many different species of catfish available, so make sure you get the one suitable for your pond size and climate. They are a rapidly growing species of fish that have a good feed to conversion ratio.
3. Carp
Carp is farmed widely in the United States, both for food or as ornamental fish. There are many different species of carp, varying in sizes and behavior. These oily freshwater fish are native to Europe and Asia. Some species of carp are suitable for aquaculture, but they may be hard to find.
4. Gold fish
These are ornamental fish and make a pretty addition to your aquaponic system or aquarium. These are a species of carp, and need plants for breeding.
5. Koi
These are another species of carp. The Japanese Koi is very colorful species, and ideal for large commercial ponds. They are great for large aquaponic systems.
6. Cod
Cod is a significant species of fish known to grow enormous in size. They are fast growing fish that can be great for recirculating aquaculture systems and can also be great for aquaponic systems.
7. Tilapia
Tilapia is an extremely popular fish in aquaculture. They are also a very popular species in aquaponics for various reasons. These species of fish breed and grow fast. They are highly resilient and do well in almost any type of climate and in poor water conditions. They eat an omnivorous diet, and are well palatable.
8. Trout
Trout can be raised in aquaponic systems where the water is cooler. Trout prefer temperatures between 10 to 20 degrees, so they are good for growing in the winter. They 
grow very fast and have excellent flavor.
We hope you will have great success with aquaculture fish farming. Try growing some of these species mentioned above in your own aquaponic system. It would surely reduce your grocery bills while feeding your family. You may be able to put some extra cash in your pocket as well.
Please read our blogs regularly and put a few words in the comment box below, that would greatly inspire us.
Source: WorldWide Aquaculture
if only i could know how and what to feed my fish
Hi Stella, thanks for your comment. Please tell us what types of fish you have and in what environment they are growing.
I want to raise crayfish and catfish from pools . I have done 3 years of research on this subject . All it is common cense if you have any idea of the water species .
please give me some practical advice How could I do it in my already month old 2000Gallon with 6000GPM pump: Backyard fish pond – Raise Fish for Profit?
Thanks, we’d be happy to assist you. Someone from our team will contact you soon.
im from zimbabwe and studied aquaculture systems management, i would like to start fish farming in my backyard and can you assist with technical assistance and support
Great question! We have an entire course designed for backyard aquaculture plus a free version at ceed.mykajabi.com with the Ecolonomic Action Team (EAT). Dr. Dorband has over 20 hours of lectures available with a membership. We also have free information available at aquaculturecentral.smartmember.com. These resources can more than answer your question and we hope to assist you in your aquaculture adventures.
Finally if you are very serious and want to get immediate help and consultation you can schedule a FREE call with us for a 30 min. consultation. This can be by skype if you are not in North America, or phone. You can schedule a time with us at http://www.talkwithwayne.com.
-The WWA Team
I would like to know the viability of sea bream, sea bass, troute and salamon in aquaculture and aquaponic closed system. I have read a lot of promotional materials from many website on DIY kits and systems. But don’t know which one is effective so I also need guidance on this. Can you help answer these questions?
Karim,
We certainly can help you with your aquaculture consulting needs. Here are several things we can do for you. First, we are going to make you a FREE member of our site where we teach courses and have live webinars about all kinds of aquaculture and agriculture. That site is called http://www.eatcommunity.com and you will get an email with login instructions.
Second, one of our staff will contact you and see about scheduling a brief FREE call or skype (for outside US) conversation. He will coordinate the timing for us.
Finally, on the http://www.eatcommunity.com site there is a questionnaire you should fill out to tell us a little about your aquaculture interests and needs. Please fill that out.
Areeb
I have maybe a little less than a half acre pond with natural springs. In central Illinois. What would be the most profitable fish and resilient to stock my pond with to grow, and can I over stock my pond and feed them some type of fish feed to supplement them and make more of a profit?
Seth,
Thanks for your question. It is a good one. I cannot answer it directly without getting more information from you. However, we have a site where you can get much information about fish farming and all other kinds of agriculture and what we call ecolonomic living (http://ecolonomics.org). That site is http://www.eatcommunity.com. We will be making you a FREE Member of that site and then we can communicate with you easily about your fish farming questions. On that site there is a questionnaire you can fill out to tell us about your aquaculture interests and even schedule a time to talk with us. I hope this has been helpful and keep up your aquaculture dreams! You are helping make the planet better.
Areeb
I would like to know if some land I have is suitable for aquaponics. It is about 6 acres wooded area where gravel had been dug 70 years ago. It has shallow ponds of very cold water (we have a high water table and very rich soil because the area use to be a lake bottom or swamp.) We have no electricity near these ponds. We also have land outside the wooded area (and near the ponds) that can be farmed. It is a pasture at the present time. Can this area be used for commercial aquaponics or aquaculture 3 seasons . We are in Southern Minnesota.
Ann,
We certainly can help you with your aquaculture consulting needs. Here are several things we can do for you. First, we are going to make you a FREE member of our site where we teach courses and have live webinars about all kinds of aquaculture and agriculture. That site is called http://www.eatcommunity.com and you will get an email with login instructions.
Second, one of our staff will contact you and see about scheduling a brief FREE call or skype (for outside US) conversation. He will coordinate the timing for us.
Finally, on the http://www.eatcommunity.com site there is a questionnaire you should fill out to tell us a little about your aquaculture interests and needs. Please fill that out.
Areeb
Hello community I’m Thomas .I like to know where I can purchase backyard
home grown fish. I would like it shipped to my address Can you please respond A.S.A.P Here is my contact email edensutopia@hotmail.com
I like to have the following fish. Alaskan Salmon, Trout, Bass, Tilapia
Barramundi, Carp, Alaskan Cod.
Thanks
A nice way to decorate your home and also grow some plants. I am an aquaponics lover. Japanese koi is very attractive fish, it would be good for my pond.
Hi,
I have a 18,000 gallon in ground pool in Green Bay,WI.I have a natural gas powered heater.Just over 6 feet at deepest.I’d like an opinion on converting it to raise fish.
Thanks,
Wally Gondeck.
i am really interested to farm baramundi ..can you leave some advice pls
Thanks for sharing this blog with us. I really liked the way you explained about your blog. and I get to know Problems with Fish Farming. for more information http://www.asagriaqua.com/
hi,good work there.
my friend wants to go into commercial fish farming.and we need help on how to rear qhality fish.
in terms of their feed, supplements and how to prevent infection in their ponds.
thank you
Cool, I’ve been looking for this one for a long time