The Effect of Stocking Density of Pangasius Fish (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus) on Water Quality and the Growth of Several Types of Plants in an Aquaponic System
Dushyant Kumar Damle
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
Pranali Prabhakar Marbade *
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
Jham Lal
*
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
Tameshwar
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
Aarti Rajput
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
Sanjay Goswami
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
Krishna Kumar Narange
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
Yogesh Meravi
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
Sujata Todekar
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
Sujata Singh
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
Rupesh Nishad
Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Dau Shri Vasudev Chandrakar Kamdhenu Vishwavidyalaya, Durg, Chhattisgarh-491995, India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
This study evaluated the effect of stocking density on water quality, fish growth and the growth of selected leafy vegetables in a recirculating indoor aquaponic system using Pangasius (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus) fingerlings. The experiment was conducted for 60 days in the laboratory of the Department of Aquaculture, Late Shri Punaram Nishad College of Fisheries, Kawardha, Chhattisgarh. Four tank groups were used: T0 as the control without plants at three fish per tank, and aquaponic treatments T1, T2 and T3 at three, five and seven fish per tank, respectively. The fish had an initial mean length of 12.2 cm and an initial mean weight of 26.7 g. Indian spinach (Basella alba), coriander (Coriandrum sativum) and red amaranth (Amaranthus cruentus) were cultivated in duplicate pots in each aquaponic tank using coco peat as the plant-growing medium. Fish were fed commercial floating pellets containing 32% crude protein twice daily at 5% body weight. Water quality parameters were monitored at 15-day intervals, and fish growth was assessed through weight gain, length gain, average daily gain, specific growth rate, feed conversion ratio and survival. During the experimental period, dissolved oxygen, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH varied among treatments, with the control tank showing comparatively higher ammonia accumulation. At the end of the trial, T2 showed the highest final length, weight gain, average daily gain and specific growth rate, while survival remained 100% in all groups. Plant growth was limited under indoor conditions, particularly because of inadequate lighting, but better overall fish and plant performance was observed in T2. The results indicate that five fish per tank provided the most favourable stocking density under the tested aquaponic conditions.
Keywords: Aquaponics, Pangasianodon hypophthalmus, stocking density, recirculating aquaponic system, water quality, plant growth