Your fish tank can now double as a garden. Those little fishies just need to keep doing what they do best -- swim, eat and poop -- and with the proper system you can grow a bounty of produce in your very own home. The idea is not new: Aquaponics has been around for years. But Jack Ikard, a 21-year-old student and the CEO and founder of AquaSprouts, hatched a sleek design that's user-friendly and will look nifty in your living room. "You don't have to learn a whole new language to use the system," he told HuffPost over the phone. Aquaponics is a form of agriculture that treats fish waste as a fertilizer for plants. Ikard's AquaSprouts Aquaponic Garden uses a pump at the bottom of the tank which, when turned on by a timer, will take the fish waste and convert it into nutrients to feed the plants, while making clean water for the fish. It's an entirely symbiotic ecosystem, Ikard says, where you'll never have to change out a carbon filter -- probably one of the most annoying things about owning a fish tank, eh?

This tank can grow all the ingredients for a perfectly good salad, including tomatoes, lettuce, kale, mint, basil and wheatgrass. The kit can be purchased with seeds, but Ikard says you can easily use your own sprouted starter plants in the system. They'll start to germinate after a day or two. The tank can also raise flowers and indoor plants if the edibles aren't your thing. And yes, the idea that you'll be eating vegetables grown from your goldfish's poop is a little icky at first. But, as Ikard explains, "That's just the way the world works. If it's not waste from your fish it's some other kind of poop." Plus, you'll be able to control exactly what the fish consume: Ikard recommends buying all-natural fish food and tank products that are non-toxic. You can find these at any old pet store, he says. The AquaSprouts Aquarium Aquaponic Garden Kickstarter campaign has reached about half of its $60,000 goal as the publication date of this article. Ikard says he is optimistic the campaign will raise the proper funds to start sales in January of 2015.

The AquaSprouts garden kit fits over any standard 10-gallon fish tank, or can be purchased with one included. Check it out here. Want to read more from HuffPost Taste? Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Tumblr.404 (Page Not Found) Error If you're the site owner, one of two things happened: 1) You entered an incorrect URL into your browser's address bar, or 2) You haven't uploaded content. If you're a visitor and not sure what happened:fish tank gravel manchester 1) You entered or copied the URL incorrectly orfish tank gravel hoover 2) The link you used to get here is faulty.fish tank gravel green (It's an excellent idea to let the link owner know.)Gardeners adore roses of all colors for their beauty, fragrance and romantic appeal.

Roses thrive even when neglected, but an application of fertilizer helps plants grow healthy roots and colorful blossoms. Synthetic fertilizers give roses the nutrients they need, but overfertilizing may cause leaf burn or rapid growth that can attract pests. Homemade fertilizers contain natural or organic ingredients, and they break down more slowly than chemical fertilizers. Making homemade fertilizer also allows the gardener to recycle kitchen scraps that would otherwise be discarded. Kelp and Molasses Fertilizer Fertilizer containing molasses, kelp, powdered fish and apple cider vinegar supplies roses with a balanced dose of nutrients that promotes foliage and flower growth. To make the fertilizer, 3 cups of water should be combined with 2 tablespoons of molasses, 1 tablespoon of Epsom salts, 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon of kelp extract and 2 tablespoons of powdered fish. In the summer, 1/2 gallon of the fertilizer should be applied in the evening after roses have been watered.

A repeat application in six to eight weeks, near the end of summer, helps encourage blooming until fall or winter. Coffee Grounds and White Vinegar Coffee grounds and white vinegar, when added to soil, give roses the acidic conditions they need to thrive. Coffee grounds also provide roses with small amounts of potassium, nitrogen and magnesium. A handful of dry coffee grounds should be sprinkled on the surface of the soil around the roses. White vinegar adds acid to the soil, but it does not provide many nutrients, so an additional fertilizer is required. To make an acid-boosting solution for roses, 1 tablespoon of white vinegar should be combined with 1 gallon of water. The vinegar solution should replace one regular watering every three months. Egg Shells and Epsom Salts Egg shells contain large amounts of calcium carbonate, an ingredient found in agricultural lime. They make an excellent addition to compost, and when crumbled into tiny pieces, they can be applied directly to the soil around roses.

Pulverizing egg shells in a blender turns them into a fine powder for easy application. Epsom salts consist of sulfate and magnesium, nutrients that roses need to carry out many essential functions. For example, magnesium assists in photosynthesis and sulfate aids nutrient uptake. A mixture of 1 gallon of water and 1 tablespoon of Epsom salts should replace a regular watering once per month. Fish Tank Water and Banana Peels Fish tanks need regular cleaning, but instead of pouring the water down the drain, gardeners can use it to fertilize roses. Fish tank water contains a high amount of nitrogen. The fish tank water can replace a regular watering. Excessively dirty or moldy water should not be used. Banana peels contain a high amount of potassium. To use them as rose fertilizer, gardeners can bury the banana peels 4 to 6 inches deep at the base of the plants. References Master Gardeners of Hamilton County, TN: Homemade FertilizersGardening On a Dime: Homemade Organic Rose FoodDiane's Flower Seeds: My Secret Organic Fertilizer Recipe Photo Credits Victor Holguin/Demand Media Suggest a Correction