Dowerin Field Day
Backyard Aquaponics set up quite a large display at Dowerin Field Day. There was a lot of interest in aquaponics and how it all worked from people who attended the two day event.
The event was filled with everything from huge tractors and grain silos, down to small crafts and specialty foods. Aquaponics was making it's début at the show, in the past there have been hydroponic displays, but never aquaponics.
| The Dowerin Field Day is "The biggest and most important showcase of agricultural machinery and associated equipment in Western Australia, with the distinction of also being the oldest field day in the state, the Dowerin GWN Machinery Field Day is now entering its 42nd year.
The community owned event is run by a board, under the trading name, Dowerin Events Management Incorporated, with three full time staff - a CEO, an Events Coordinator and a Coordinator Assistant, reporting monthly to the board.
During the event, more than 400 volunteer staff from communities throughout rural Western Australia, work for an hourly rate, paid to their pre-nominated charity, club, school, or association."
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We found that there seem to be a lot more people who have heard about aquaponics. A large number of people we saw at the show had friends, or knew someone that had an aquaponic system. One couple who popped in for a visit have had a system going for three years, they have tomato plants in the system that have been growing since they set the system up, and in the three years there has only been a couple of weeks without tomatoes on the bushes. A great testiment to a DIY aquaponic system, all running on goldfish.
Overall we were very happy with all the interest shown towards our display systems. We sold two of the three display systems we took to the show. Next year we will be putting a mesh cover over the fish tank to keep the inquisitive hands out of the fish tank. Over the weekend we lost some of the trout we took with us and the only explanation we found was the number of people trying to touch the fish and play with the water.
The Field Day was a great all-round experience and the BYAP staff had fun camping in the onsite caravan area, with many of the other exhibitors who had travelled long distances. The campsite became quite a social place, after the show had closed each day, with people lighting campfires and socialising with each other. I think the BYAP staff are already looking forward to next year.
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