From stock tank and garden systems, to layered naturalized ponds, there are as many ways to set up a successful aquaponics system as there are people who create them.

Outdoor systems require climate appropriate crops and livestock, and they can either be operated as a seasonal system which is stocked in the spring, and harvested in the fall, or as a self-sustaining system with consideration for breeding and hatching.

Whatever your goal, the system can be built in stages, so it is more affordable, and so the work is spread out over time, but also so that you can work out the most effective management for each new element that is added.

The real advantage of outdoor systems is that they are typically less limited than indoor systems where space is concerned, and that gives you far more options for types of fish and crustaceans, and many more options for types of plants that are combined - and naturalized systems can take advantage of more aquatic plants.