Sustainable Gardening in an Old Pool

Photo by Dennis & Danielle McClung

In 2009, Dennis and Danielle McClung bought their first home just outside of Phoenix AZ. The desert environment of Arizona can make it difficult to grow a food garden.

The house just happened to come with an old, run down in ground pool. Instead of filling it up with water for swimming recreation, they decided to convert it to grow their own food.

The McClungs repurposed the pool into a solar-powered, aquaponic greenhouse; a sustainable biosphere they affectionately refer to as the Garden Pool .

Their innovative design gives them fish, vegetables and herbs, and fresh chicken eggs every day. The system has faster production methods using 90% less water than conventional farming, and helps to offset their grocery bill by up to 50-75% a day.

Dennis and Danielle feel that food is the currency of the future. They are teaching their children the skills to grow their own food for their future sustainability.

See how they put this backyard ecosystem together, and learn about the sustainable growing medium they use for their vegetables and herbs (it's not soil). Watch the video below and then click through for a picture tutorial on how they did it.



Dennis McClung coaxes organic tomatoes, fresh eggs, bananas, fish, and zucchini out of the desert—an even more righteous repurposing of an old pool than a skate park. Sustainable ingenuity at its best.

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