Re: Leaf litter in the Aquarium

[Erik Olson <eriko@wrq.com>]

On Wed, 6 Nov 1996, Francis Brian O'Carroll wrote:

> Autumn and there are a lot of leaves to be raked ...
> 
> Since I caught a lot of apistos living in leaf litter
> on the banks of streams, I wonder if anyone has experimented
> with leaf litter in the aquarium? I know that boiling leaves
> can be used to make acidic black water, but does anyone have
> any experience using real off-the-tree leaves in aquariums?
> Sounds like a recipe for total biological disaster but I'm
> tempted to try.

We've been using oak leaves in the bottom of one of our tanks for 6
months.  They look nice and do give some fish a place to hide.  Our only
regret is not doing MORE of them, which will be rectified soon!

We boiled them and then submurged them for 24 hours under a strainer so
they would sink (the biggest problem).  Our A. nijsseni & A. cacatuoides
do quite nicely in this tank (at different times!).

    - Erik

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Erik D. Olson					         amazingly, at home
eriko@wrq.com