Re: Coconut fibre (was peat)

["Nick Ternes" <woodland_gardens at hotmail_com>]

Personally I don't like using peat for anything.  The mining of peat bogs is 
an ecologically horrible practice and destroys hundreds if not thousands of 
canadian peat bogs every year.  Personally I think lower egg yield is 
preferable.  As far as the Coir, that's the term used in the horticultural 
field for ground coconut husks.  Not because it's correct, but because it's 
easy.  If one checked horticultural suppliers you could probably find pure 
coir material.  Another option for a fine material would be milled sphagnum. 
  It's a little finer than peat, which could cause problems with it being in 
suspension and clogging filters etc.  Yet another option, fine compost.

If as fishkeepers we can be responsible enough to keep original location 
varieties alive without crossbreeding with other varieties, why can't we 
think a little about conservation of the world as a whole?
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Coconut "peat" ? Yes, this is a relatively new medium but it really does not 
differ very much from peat moss in many of its properties but, as I 
mentioned in my previous message, I feel it is inferior to peat in many 
respects. At least that has been my experience. It actually will discolor 
water as badly or worse than will normal peat. It can get contaminated with 
uneaten food in the same way that peat can. Admittedly, it does not clog up 
filters to the same extent. As I also mentioned in my previous message, I 
think it is too coarse and granular and I definitely get a lower egg yield 
with it compared to finer peat. I also feel that it does not provide the 
best environment for incubation of the eggs. I have not checked the effect 
of coconut "peat" on pH but it is organic so I suspect it would also tend to 
lower the pH if the water was soft.

Many people refer to this material as "Coir" or "Coconut fiber". I don't
think these terms accurately describe this material. The term "coir"
strictly refers only to coconut fiber component and, while this material
does have a significant fiber content, the majority of it comprises the
granular material that, with the fibers, makes up the internal part of the 
coconut husk. I have examined coconut husks on numerous occasions in East 
Africa in order to determine exactly what this material is. It is not, for 
example, a dominantly fibrous material as is the peat fiber that comes from 
Europe.
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Nick Ternes
2433 Mayflower Ave
Sheboygan WI, 53083
(920) 452-5631
woodland_gardens at hotmail_com

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