Re: [Killietalk] coir as a peat moss substitute ? [second posting]

[Wright Huntley <whuntley at verizon_net>]

I have tried it as a spawning medium, but it contains too much ground 
coconut shell and not enough of the outer husk fiber (true coir). That 
means it is very harsh and hard on the eggs, compared to peat. Redwood 
shavings (aka gorilla fur (TM) or monkey fur) are a better spawning 
medium, by far, IMHO. The latter is a good substitute for the 
hard-to-get German fibrous peat. Redwoods grow very fast and are a 
renewable resource, too. Pity distribution is so limited. I have only 
found it in garden shops in N. CA.

Some have made the so-called coir work, but I think it requires very 
delicate handling and possibly still damages many eggs. YMMV. Maybe 
different brands have different amounts of shell fragments? Mine was 
always sandy/gritty feeling, even after boiling.

Wright

Tom Isgro wrote:
> Have not used it as a spawning medium, but works great in my grindal cultures.
>
> --
> Tom Isgro
> Hamilton, OH
>     
> -------------- Original message ----------------------
> From: "Bruce J. Turner, Dept. Biol. Sci., VPISU, Blacksburg, VA 240" <fishgen at vt_edu>
>   
>> Peat moss is considered as a "non-renewable" resource, and its use in gardening
>> and agricultural applications continues to be actively discouraged by
>> environmental activists and other people who are part of the "organic" movement
>> or consider themselves "green." Whatever the merits of the case, it is not
>> necessarily far-fetched to prepare for a time  when peat moss may become hard
>> to get.  If its use in gardening becomes highly unpopular, then, once extant
>> stocks are exhausted, it is unlikely that it will  be available to killifish
>> hobbyists, for we obviously do not comprise a significant portion of the
>> market.
>>
>> This is why I am interested in looking at coir as a potential substitute.  I
>> would appreciate hearing from anyone, offlist or onlist, who has any experience
>> in using it as a killifish breeding medium.
>>
>>
>> Bruce J. Turner
>> Dept. Biol. Sci.
>> VIRGINIA TECH
>> Blacksburg, VA 24061 USA
>>     


-- 
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Wright Huntley - 805 Valley West Cir., Bishop CA 93514 
whuntley at verizon_net 760 872-3995. Cell 760 937-2276

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