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Re:Nematodes
Nematodes are so common in nature, that if the basic matter of the world
disappeared and only left the remains of the nematodes, the soil outline and
the outline of most of the plants and animals could still be seen. We are
therefore lucky that most are harmless. Nevertheless, the wise individual
will sterilize any soils they put into the aquarium as a precaution against
the rare occurrence of nematode problems or other pests from the teeming
soils. Most soils that are "rich" in humus are teeming with various
microorganisms, small flora and fauna of other kinds, including algae and
usually BGA of course too. It is also my humble opinion that you will on
most occasions of fish introduction from external sources introduce new
nematodes into your aquarium environment. This would be true of plants too
and in most cases these are also harmless.
If you have ever seen a fish with serious nematode infection, you will not
take undue chances in the future however. This provides good reason to
quarantine both fish and plants before introducing them into an expensive
long-standing and stable aquarium. I boil or bake any soil which I use.
Elmer Morehouse