Fish Food

[bubblebrain00]

Syble..
I remember on the other forums that you feed your sarras fish food.

For the seedlings, how do you get the food in?
Do you crush it and drop it in?
I have some seedling that are about 2 month old and I want to feed them, So whats the best method.

Tanks

[hpulley]

I only feed insects and spiders to my pitcher plants. They catch a fair number on their own and whenever I catch a bug or spider I drop it in.

Harry

[Syble]

Ah well, aidan has also said on occasion that I'm neurotic! Quite frankly it's verry time consuming. I have a very thin piece of florex wire, not sure what compares, but you need a wire small enough to push down the tube of the pitcher. With your ground up fish food (that used to be granuals, not flakes) start with a smaller bit and push it to the bottom. Then gradually fill up about half the pitcher. This is made easier by taking scissors and cutting off the lid of the pitcher. On older pitchers, you don't have too. Now the trick lies in not forcing the food too low as it can score the inner wall, making it vulnerable to the digestive enzymes. Also need to watch you don't poke, prick or scratch the inner wall with the wire. Anny places where the wall is dammaged, the enzymes will try and digest the wall. Worry not if you do this to the odd pitcher, don't cut it off, the plant will still absorb nutrients from it. I find doing this with a bright light behind me helps alot with seeing where things are going.

Hope this helps
Sib

[bubblebrain00]

Thanks, its good info. $$$ ;D

[ellen687]

Does mush of tropical fish food flakes in the water be any good for feeding of the smaller seedlings?

[Syble]

no, as it's through the dewwy leaves that the plants consume their food. Watering like you suggest would likely only cause problems by facilitating various growths in the soil such as fugus and bacteria which once the food in the soil is gone, may turn on your plants! I feed small dews crunched up betta granuals, sticking a peice on the end of my florex wire, then sticking it in the middle of the leaf.the whole leaf will curl around it and make use of it!
Hope it helps!
Sib

[ellen687]

You are using dry fish food, right?
Sorry for lot of questions, I'm picking up titbits of information wherever I can and trying to employ them. Thanks!

[Syble]

yes, I use dry fish food, I think I have 6 different bases. I have been experimenting with it for a while now and have gotten a good hold on what seams to work well for what plants at different stages.
Sib

[ellen687]

Did you notice if some kind of fish food is better accepted by plants? I had read about Beta Bio Gold and Koi fish pellets; seen in store pellets of shrimp, tubeworms and plankton also.

[Syble]

tube worms or flex worms do not seam to be too usefull. I have used many granuals (betta, tropical medley, colour enhancers, ect.) blood worms also. depends on what plant you want to feed and how to avoid mould. I will be doing some experimenting with shrimp and crab cakes.
Sib

[ellen687]

Thanks, will experiment too!

[bubblebrain00]

Has anyone tried to make the fish food more liquid like?
Like mixed crush pellets with water.
So its able to just be pour down the sarras instead of being jammed down the mouth.

[ellen687]

I saw liquid fish food in Wal-Mart... Tried (couple of times) Tropical Fish Food flakes mixed with dist. water, they were congested well by Sarr. seedlings, mixed results with different Drosera seedlings (some "clenched fist" (I mean leaf), some not - and eventually food molded, had to dab with isopropilic.
Difficult to apply if opening is less then 3mm( 1/8") - water drop stands on top, because of air pocket inside.
Next tried same food, crushed to powder, - only part of it was going down into the pitcher.

[Syble]

I have tried wetting the food and I find any time you add water to the food it moulds. Also I avoid flakes as they are very quick to mould. The key is when feeding a pitcher, make sure the food submurges. If it dosen't get covered in the liquid enzyme, it will have little to no benifit. Too often when working with others on this, they find the effect minimal, I look at their plants, and they have not got the food in farenough or it didn't trigger. It's a technique you'll have to practice to perfect. I'm still not perfect, but I have come along way. It's alot easier to learn it in person though. A suggestion to feeding drosera, powderize your food. Flakes tend to suck up the dew and give little benifit, and big granuals are barely used. When surface area is smaller, the plant can use it more. so take the powdered food and place a small amount in the middle of the leaf. You wan't to allow the leaf to curl around it as completly as posible. Wattering from the bottom will help to reduce the mould.
Hope this helps some!
Sib

[bubblebrain00]

Sry to bring this back up,
but I just found Wardley Small Fry: liquid food for all baby fish at walmart.
I was wondering if its good for the plants?
Crude Protein- min 6%
Crude Fat- min 3.5%
Crude Fiber- max 0.4%
Moisture- max 88.00%