I have 9 tanks set up currently. The one in my office at work is the one I do the least with, and it is also the healthiest. The difference: it's the only one I put leaf litter in. We can't truly replicate nature, but we can bring parts of it into our tanks as best we can and let nature do what it wants. It's so cool to watch.
@@derekeaton4021 “We can’t truly replicate nature, but we can bring parts of it into our tanks as best we can and let nature do what it wants “ probably the best statement and explanation I have heard in awhile 😁👍
The rainbow shiners look absolutely stunning in that setup-it’s honestly amazing! And those platies aren’t too shabby either! Speaking of platies, we once stumbled upon a strain at a local fish store that had the most incredible colours. They had a pure deep black base with vibrant neon blue and neon purple blotches (only them 3 colours and no two were identical). Of course, we had to snap them up! Sadly, when they reached 6-7 months, every single one developed tumours and passed away. They would drop fry before dying, but the cycle continued-the fry were fine until 6-7 months, then the tumours would appear again. It was heartbreaking. Eventually, we decided it was unfair to let the strain continue suffering, so we had to cull them to end the cycle. It was such a sad experience, especially since we’ve never seen that colouration anywhere before or since. Anyway, enough of that tangent! By the way, we saw your Christmas video at my sister’s house on her TV-the one where you were tangled in Christmas lights. We laughed so hard! It immediately reminded us of the Griswolds, and then you actually featured them in the video-brilliant! Thanks for the videos, buddy! We absolutely love them. We mostly watch them on TV, though, so sadly, we can’t comment there but always watch. Keep up the amazing work!
@@Aquadiction thank you I love that rainbow shiner tank as well! Yeah I had fun with the Christmas video😂 Thank you for the support I appreciate you guys a lot😁
Yep Patty Dry leaves is what I started doing instead of a resurrection jar. As my first resurrection jar I did there was so much stuff in it I couldn't identify so I opted to just use dry leaves. from my yard and I also use Catappa leaves as well. The fish and shrimp all enjoy some of natures best!!
I Patty, I am happy you discussed this subject. I recently seen another fishtuber who is stating that dry leaves are dangerous for the tank. Of course this individual has issues with FF. I really wish people would adopt a more open mind to things. I have been using dry leaves in my tank for many years and your video is spot on.
Even planaria can be useful in the right system. If you're breeding egg laying fish, everything is or h as a high potential to be the enemy of the egg. The paramecium, infusoria, seed shrimp, etc. that leaves support can be very useful with microscopic fry. I'm going to need a better macro lens to start sharing earlier stages of my fry.
I had leaves and various botanicals in all my aquariums. They microfauna are perfect for rearing fry in those early days after just hatching until large enough to eat BBS
I am really glad you did this as I dried out a small bucket of dry oak leaves I don't keep shrimp anymore but I love the idea of starting a safe cyclops colony or scud colony. You broke it down nicely if benefits to the entire ecosystem Full view as always
@pattys_aquatics Yeah we spend years on that book and especially the leaf litter chapter. I really hope people will enjoy it. It debunks some common myths as well and talks about things like tannins vs humic substances.
@pattys_aquatics Yeah we spend years on that book. Especially the chapter on leaf litter since we had to dig up so much research. Lots of old dusty books and online research lol. I really hope people will enjoy the book and learn how awsome leaf litter is in the aquarium is. We covered things like tannins vs humic substances and listed 17 different leaf litter species and their properties. There are even leaves with zero tannins.
I had an untouched jar from last spring that most of the water had evaporated from. Went from 11 inches of water down to about 2... last month i topped the jar back up and the cyclops/hydra had a boom, withen a week i transferred the jar into a cycled 10g and now i have a thriving pop of cyclops and hydra. Im not currently doing shrimp or nano fish so the hydra doesnt really bother me, i find them pretty interesting as a freshwater anemone 😊 i added moina eggs 3 days ago and am starting to see some jumping around 😊
I add leaves from my ornamental pear tree they are thicker last longer shrimp love them. What kind of platies were those in your intro they were beautiful
Mr. Patty, Thank you once again for a very informative and interesting video. Unlike the comments below I do not have a success story on the leaves as I have not yet collected any, but do plan to do so. I have a question. I live in Florida where there are a lot of numerous types of leaves and other materials on the ground. I noted that in you video, as well as other's the leaves are either purchased online leave or what appear to be maple leaves. I know I don't have any maple leaves around. The most prevalent leaf I have are oak tree leaves, would those work / be safe? Additionally, I have numerous tropical plant, vine, leaves, pine needles, pine cones and even Spanish moss. Just wandering if there is any type of leaves or moss that may cause a toxicant in the aquarium. I know FF has an E-book out talking about leaves, I am just technically savvy enough to know how to get it or if it would even address it, so that is where you come in. I believe you to be quite knowledgeable about the subject. So, I would appreciate your opinion. Sorry for the long note!
@@randyfrost6573 why thank you! Honestly I use a lot of oak leaves and have had no issues. I believe any hardwood tree leaves would be best because they probably would last long to breakdown. As far as the moss I’m not 100 percent sure and wouldn’t want to give you the wrong advice. I absolutely love leaves in an aquarium and think you would too😁
Once i saw the benefits of leaves i can no longer set up a tank without them, they help keep a lower kh, they release tracé elements , they naturally condition the water to à natural fertilizer, by adding different types of leaves you add diversity in minerals.
If someone soaked the leaves in tap water, would the chemicals in that water kill off any of the microscopic life and or the benefits they they provide?
My thought would be that the beneficial bacteria on the collected leaves would be atmospheric bacteria as opposed to aquatic so it wouldn't necessarily matter...the porous leave material would provide ideal surface area to allow aquatic bacteria and micro organisms to take hold after they were added, be a good idea to soak them for 24hrs though to allow for any chemicals to Gas off before adding to the tank :) if you are ever concerned though you could always use water from an established tank to do the rinsing :)
I'm going to take a bit of a hybrid approach; I'm going to boil the dried leaves for a couple minutes to destroy everything I dont want. My neocaridina shrimp can then munch on the clean leaves and I can enjoy the aesthetic. Then im going to introduce cultures of the microfauna I do want, which for now is just water fleas for my nano fish to eat.
I've been adding leaves to my tank since it was set up. That was a year ago. Inspired by FF, an aquarium was started with pond and river mud, capped with sand. My plants came with the muck. New dried leaves banked along my fence are fuel, keeping all the life in the mud and water feed. It is teeming with microlife. It even has a small colony of bryozoans living on a moss stem. Some planarians came with the mud from one collection site. They died out because their new home did not match the living conditions of their old site. A month ago, I added fish. The elephant ear betta, platy, and ghost shrimp are always energetically hunting. While my water isn't crystal, it is healthy and lively. It is a worthwhile experiment.
@@janemarriott3389 not off hand Jane! I like a diversity of different leaves but if I had to guess hardwood tree leaves would probably last the longest. 😁
I use the leaves from my mulberry tree and i also brought indian almond leaves but they are overpriced so i ordered my own tree last week hard to find here in Australia
I have 9 tanks set up currently. The one in my office at work is the one I do the least with, and it is also the healthiest. The difference: it's the only one I put leaf litter in. We can't truly replicate nature, but we can bring parts of it into our tanks as best we can and let nature do what it wants. It's so cool to watch.
@@derekeaton4021 “We can’t truly replicate nature, but we can bring parts of it into our tanks as best we can and let nature do what it wants “ probably the best statement and explanation I have heard in awhile 😁👍
The rainbow shiners look absolutely stunning in that setup-it’s honestly amazing! And those platies aren’t too shabby either!
Speaking of platies, we once stumbled upon a strain at a local fish store that had the most incredible colours. They had a pure deep black base with vibrant neon blue and neon purple blotches (only them 3 colours and no two were identical). Of course, we had to snap them up! Sadly, when they reached 6-7 months, every single one developed tumours and passed away. They would drop fry before dying, but the cycle continued-the fry were fine until 6-7 months, then the tumours would appear again. It was heartbreaking. Eventually, we decided it was unfair to let the strain continue suffering, so we had to cull them to end the cycle. It was such a sad experience, especially since we’ve never seen that colouration anywhere before or since.
Anyway, enough of that tangent! By the way, we saw your Christmas video at my sister’s house on her TV-the one where you were tangled in Christmas lights. We laughed so hard! It immediately reminded us of the Griswolds, and then you actually featured them in the video-brilliant!
Thanks for the videos, buddy! We absolutely love them. We mostly watch them on TV, though, so sadly, we can’t comment there but always watch. Keep up the amazing work!
@@Aquadiction thank you I love that rainbow shiner tank as well!
Yeah I had fun with the Christmas video😂
Thank you for the support I appreciate you guys a lot😁
Great topic once again Patty. Congrats on getting over that nasty cold too. Lol
Yep Patty Dry leaves is what I started doing instead of a resurrection jar. As my first resurrection jar I did there was so much stuff in it I couldn't identify so I opted to just use dry leaves. from my yard and I also use Catappa leaves as well. The fish and shrimp all enjoy some of natures best!!
@@razinfishes1918 heck yeah Scott, this takes the worry away from what might be in that jar I’m adding to my tank for sure 😁👍
I Patty, I am happy you discussed this subject. I recently seen another fishtuber who is stating that dry leaves are dangerous for the tank. Of course this individual has issues with FF. I really wish people would adopt a more open mind to things. I have been using dry leaves in my tank for many years and your video is spot on.
@@seannunes2041 thank you and yes more open mindedness in the hobby could go a long way towards improving it and understanding each other 😁👍
Fantastic video! Thanks for sharing
@@Fishy_Things your welcome and thank you😁
Even planaria can be useful in the right system. If you're breeding egg laying fish, everything is or h as a high potential to be the enemy of the egg. The paramecium, infusoria, seed shrimp, etc. that leaves support can be very useful with microscopic fry. I'm going to need a better macro lens to start sharing earlier stages of my fry.
@@jeffkane4391 very true statements there Jeff. I would love to see some of that footage 😁
I had leaves and various botanicals in all my aquariums. They microfauna are perfect for rearing fry in those early days after just hatching until large enough to eat BBS
@@brantonlightcap very true Branton the life they can hold can be tremendous in fry tanks
I am really glad you did this as I dried out a small bucket of dry oak leaves
I don't keep shrimp anymore but I love the idea of starting a safe cyclops colony or scud colony.
You broke it down nicely if benefits to the entire ecosystem
Full view as always
@@stubbsaquatics6080 thanks Chris and I just find this process much safer which is my biggest draw to it 😁
Great video Pat. Just be careful you don't get any leaves that might have some pesticides on them
@@kpocala1061 thank you and you are correct. That is one thing I forgot to mention in the video. Thank you for sharing it😁
The new Father Fish ebook has a whole scientific chapter on leaf litter and their properties.
@@Desmond000007 very cool! You were a big part of that book too I believe from what I seen on Discord. 😁👍
@pattys_aquatics Yeah we spend years on that book and especially the leaf litter chapter. I really hope people will enjoy it. It debunks some common myths as well and talks about things like tannins vs humic substances.
@pattys_aquatics Yeah we spend years on that book. Especially the chapter on leaf litter since we had to dig up so much research. Lots of old dusty books and online research lol.
I really hope people will enjoy the book and learn how awsome leaf litter is in the aquarium is. We covered things like tannins vs humic substances and listed 17 different leaf litter species and their properties. There are even leaves with zero tannins.
Btw i just love the shiners. Coolest fish ever
I had an untouched jar from last spring that most of the water had evaporated from. Went from 11 inches of water down to about 2... last month i topped the jar back up and the cyclops/hydra had a boom, withen a week i transferred the jar into a cycled 10g and now i have a thriving pop of cyclops and hydra. Im not currently doing shrimp or nano fish so the hydra doesnt really bother me, i find them pretty interesting as a freshwater anemone 😊 i added moina eggs 3 days ago and am starting to see some jumping around 😊
@@PhoenixRising2040 very cool! I sometimes find these types of projects just as interesting as an aquarium 😁
I add leaves from my ornamental pear tree they are thicker last longer shrimp love them. What kind of platies were those in your intro they were beautiful
@@walterotiepka1460 great suggestion! They are high fin blue coral Variatus and thank you 🙏
Mr. Patty, Thank you once again for a very informative and interesting video. Unlike the comments below I do not have a success story on the leaves as I have not yet collected any, but do plan to do so. I have a question. I live in Florida where there are a lot of numerous types of leaves and other materials on the ground. I noted that in you video, as well as other's the leaves are either purchased online leave or what appear to be maple leaves. I know I don't have any maple leaves around. The most prevalent leaf I have are oak tree leaves, would those work / be safe? Additionally, I have numerous tropical plant, vine, leaves, pine needles, pine cones and even Spanish moss. Just wandering if there is any type of leaves or moss that may cause a toxicant in the aquarium. I know FF has an E-book out talking about leaves, I am just technically savvy enough to know how to get it or if it would even address it, so that is where you come in. I believe you to be quite knowledgeable about the subject. So, I would appreciate your opinion. Sorry for the long note!
@@randyfrost6573 why thank you! Honestly I use a lot of oak leaves and have had no issues. I believe any hardwood tree leaves would be best because they probably would last long to breakdown.
As far as the moss I’m not 100 percent sure and wouldn’t want to give you the wrong advice.
I absolutely love leaves in an aquarium and think you would too😁
I always have more success in fry aquariums that are full of moss and leaves. Free fry food. Cheers
@@IMaqua absolutely I can see that with all the life for small fry to forage from 😁👍
What kind of fish are in the aquarium around the 8 minute mark? I love all the colors on them!
@@Dogfish63 those are my high fin blue coral Variatus. Or a platy really😁 yes I absolutely love their colors as well 😁👍
Once i saw the benefits of leaves i can no longer set up a tank without them, they help keep a lower kh, they release tracé elements , they naturally condition the water to à natural fertilizer, by adding different types of leaves you add diversity in minerals.
@@victoralba6796 perfect and spot on . I absolutely love them as well 😁
If someone soaked the leaves in tap water, would the chemicals in that water kill off any of the microscopic life and or the benefits they they provide?
My thought would be that the beneficial bacteria on the collected leaves would be atmospheric bacteria as opposed to aquatic so it wouldn't necessarily matter...the porous leave material would provide ideal surface area to allow aquatic bacteria and micro organisms to take hold after they were added, be a good idea to soak them for 24hrs though to allow for any chemicals to Gas off before adding to the tank :) if you are ever concerned though you could always use water from an established tank to do the rinsing :)
@@PhoenixRising2040 you couldn’t have answered that any better thank you 😁👍
I'm going to take a bit of a hybrid approach; I'm going to boil the dried leaves for a couple minutes to destroy everything I dont want. My neocaridina shrimp can then munch on the clean leaves and I can enjoy the aesthetic.
Then im going to introduce cultures of the microfauna I do want, which for now is just water fleas for my nano fish to eat.
I've been adding leaves to my tank since it was set up. That was a year ago. Inspired by FF, an aquarium was started with pond and river mud, capped with sand. My plants came with the muck. New dried leaves banked along my fence are fuel, keeping all the life in the mud and water feed. It is teeming with microlife. It even has a small colony of bryozoans living on a moss stem. Some planarians came with the mud from one collection site. They died out because their new home did not match the living conditions of their old site. A month ago, I added fish. The elephant ear betta, platy, and ghost shrimp are always energetically hunting. While my water isn't crystal, it is healthy and lively. It is a worthwhile experiment.
@@powersdavidc very cool, thank you for sharing I love hearing others set ups 😁👍
Patty, do you find some kinds of tree leaves work better than others?
@@janemarriott3389 not off hand Jane! I like a diversity of different leaves but if I had to guess hardwood tree leaves would probably last the longest. 😁
I use the leaves from my mulberry tree and i also brought indian almond leaves but they are overpriced so i ordered my own tree last week hard to find here in Australia
@@chefsteve8381 that’s a way around it!😁nice 😁👍
Do Corydoras eat planaria?
I have yet to see anything actually eat planaria myself. I have been told many fish do, but they don't for me.
@jeffkane4391 i have had guppies and bettas eat them.i only feed once a week so they are hungry
@@dantheman8112 thanks for the response Jeff, I don’t own Cory’s but a quick google search said they do not.