Shrimple minded Posted November 14, 2015 Report Share Posted November 14, 2015 About 2-3 months (late summer, outdoors) is what you're seeing The seeds are tiny, think poppy seeds......the pot is clearly over planted, causing the slow undergrowth. I'd love to keep it long enough so it reproduces seeds, have no idea how long that would be. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vpier Posted November 14, 2015 Report Share Posted November 14, 2015 About 2-3 months (late summer, outdoors) is what you're seeing The seeds are tiny, think poppy seeds......the pot is clearly over planted, causing the slow undergrowth. I'd love to keep it long enough so it reproduces seeds, have no idea how long that would be. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk They must produce some kind of flower? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrimple minded Posted November 14, 2015 Report Share Posted November 14, 2015 Apparently so much so they use it as a grain/flour. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amaranth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vpier Posted November 14, 2015 Report Share Posted November 14, 2015 Apparently so much so they use it as a grain/flour. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amaranth Cool flower/flour Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarah Posted January 4, 2016 Report Share Posted January 4, 2016 OK... I just ordered seeds for 2 varieties of amaranth (Green Calalou and Mercado) to grow on my windowsill. Do you guys grow the plants for your shrimp in organic soil? I have a regular bag of miracle grow potting soil, but nothing organic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrimple minded Posted January 4, 2016 Report Share Posted January 4, 2016 My amaranth is just in potting soil from Lowes (probably Miracle Gro), doing well. The trick for me will be getting it through the dry winter. sarah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarah Posted January 6, 2016 Report Share Posted January 6, 2016 My amaranth is just in potting soil from Lowes (probably Miracle Gro), doing well. The trick for me will be getting it through the dry winter. Interesting. You don't have any concerns about chemicals in that soil? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrimple minded Posted January 6, 2016 Report Share Posted January 6, 2016 That would depend on your definition of the word "chemical". I wasn't too horribly concerned about harmful or toxic substances but since you have us both thinking, I looked up the MSDS for Miracle Gro Potting Soil. http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/pdfImages/d8/d87832b0-c61b-4ba3-8eff-608ecceda0bc.pdf I'm certainly not the most qualified person to answer the question, but I don't see anything in the ingredients that I would consider toxic after going through the many, complex changes that it takes to build a plant. svetilda and sarah 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
35ppt Posted January 7, 2016 Report Share Posted January 7, 2016 I am an organic gardener and I think 'organic soil' is really a marketing gimmick. Altho, I have noticed people doing emersed setups seem to highly favour MGOrganic; don't know why. I am not a big fan of the quality of MG, but it should be fine for this purpose. Hopefully you haven't stored it near gasoline or chemicals (gardening, cleaning, etc)? sarah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrimple minded Posted January 7, 2016 Report Share Posted January 7, 2016 I stack my bags of potting soil neatly between the control rods of my nuclear reactor. svetilda, Soothing Shrimp, sarah and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pokeshrimp Posted January 7, 2016 Report Share Posted January 7, 2016 I stack my bags of potting soil neatly between the control rods of my nuclear reactor. That soil must grow tomacco very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted January 7, 2016 Report Share Posted January 7, 2016 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrimple minded Posted January 7, 2016 Report Share Posted January 7, 2016 That soil must grow tomacco very well. Love the Simpsons reference Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
35ppt Posted January 7, 2016 Report Share Posted January 7, 2016 I stack my bags of potting soil neatly between the control rods of my nuclear reactor. Sweet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crackhead Johny Posted January 9, 2016 Report Share Posted January 9, 2016 Will most leaves do? As an ex landscaper I'm trying to figure out what is supposed to make one variety of nonpoisonous leaf better than others. Mainly bacteria/film live on it right? Ginko leaves from the tree in front would be just fine? I'm guessing that leaves of my Kafir lime would probably be bad due to other uses of leaves and fruit? Use the leaves of the dead Avacado? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
latchdan Posted January 27, 2016 Report Share Posted January 27, 2016 Mulberry trees are everywhere near me, couldn't i just pick some leaves... who put pesticides in a tree? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aennedry Posted January 27, 2016 Report Share Posted January 27, 2016 Cities will spray trees to keep control of 'pest' bugs like mosquitos and other insects. And you have to worry about pesticide run off from agricultural areas, and spray over if they crop dust in your area. And being down wind from various industrial and manufacturing plants that may have stacks that send possibly toxic residue, or even near streets where car exhaust may settle on the trees. Or even the paranoid neighbor and their hand sprayer trying to kill every bug in their yard. The world is just not as clean and pure as we would wish it was. If you don't have any of these issues, the leaves may be safe, but you would want to rinse them off before use. =^._.^= Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monty703 Posted January 27, 2016 Report Share Posted January 27, 2016 If you can find a fruit orchard that grows only organic/non pesticide fruit trees sometimes in the fall you can ask for the dried ones, or even maybe in the spring a couple of new leaves. I hear that Peach trees are a favourite with shrimps, but Im thinking any fruit leaf would be welcome. I get a lot of my leaves in the fall when they are totally dried out from nature trails, also a good place to find alder cones too, just make sure you leave them outside for a while as spidders live inside the cones....learned this the hard way a couple of years ago. svetilda and sarah 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarah Posted January 27, 2016 Report Share Posted January 27, 2016 If you can find a fruit orchard that grows only organic/non pesticide fruit trees sometimes in the fall you can ask for the dried ones, or even maybe in the spring a couple of new leaves. I hear that Peach trees are a favourite with shrimps, but Im thinking any fruit leaf would be welcome. Monty - this is such an awesome idea! I just made a note in my calendar to go to a pick-your-own farm this summer and ask for some leaves (and also get some fruit for myself of course)! You mentioned Spring and Fall - does it matter what time of the season I pick them? Other than peach, are there any other leaves that might be found a pick-your-own type place? None of the ones near me seem to grow mulberry or amaranth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pokeshrimp Posted January 27, 2016 Report Share Posted January 27, 2016 Botanical gardens are a good spot for leaves as well. The one near me does no use pesticides and they have all sorts of plants and trees. sarah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monty703 Posted January 28, 2016 Report Share Posted January 28, 2016 You can virtually use any fruit tree leaves...the shrimps will love them. Apple/Peach/Orange etc. I would go more for the dried ones in the Fall only because the Farmers may not like having new leaves stripped off their trees, but in the Fall they end up on the ground anyway, so why would they care if you picked a few dried out ones. Also you wouldn't need to boil the leaves either once they are dried out. We pick oak/maple/alder leaves in the Fall at a nature trail too....no pesticides there, but only pick off the tree, not off the ground! Ground leaves could be contaminated with dog feces and other nasty stuff, but the leaves on the trees are still fine, pick only clean looking ones, not moth-eaten or bird poop on them. sarah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aennedry Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 I am planning on getting apple and pear leaves, and rose petals from my organic community garden this year. It is also a good source for dandelion leaves. =^._.^= sarah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monty703 Posted January 30, 2016 Report Share Posted January 30, 2016 Like Nettle leaves (which they use a lot in Germany) Dandelion will probably be a big hit. I picked Nettle leaves from the plants in the Nature Trail (off the beaten track) with gloves on and boiled them before putting some in the tank. Then I found a greenhouse that grew Nettle plants (no pesticide) so I bought a few plants of my own and just grew them in the sun outside on my balcony. mayphly and svetilda 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wygglz Posted January 30, 2016 Report Share Posted January 30, 2016 I've never seen nettle around here. And with all of the plants we've decided to grow for food (us & shrimp) I've never thought of trying to get some nettle. What a great idea to do it in pots in your yard! I did dandelions last year but didn't boil them first. P4obably not my best idea since one floated over and clogged the outflow flooding the shrimp room as the pump was blissfully pumping water into the tank and over the top. Lol Lesson learned - boil first! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
svetilda Posted January 30, 2016 Report Share Posted January 30, 2016 I buy cruched nettle leaves in a Russian store. There their have a stand with boxes with natural herbs for human health. My shrimp love them! 35ppt 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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