"Alder pods/cones"

[tjudy]

Anyone in the USA know where I can get some alder pods/cones? Are the European alder trees the same as the alder trees here in NA? If so, anyone with an alder tree want to throw a bunch in a bag and ship them to me?

 

[Mike Wise]

The European alder, Alnus glutinosa was introduced into the New England states of the US & Maritime Provinces of Canada during colonial times. It is considered an invasive species in: [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]IL, IN, MI, NY, PA, WI. [/FONT][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]There are 8 Native American alders (Alnus species). Check out the distribution map at: http://plants.usda.gov/cgi_bin/topics.cgi?earl=plant_profile.cgi&symbol=ALNUS.
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[tjudy]

Cool.. Thanks Mike. Now all I need to do is get out my handy-dandy winter tree dichotomous key and try to find one. Anyone know if the NA species are as useful in an apisto tank as the European species is?

The DATZ publication describes them as having some anyi-microbial properties as well as adding a small amount of tannins and lowering the pH. I might try loading a small canister filter with them and letting my apisto water run through it as it ages before water changes.

 

[fishgeek]

lots of plants do similar ted
melaleuca family is well researched to contain anti-justabouteverything chemicals
scientifically researched
sold to fish keepers around the globe and produced from two species of the plant
available at most health shops or such as pure tea tree oil, just dilute 1 in 100 before usage

do i need to start putting a liability disclaimer on all my statements?

andrew

 

[eranu]

Does anyone actually use alder cones in their tanks? I would imagine it would look pretty natural.

 

[eranu]

Does anyone actually use alder cones in their tanks? I would imagine it would look pretty natural.

 

[Mike Wise]

From what I read in German publications, they are excellent for making sterile blackwater. You just have to be careful about using other parts of the alder.

 

[nir_tza]

does anybody know if the health shop ones comes diluted?

 

[eranu]

From what I read in German publications, they are excellent for making sterile blackwater. You just have to be careful about using other parts of the alder.

Is blackwater a way of describing tannin coloured water?

 

[Mike Wise]

Yes, it is the tanins that make blackwater in Nature. The alder cones are supposed to have additional antiseptic characteristics.

 

[Microman]

Alder cones are also being used successfully in the UK, as an alternative to methylene blue, for inhibiting the growth of fungus on fish eggs when hatching artificially.
I make my own extract of alder which is reported to have anti fungal and anti bacterial properties...It works a treat when breeding some of the harder dwarfs/apistos that require extremely acidic conditions and low bacterial count in the water for successful hatch rates.
Used it on Ivanacara adoketa rather than UV to successfully get viable eggs.
Very similar to Indian almond leaves.
Mark...