Caryl

killifish or puffers? I think 40L too small for the paradisefish. Not sure about hatchetfish. What are the tank dimensions?

I got your PM and will post the plants up on Monday with a PM to let you know the cost. I think it will be $10.00 for overnight tracked.

It's Caryl and no, I have no PM from you. Have got one from someone else so I know it is working!

I've got crypts and Anubias nana. Pay for P&P. PM me your name and address then I'll let you know cost once posted. Should be under $10 - $15. As the weather is cooling I would prefer to send them tracked overnight which is a little more costly than normal post.

PM'd you

I am happy to post up red rotala, some crypts (affinis I think) and/or Anubias nana. Free except for cost of p&p which will be about $10 from past experience (unless parcel postage has gone up again like letter postage)

Oh wow, I am so sorry to hear that. I don't think he was very old either. Dark always wrote good posts here and was always quick to offer help and/or advice. Condolences to his wife, family and friends.

I have no experience with blackwater tanks or using peat but found your post interesting. Were both bags of peat the same brand?

Hmm the above questions from you went to my profile and I was surprised as I did not know you could do that - obviously you can't I did reply there but will do so here again since it didn't work. My snails are large pond snails and nothing like your small coils. The temp in the pond does not rise much as it is so big and has deck overhangs at both ends more more shade. The paddling pool warmed up and some snails died but they may have been the ones first in the barrel before being transferred so weren't so good when added to the paddling pool. They have all been delivered to ChCh and eaten by Donna's turtles now. If I have time I will collect more for the next trip down. 31C here again today but has been as high as 34C. We had a few cool days (22 - 25) but it has risen again. We have had 0.6mm rain since Christmas Day and now have a total fire ban and they are closing many of the walking and cycling tracks. They are saying it will rain at the weekend. Hope they're right!

An excellent book people. I have a copy and it is well written, easy to read, and most informative with excellent photos.

I wouldn't as you might find you have one happy, even more giant, kokopu and no goldfish.

Good question but I have no answer! I should think that as it has been soaking and has no secretions it might be fine. I've not heard any warnings against using it and it is not known to be poisonous.

Quite possibly. Anything that upsets the balance of the aquarium can affect the water colour and/or growth of algae.

I have had several fruit growers saying it is too hot and ruining the fruit. The plums and blackberries are developing an odd texture.

I didn't cover the pool when I was breeding fish but when we were getting steady 33C temps here I was worried it might get too hot for the snails. We don't have a problem with kingfishers here, usually herons, but they can't wade in the pool (too deep) nor land on the side (too thin). All you need is the paddling pool (and perhaps some netting if kingfishers are a problem)

I, for one, appreciate all your wonderful photos

This summer would be a good time to try breeding tropical fish outside here. We are supposed to get 35C in a couple of days. 32C has been bad enough but various barbs would grow well in ponds at the moment. The only thing I have had in a pond this summer (apart from the goldfish in their pond) were 1,000's of snails. They'd been caught out of the fish pond to take down to Donna Moot, the turtle rescue lady in ChCh, but our trip had to be postponed when visiting daughter came off her bike and broke her collarbone. As a result of her being unable to travel home (to ChCh) we needed to find somewhere for the snails for a couple of weeks so set up a 6ft diameter plastic pond with a gazebo to protect them from full sun. The pond pictured is the same sort I used to breed Odessa and rosy barbs outside. Once the water had reached a minimum of 16C overnight, I would dump in plenty of oxygen weed then add fish. At the end of summer we would empty the pond and collect all the fish.

It is possible to breed them. It is having the fry survive long enough to grow too big to eaten that is the main problem. My Odessa barbs produce frequently but only a few survive, thanks to very heavy plant growth. They aren't as aggressive hunters as tigers though either

http://www.terrain.net.nz/friends-of-te-henui-group/spiders/spider-two-spined-poecilopachys-australasia.html Two spined spider (Poecilopachys australasia)

It isn't Dena, it is my daughter, Kelly, who had the accident. Dena and her frogs are all hale and hearty

I can't remember which one it is (I can photograph a single stem of it if you like) but photos of the plant in my pond were originally used in the plant database to show a banned 'oxygen weed'.

I have been collecting snails to send down to Donna Moot, the Turtle Rescue Lady, in Christchurch. My daughter, who had been here for Christmas, was going to take them back with her so I have been collecting snails and putting them in a 30l barrel, ready to go. Yesterday, said daughter came off her bike and has broken her collarbone so is stuck here until the pain has reduced enough to take the long drive back to Christchurch from Blenheim. She is not allowed to drive for at least 2 weeks so we will be driving her back (and picking up 2 ebikes Grant has just bought) but not until her pain eases considerably and she is able to dress and undress herself and do other things one handed - and they must be light as any movement jars her collarbone (you can hear it crunch!) Anyhoo, the snails create a lot of mess so couldn't stay in the barrel so we set up a paddling pool, added a large lily plant plus covered it all with a low gazebo to keep them in the shade. They must be the most spoilt snails in NZ!

I have just noticed my oxygen weed (yes I know it is the illegal oxygen weed but that is all we have in our local waterways where I get my pond plants from) flowering. I have not noticed it do so before but the flowers are small and probably got lost in all the hebe flowers that used to drop in the pond. This pond is due to be emptied, cleaned out, then lined, as it developed problems after the big quake. Now the EQC money has come through we can repair it. We were going to use liquid rubber but have now decided to get rid of the waterfall, even the edges, line it with pond liner then do the edges with timber or concrete for a straight rectangle look. Then we can get a metal cover made with shade netting, or similar (may have a summer cover and winter cover) to stop leaves dropping into the pond. It is under a huge Chinese silk tree which makes a mess. We thought the leaves were small and fine so would rot quickly but they don't. They form a dense mat on the bottom of the pond, 10 - 15cm deep, quite quickly.

Hasn't anyone got an answer for Malevolentsparkl? It has been so long since I kept these fish I have forgotten what goes with what

back. I like a densely planted colourful community tank too.