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Oak Leaves

AverageWhiteBloke

AverageWhiteBloke

Member
Joined
27 Oct 2009
Messages
2,906
Location
Cumbria
Got hold of some recently fallen Oak leaves to put in my shrimp tank and blackwater species instead of Almond leaves. Just wondering is there anything I need to do to them first before putting them in the tank and what's the best way to store them?
 
Most people prefer to give them a good rinse before adding to the tank, although I have to admit I just bung mine in if I'm reasonably confident they've not come from anywhere too polluted. As for storage, get them nice and dry so they won't rot then they're fine just to sit in a bin bag or whatever.
 
Nice one, will do just that. How effective are they compared to the likes of Almond leaves?
 
Interesting, I'll track down a beech tree. Any certain times of year not to collect and do they need to be totally brown?
 
Yeah go for fully dead, dry, brown leaves. If you find a good spot with a reasonable depth of leaf litter then you can normally find collectable leaves right through to the early spring. They'll store for years if you dry them out thoroughly so worth collecting a few bag-fulls.
 
I needed a new hedge in the back garden this year.
So i planted a beech one.Reckon i'm sorted for life.....
Now just to got to find room for an Alder :D
 
I've tried a combination of leaves and horse chestnut seems to go down the best with the shrimps. Stripped to a skeleton within days.
Why do we want leaves that take along time to breakdown?​
 
Any Fagaceae leaves will be ok IME. I use beech and different Quercus species. Mediterranean oaks have hardier leaves and last even longer

Jordi
 
Have found a lovely turkey oak dropping leaves which have the same waxy polished feel as the Indian almonds. Are you thinking this is the same Mediterranean Oak?
 
No, the Turkey oak is Quercus cerris and when I mention the Mediterranean oaks I mean Quercus ilex (holm/evergreen oak) and other close species (Q. rotundifolia, Q. coccifera, etc.).
Look at their leaves: hard, small and spiny:

http://ichn.iec.cat/Bages/alzinar/cimg08.htm

nothing to do with the Central and North European ones. Not sure if it is like this in English, but in Spanish we have different names for the decidious, broad and soft leaves oaks ("roble") and the evergreen, small and spiny leaves ones ("encinas"), even if they all belong to the same genus. There is actually an intermedium situation (Quercus faginea and Q. pirenaica): it is not exactly a decidious tree as there is no physiological signal for dropping the leaves, so leaves stay brown on the tree until the wind make them fall or until the new leaves push them the next spring.

Anyway, just botanical curiosities, Turkey oak leaves will work perfectly!

Jordi
 
Hqppy collecting. I got two bag fulls. They seem to last longer than Almond leaves and don't break up as quick. Oddly, on a side note, I have a SAE which seems to have taken permananent residence on one of the leaves. Every time I look its just in tbe exact same place but when I try to get a pic of it it takes off. Few seconds later its back in the same place. This is from a fish that never seemed to stay still for 5 seconds! Go figure.
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