Duckweed, Lemna minor and Spirodela polyrhiza, with pictures

	Duckweed -- Lemna minor Blessing and/or Curse

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Goldfish, koi, and carp love duckweed. They eagerly consume every leaf and root of it. Plant-eating snails such as apple snails and Borneo ramshorns also love it. They have a smaller mouth but eat it 24 hours a day. LA This little dab'll get it started. This shows both sizes (Lemna minor and Spirodela polyrhiza). Goldfish strongly prefer the smaller variety. Koi eat both. Neither likes the "hairy" salvini and azolla. Easy with a Capital "E." Can’t grow aquatic plants? Correction! You can grow duckweed. If you have several tanks, you will find it leaps from tank to tank on your net. (Fishnet not Internet.) Just a few starter leaves will soon carpet your tank’s surface. LA Duckweed will soon cover any well lit aquarium unless you thin it continuously. LA Duckweed grows every place except on the bubbles. LA Of the two types, the larger leafed species usually wins. LA Here's the two side by side. LA Another type of duckweed is maroon colored on the underside of its leaves. LA Here's an even smaller duckweed compared with the regular size. LA When algae mixes with your duckweed, your tank really darkens. Surface Plant. Floating at the top, duckweed gets first shot at your aquarium lights. It will screen and thus reduce the growth of rooted plants. Duckweed will usually out compete algae. You rarely get green water in a tank covered with duckweed. From Whence the Name? Ducks love the stuff, hence the name. You rarely find it in duck ponds because they eagerly eat every shred. Ditto geese. Duckweed is quite high in nutritive value -- especially fat and protein. All the duckweed species make an excellent animal and poultry food. Goldfish, too. Goldfish (and koi) also love duckweed. They inhale it like a Hoover. You will not keep duckweed in a goldfish tank. Laxative Powers. Nothing gets a goldfish “moving” like duckweed. It cleans their intestines overnight. You’ll see a few remnants that tell you they love the taste of duckweed. Healing Powers. Orandas (and other squished up goldfish varieties) will occasionally turn upside down and swim around that way for months on end. No one wants to throw away a fifty dollar fish. Here’s where duckweed works miracles. Add duckweed to your goldfish tank and the upside-down oranda will devour it. The laxative powers kick in and all of a sudden your upside-down oranda starts righting itself and swims normally. If it flips again, repeat the dose. No need to take two aspirins or call us in the morning. LA Greenwood pond. Real crop of duckweed here. No koi or goldfish in this pond. Other Health Benefits. Duckweed grows fast, therefore it needs lots of nutrition -- exactly the same things your fishes give off -- ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, phosphates, and carbon dioxide. Oscars, and other lunkers, stay healthier when they live under a thin carpet of duckweed. We say “thin” because duckweed will grow an inch thick if you let it get out of hand. Too thick a layer makes it hard to see your fish. It darkens your tank. Water Cleaner. Duckweed thrives in manure-rich waters and in excessively warm waters. It doubles in leaf area in three to four days. Duckweed grows incredibly fast. LA Looking up at a tank surface in a highly aerated tank -- just like a roof. LA Hard to believe, but we actually ran out of duckweed and bought a pound. Odd Benefit. Jumpers kept under a layer of duckweed are less likely to bail. They think it’s a solid ceiling. We still recommend solid lids. However, the duckweed makes them less likely to try to escape. You need more than duckweed to contain jaguar cichlids, pike cichlids, arowanas, rope fish and other likely leapers. LA © 2003, © 2004, © 2005, © 2011 LA Productions 3600 Sixth Avenue Corner of Sixth & Euclid Avenues Des Moines, IA 50313 515 283-0300 Home Fish Other Stuff	Anabantids Betta Leaf Betta Breed 1 Betta Breed II Betta Info Betta Housing Betta Pla Kat Choc Gourami Climbing Perch Gourami Pix Kiss. 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