Good Result With Mulberry Leaves

[rawprawn]

As a noob I've had more setbacks than wins over the last 12 months with my yellow cherries.

BUT...after reading about mulberry leaves on here I was amazed by the coincidence of finding a tree on a remote, pristine farm we regularly visit west of Wauchope NSW.

After 4 weeks of feeding one big leaf per week to my tank of about 100 shrimp (30/70 adults/babies) there is no doubt that they have greatly improved the condition of my shrimp.

The most noticeable things are the nice clean moults when they often died from that, the stronger colors, huge increase in activity and for the first time a bunch of shrimplets surviving and growing out.

I don't mean to gush, but it's good when you get something right and I'm hoping this will help other noobs like me.

I'm using leaves the size of a small plate.

I put them in a pyrex baking dish and poor hot water from the kettle over them, then let them sit till they are sinking.

When I drop them in they charge over to it, but tend to not start eating till the second day.

Once they start eating it every single shrimp in the tank seems to be on it and they smash a really big leaf in 24-36 hours, stripped right back to the white fibres/veins in the leaf. Quite amazing.

I would suggest that this is one of the super foods for cherries at least, don't know about others, and well worth using.

[ineke]

Mulberry leaves are a firm favourite of all my shrimp , they will leave everything for mulberry leaves. I always have a leaf in every tank, I replace them as soon as there are only veins left. I prepar them several ways- 1) fresh from the tree boiled for 2 minutes then cooled with cold water ( blanched) then fed straight away - this is the preferred method by the shrimp, 2) do the above then roll and fold the leaves and freeze them -  they can then be taken out and put straight into the tank as needed - they defrost almost instantly- 3) put the fresh leaves in a pillow case and hang them on the clothes line for several days until perfectly dry - the clothes line is the perfect place to dry them as it gets sun and allows the breeze to fully dry the leaves so no mould grows on them, the dried leaves can be placed straight into the tank or refreshed in a bowl of water until they sink . I doubt you can over feed on mulberry leaves . I have been doing this for sometime and my shrimplet survival rate has improved impressively.  A plate of mulberry leaves ready for the freezer! Did you know it's very easy to propagate a mulberry tree? Just cut a thin branch into small sticks , place into potting mix and keep well watered. I have about 6 small bushes that keep my 12 tanks supplied with leaves

[rawprawn]

I have what looks like a wild grown tree about 15-20m tall with some leaves the size of dinner plates.

I bring a bunch home in a wicker basket then freeze them flat in a clip seal bag.

Definitely the goji berry of the shrimp world!

[jayc]

2 hours ago, ineke said:

Did you know it's very easy to propagate a mulberry tree? Just cut a thin branch into small sticks , place into potting mix and keep well watered.

This I didn't know. Thanks!

[ineke]

They even give fruit! There isn't much fruit because the trees are only  a couple of years old so I haven't tried giving any fruit to the shrimp!

[larrymull]

@ineke so you can actually pick the leaves from the tree and feed the shrimp them? I thought they had to be the leaves that had fallen from the tree and died?

[ineke]

Not with the mulberry leaves. They are safe as they are not a sappy type of leaf. I have been feeding them straight from the tree but always blanched. I pick them as I need them which is a luxury of growing your own. I dry or freeze them if I'm going on holidays so they are on hand ready to feed when someone comes to the house once a week to feed.  I have been doing this for a couple of years now with my home grown leaves and my colonies are thriving so definitely safe to pick from the tree

[larrymull]

@ineke i know the benefits of mulberry leaves, but have just run out, my shrimp love them too and it seems they go very quickly when I put them in the tank. I have just found a tree near my house....bonus!!!

[jc12]

15 hours ago, ineke said:

Just cut a thin branch into small sticks , place into potting mix and keep well watered. I have about 6 small bushes that keep my 12 tanks supplied with leaves

@ineke Do you mind explaining what do you mean by cutting a thin branch into small sticks? Like snapping off the ends of a branch like twigs? How big do the bushes grow? I have been keen to have some mulberry leaves of my own but google search always shows me pictures of huge trees.

[jayc]

32 minutes ago, jc12 said:

How big do the bushes grow?

They can grow to 6-10 meters tall in grown in the ground. So it's a tree, rather than a bush.

I grow mine in s large pot to limit it's size. 

 

[jc12]

56 minutes ago, jayc said:

They can grow to 6-10 meters tall in grown in the ground. So it's a tree, rather than a bush.

I grow mine in s large pot to limit it's size. 

 

Yea, I am thinking of growing them in a large pot around 2ft in diameter as well. How tall do your mulberry bushes/trees get while in a pot? Do you know where can I get a cutting like what ineke has described? Definitely not going to grow in the ground for sure. Haha.

[ineke]

You can look up propagating plants  - I'm not really a garden person but I'll give it a go. I use a branch about the thickness of a a finger - if you have big fat fingers go for one the size of your little finger but I don't think it matters much. Use a sharp clean knife/ scissors etc and cut the branch into small lengths 20-30 cm - again size not critical but don't go too big. Take off all the leaves except maybe the top couple but trim them down as they will lose too much moisture make sure there are a few leaf buds on the cutting. Make a hole in your potting mix and put your prepared cutting into the hole making sure at least 1 leaf bud goes into the soil . Keèp the pot very well watered and you should see some leaf growth in a few weeks. You can use hormone powder but I haven't found it necessary. I put all my cuttings into 1 pot but don't use too big a pot . As the cuttings grow you can repot to slightly larger pot every couple of years. It's not a guaranteed way but works for me. Because I trim them all the time my trees remain bushes really although technically they are trees. It was recommended they be planted put once they get to 10 years old but they do get very big. Once you have some growing it's a good idea to take cuttings regularly so you always have a few available. They require a lot of water plus I use a normal citrus tree fertiliser around the roots. So far I haven't had any insect problems but I'm sure there would be a natural substance we could use if insects became a problem. I can take some pictures if my explanation isn't clear enough but it will have to be later today - I'm doing water changes just now

You can just find a tree and take a cutting, you can buy seeds or you can usually buy a mulberry tree at a nursery. I bought my initial tree from an online nursery . 

[ineke]

Just a quick reminder although mulberry leaves are an excellent natural food source for our shrimp please don't feed them exclusively. Shrimp still need other nutrients to keep them healthy. The mulberry leaves can be left in the tank but do feed a variety of both commercial and home made foods to keep them healthy

[DemonCat]

I really want to get one for my 50 odd shrimp. They only really have a mixture of shrimp pellets, fish food, the odd bloodworm or spinach. 

 

Does anyone know where I cna purchase one/some in Melbourne?

[jayc]

47 minutes ago, jc12 said:

How tall do your mulberry bushes/trees get while in a pot?

Well, mine is about 2 meters tall at the moment.

I bought mine at Bunnings actually. In the nursery section.

[ineke]

Mine are about 1 1/2 metres now - they are 2 -3 years old. most nurseries do have them but they may be seasonal -also I'm not a horticulturist so my way of doing the propagating might not be right but it works. I think at different times of the year you take different types of cuttings as in hard wood cuttings and soft wood cuttings - I don't know which times I tend to just do it and if they grow I'm happy if not I try again! 

Edited January 25, 2016 by ineke

[Disciple]

Eventually with all these mulberry tree in shrimp keeper back yards we could band together and sell excess fruit as SKF Mulberries LOL.

[ineke]

A bit straggly but shows my bigger trees, a smaller tree and a new cutting done last weekF

[rawprawn]

59 minutes ago, ineke said:

Just a quick reminder although mulberry leaves are an excellent natural food source for our shrimp please don't feed them exclusively. Shrimp still need other nutrients to keep them healthy. The mulberry leaves can be left in the tank but do feed a variety of both commercial and home made foods to keep them healthy

Yes, good point.

I've got some of that shrimp crack on the way, and biozyme for the babies.

Maybe feed them crack Monday, leaf Wed, crack Friday?

And a squirt of biozyme every second/third day?

Would that work?

[ineke]

If your tank is well established the biofilm in the tank will feed the shrimp quite well. Adding crack and biozyme also very good. A feed of frozen blood worms once a week helps for protein. A baby specific powdered food also helps give essential ammino acids etc to growing shrimplets- added to water and squirted into the moss will ensure the babies will get some. But don't forget all the fresh vegies and fruit that the shrimp will eat. preferably grow your own spinach and kale but otherwise try to make sure you source the vegies from insecticide free growers. Shrimp love cucumber, watermelon,brocoli -there is a huge list on a sticky thread at the top of the page

 

[jc12]

Thanks @ineke and @jayc for the info and pictures. Looks like I'll be going to a nursery soon. :)

Edited January 25, 2016 by jc12

[Shrimpmaster]

Yeah leafs are great. I wonder what kind of mulberry you use. I see that we have red, white and black mulberry trees here. Does it makes a different?

[ineke]

I don't think there is much difference but I use the black mulberry tree

[JacksonL]

We have a massive 5 or 6 metre high tree in the back yard, and to think all this time I have been buying Indian Almond leaves from the fish shop!

I will blanch some tomorrow and see if the shrimp are keen.

if any WA SKF people want some to try let me know, happy to dry them or blanch and freeze them for you!

[Smiley_666]

Looks like i'll have to take a few leaves from the gigantic tree at my parents property. Its probably 15-20m tall, so it could probably spare a few leaves without any worry haha.