Oct Nov Dec 2020 Breeder Diary

 The breeding of Yamato Shrimp had failed, the salinity of the water is very hard to maintain at a stable condition. After much thought I decided to let the fishes had it as food. Wife finally decided to move the two Neon Tetra back to the Fish Tank after seeing them eating the Baby Crystal Shrimp.

Not sure what actually happen, but a lot of plant seem to start blooming flower. The first one is Kai Lan, then is Chilli, and even Kang Kong which had been harvest a few times also start to bloom flower. My wife decided to keep the Kai Lan growing to harvest the seeds.

The Passion Fruit and the Kaffir Lime which fail previously also start to grow well, maybe the Autumn Season is a very good time for growing vegetables and fruits. Finally brought a Aloe Vera from the Flower Shop nearby, had been trying for few times but fail as it start to rot before the root sprout.

 

 21st Oct 2020 Kai Lan Flower Bloom

3rd Nov 2020 Chilli Flower Bloom

7th Nov 2020 Kang Kong Flower Bloom

 

Chilli had grown, but Cactus take long time to grow. Crystal Shrimp population also start to bloom after the Neon Tetra are transfer back to the fish tank. Passion Fruit also start climbing the steel rack, but we are not sure when we will see it bear fruits.

 

15th Nov 2020 Chilli had grown

15th Nov 2020 Cactus take long time to grow

 

Finally start to see Broccoli Flower Bloom after three long month, we are not sure when it will be ready for harvest. Crystal Shrimp population continue to bloom out of our control, guess large living space and plenty of food contribute a lot to their breeding. The Asparagus look very thin to me, I doubt my wife when she told me they are actually Asparagus.

1st Dec 2020 Broccoli finally Bloom Flower after three months

 

 Crystal Shrimp Aquarium

Crystal Shrimp Feeding

 

Asparagus 

 

 Had been wanting to try Opae Ula aka Wonder Shrimp for a long time, I finally pick up the courage to explore the possibilities when they announce the starting of Phrase 3 in two weeks time. It is the easiest to maintain pet as it does not really need much care, they only need to be keep in a small bottle and feed on algae to survive.

As I am planning on letting the population to thrive, I am using a 5 liters big glass bottle instead of the usual 1 to 2 liters small glass bottle. I already got the sea shell and the crystal glass pebble, so all I need to purchase is the Coral Fan and the Marimo Ball.

The Coral Fan is 5 cm wide and 10 cm tall, it cost $11.50, I got to choose the better looking one and happen to get two pack in the same bag. The Marimo Ball is about 5 cm diameter, it cost $5 and I also try to choose the biggest one.

I brought the salt mix for $10, it will be mix to the salinity of 1.018 with the distill water I brought from the supermarket. I brought 10 Opae Ula Shrimp as it will be cheaper by $10 at $70, if I brought 5 instead it will cost $40. The website only cheaper by $5 at $75 for 10 of it.

 

Opae Ula Glass Bottle Setup

Close Up Shot of Opae Ula aka Wonder Shrimp

Another Close Up Shot of Opae Ula

 

Another Close Up Shot of Opae Ula

 

Black Beard Algae start to appear on the Spider Wood in Fish Tank, after doing some research on the internet I decided to use the most natural method of removing them. I brought 10 Siamese Algae Eater for $8 at $0.80 each. If it is not successful, I will try using boiling water before I go into chemical treatment.

The only thing I doesn't like about Siamese Algae Eater is that they can grow into a very big size of up to 15 cm. But I already had plan to release them into the river at Cousin Iris house to help with the cleaning of Algae when they grow big. The worst case scenario would be buying 100 Feeder Platies Fish and 50 Feeder Ghost Shrimp for the Event.

Opae Ula are not so hardy as I had expected, 7 of them die within a day. As there are only 3 left, I decided to transfer them to a smaller 2 liters glass bottle. I brought some Coral Chip and Lava Rock from Shopee, I will use the 5 liters glass bottle to create an optimum environment over a two months cycle period before I continue with the remaining phrase of the project.

 

The project is actually still related to Yamato Shrimp Breeding, as Opae Ula breeding environment is very similar. So by ensuring Opae Ula ability to breed in their natural environment will increase the chances of my Yamato Shrimp Breeding in the future. Still trying to fulfill the dream of having thousands of Yamato Shrimp release into the river at Cousin Iris house to help with the cleaning of Algae.

 

 

Black Beard Algae in Fish Tank

Siamese Algae Eater

 

Siamese Algae Eater and Yamato Shrimp manage to clear the Black Beard Algae in a week, I did try using hot boiling water to treat the Spider Wood on second day. So I am not very sure if the Siamese Algae Eater and Yamato Shrimp are so efficient or the hot boiling water treatment also help in the process.

Black Beard Algae clear in a week

 

Saw a guy listing on Carousell for Opae Ula Shrimp by chance, it was remove after a day. I try to contact him a week later to see if it is still available and was lucky enough to be able to get it from him at a cheaper price of $5 per shrimp. I decided to get 20 of it from him to speed up the process of the breeding cycle.

 

As he had been keeping it for three years and most of it had been mature enough to start breeding. I do not have to wait for few years for them to be ready, so it kind of save me a lot of time. 

 

The 5 liters Glass Bottle which I had prepared a week ago is ready, the are visible spot of Algae grow on the wall. I think it is because I am using the media from the previous Crystal Shrimp Tank which still have some beneficial bacteria present in it.

Opae Ula Mass Orgy

Apr 2020 Farmer Dairy

Wife brought some Wind Mill from China Town to deter the Birds which had been causing damage to the plants. I had also added an additional rack over the Large Tray for protection netting few days ago. Hanging shiny ornaments or wind chime will also do the trick but we do not want to cause any noise or light reflection disturbance to our neighbors.

The sunlight had start to shift toward the left after Spring Equinox on 21st Mar, it is at perfect alignment to the east and west on Spring Equinox and Autumn Equinox which occurs every year on 21st of Mar and 21st Sep. It will keep shifting towards the left until 21st Jun on Summer Solstice at an angle of 23.5 Degree and towards the right until 21st Dec on Winter Solstice at the same angle.

This natural phenomenon are due to the tilt angle of the planet Earth which allow four seasons to occur above the tropic region. The Tropical of Cancer and Capricorn are also mark at 23.5 Degree above and below the Equator for the same reason.   

2nd Apr 2020 Adding Wind Mill to deter the Birds

Sunlight shifting toward the left after Spring Equinox

The Air Plant Flower Bloom, this is the second time it bloom. The first time is just one flower on another plant facing the side but this time it is the front plant with three flowers. Not sure if this is a good sign at bad time like this as the Government had announce yesterday about the new control measure for the prevention of virus spread.

The Choy Sum seem to grow very well at the Long Pot which was meant for Carrot initially, it grow much faster than expect and also surpass the one growing on Large Tray. Maybe it is because the Carrot did not sprout and the nutrient in the soil remain to boost the grow, think we will be able to harvest it in a week or so.  

5th Apr 2020 Air Plant Flower Bloom

5th Apr 2020 Choy Sum Grow Well 

The Watermelon and Okra didn't survive, I think it is because my wife had been too protective of the sprout and keep it too long in the nursery. Those that we plant directly into the pot are stronger, so I had to take a lot of effort to convince my wife not to be too protective of the sprout.

The Lime also doesn't sprout as expected, so we get some Kaffir Lime seed and regrow with same pot. The Watermelon is also regrow in same pot with the sweeter version from the seed brought from supermarket. The Okra pot will be use for another attempt on the Carrot.

We decided to add Passion Fruit, Bitter Gourd and Cactus to the Mini Farm, the Cactus initially is suppose to use for Deterring the Birds but the Wind Mill seem to work well so far even without using the Protecting Net for the Vegetables.

The remaining 5 pot of Capsicum doesn't survive in the end, the pot are use for the Choy Sum instead as my wife feel the Large Tray is a bit cramp. Peanut seem to suffer with new soil, 2 out of the 5 plant are dying. The transfer might had cause some damage to the root, so it is not advisable to transfer plant too often.

10th Apr 2020 Addition of Passion Fruit, Bitter Gourd, Kaffir Lime, Watermelon and Cactus.

10th Apr 2020 Replace Capsicum with Choy Sum

Wife decided to try Bean Sprout after seeing a lot of people post about their result on Facebook, it is not much challenge as I expect it to be able to Harvest in just 4 days. Jalapeno and Strawberry Sprout doesn't survive well, additional seeds are planted. The Strawberry seeds are now from the package we brought from supermarket, we hope it will survive better this time.

 11th Apr 2020 Bean Sprout

After about 4 days the Bean Sprout are ready for Harvest, at the same time the New Watermelon had also start to Sprout after 5 days. Seem like almost all the seed we get from the actual fruit doesn't really survive well, now we start to worry for the Cherry Tomato, Passion Fruit and Kaffir Lime.

14th Apr 2020 Bean Sprout ready for Harvest

14th Apr 2020 New Watermelon had Sprout

The Cactus had start to Sprout after 7 days, at the same time we also notice that the Cucumber, Cucamelon, French Bean, Cherry Tomato, Eggplant had start to die. I had to replant the seeds and hope for the best, Cucamelon is the one I worry most as I had no more seed after this if it fail again.

My wife think I had over fertilize it, but I think it is because of the hot weather. The Pearl Tomato seem to had more Flower Bloom after I give more fertilizer, if my wife is right the Pearl Tomato should have also been affected.

The Capsicum seem the same after fertilizing it, but the Mulberry and Peanut seem to show sign of dying. The Choy Sum which had been transfer to the previous Capsicum pot also doesn't look good, the Choy Sum in the Long pot are ready for Harvest anytime soon.

15th Apr 2020 Cactus had Sprout

15th Apr 2020 Cactus had Sprout

The Passion Fruit had start to Sprout after 12 days, it is longer than expected. Not sure what my wife did to the plant, the Capsicum and Mulberry Leaf start to wither. I had suspected that she never water enough but she say she just fertilize it with some rice water.

I had to check all the pot for moist soil and true enough almost all the pot did not have much water and soil is pretty dry up. It can't be notice on the surface as my wife usually spray some water on the surface, it took me about 5 to 6 bottle of water before I can see water slipping out from the bottom of the pot to the tray.

19th Apr 2020 Passion Fruit Sprout after 12 days

19th Apr 2020 Capsicum had start to Ripe

As one of the Capsicum and both the Mulberry had shown sign of dying, I decided to redo the soil for it. We added Lecca, Mini Lecca and Perlite to ensure the water retention and air circulation. The root seem ok as we had expected some rotting or damage before we decided to redo the soil.

At the same time we also decided to redo the soil for the pots which we use for Capsicum last time. The Choy Sum doesn't seem to grow well in the pots as the nutrient might had been fully absorded by the Capsicum previously. 

Got some left over soil after the mixing of Lecca, Mini Lecca and Perlite, we decided to use it to top up the soil for the Sweet Potato and Choy Sum Long Pot. The Large Tray will also have to top up with more soil later after the Choy Sum had been harvest.

It had been a month and the Earthworm had grow big, they use to take two month to improve the soil but now they only need one month. So it is about time we help them move their house again.

They are suppose to do the work of loosening the soil, but my wife treat them like baby and want me to break up the soil into fine powder. I ask her, if I am doing the work for them then what are they going to do? Every day just eat and sleep?

End up I still had to do all the hard work and even had to stiffen the powdered soil with a strainer to ensure it is fine enough. My wife then add water and stir it into a cray like paste before she transfer the precious Earthworm into their new habitat.

Kaffir Lime had start to Sprout after 15 days, it was a very long wait and we almost lose hope about it. New Batch of Cherry Tomato and Cucamelon had also start to Sprout after 7 days, they took almost twice the time this time and I hope it will be stronger as I planted the seed directly into the soil without nurturing the sprout.

22nd Apr 2020 Kaffir Lime had Sprout after 15 days

22nd Apr 2020 New Cherry Tomato had Sprout after 7 days

22nd Apr 2020 New Cucamelon had Sprout after 7 days

New Eggplant had Sprout after 10 days, hopefully it will be stronger as it is planted directly into soil. Have tested the PH Value of the soil, the soil for Strawberry and Peanut seem to be more Acidic than the rest. I suspect the new soil I brought is acidic but after testing it found to be normal.

Even the fertilizer appear to be normal after testing, so I just use Vinegar to lower the PH Value for other soil. Basically the Fruits or Vegetables which are sour in nature require the soil to b more acidic. Vinegar also help to kill the pest inside the soil.

26th Apr 2020 New Eggplant had Sprout after 10 days

 Another Type of Mushroom grow in Peanut Long Pot, the Peanut never survive after the soil change. Sixth Aunt say Mushroom grow indicate good soil as it is a sign of nutrient breaking down cycle. The fertilizer which is in progress now should be very good for the plant in the future.

28th Apr 2020 Another Type of Mushroom grow in Peanut Long Pot

29th Apr 2020 Mushroom grow bigger