Feeding shrimp cucumber

[CRS]

I went to my local garden centre today to buy some more cherry shrimp, the guy mentioned the shrimp love cucumber,
i think i've read somewhere on here before about people trying it, how often do you guys put cucumber in the tank, how much is to much and do plecks enjoy it to?

 

[fish48]

plecos and Shrimps love cucumber i cut cucumber in slices and then boil it for 3 minutes i drop a slice in each tank it will sink to the bottom no need to hold it down with anything

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

Yup...
I found cucumber swiftly rots down and almost dissolves way quicker than, say, courgette...and when it does, it disperses and the shrimp love it.

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

(Slice of courgette for my bristlenose).

 

[CRS]

Do you need to boil it?

Got some pellits for the shrimp aswell today, it's intersting how they eat!

 

[Salt]

plecos and Shrimps love cucumber i cut cucumber in slices and then boil it for 3 minutes i drop a slice in each tank it will sink to the bottom no need to hold it down with anything

I have heard more than one time about boiling, blanching, the vegetables before you put them in a tank. Would you happen to know the reason we’re doing this? Is it because it dissolves easier?
TIA

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

I never boil mine...I want it to last a while.

 

[Rocky998]

I never boil mine...I want it to last a while.

So, you can toss in a cucumber for a shrimp's staple diet? Awesome!

 

[I Like Rare Fish]

plecos and Shrimps love cucumber i cut cucumber in slices and then boil it for 3 minutes i drop a slice in each tank it will sink to the bottom no need to hold it down with anything

This is what I do.

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

I have my four times about boiling, blanching, the vegetables before you put them in a tank. Would you happen to know the reason we’re doing this? Is it because it dissolves easier?
TIA

I cannot see any point whatsoever in boiling soft veg like courgette/zucchini, or cucumber. Besides over-softening it unnecessarily, it'll remove nutrients/vitamins.

Again, I've used slices of cucumber, but that dissolves and gets mushy really quickly, leaving cucumber mush floating around the tank.
A 1cm slice of courgette lasts a few days and doesn't get mushy during that time. The Bristlenose, Nerites and shrimp all seem to like it.

 

[CRS]

So how much cucumber do you guys put in?

I were thinking 1/4 of a cucumber sliced down the middle?


...Maybe some salad cream and dorritos

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

So how much cucumber do you guys put in?

I were thinking 1/4 of a cucumber sliced down the middle?


...Maybe some salad cream and dorritos

When I use cucumber, or courgette, I use a slice about 1cm thick. This gives a large surface area for them to get stuck into, but doesn't contaminate the water with an excess of decaying plant matter.

 

[CRS]

When I use cucumber, or courgette, I use a slice about 1cm thick. This gives a large surface area for them to get stuck into, but doesn't contaminate the water with an excess of decaying plant matter.

Thanks, i will try this!

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

Thanks, i will try this!

NOTE that I use some lead plant weight to hold the piece down.

 

[CRS]

NOTE that I use some lead plant weight to hold the piece down.

I bought a 3m length of weight - this will hold down many cucumbers!

Looking forward to trying this, i'm away from home this week i'll try it Saturday after the weekly water change.