Convinced you have the best springtail culture method?

[Estrato]

Mine have absolutely exploded when i used dried mushrooms, crumbled into a powder, and mix it in with a charcoal substrate.

[TDK]

I set up 2 jars of LECA just this week because I had that on hand and no charcoal and was curious. I've been using leaf litter/peat with some success and I used old coco panels that work as well. I've used potato flakes, mushrooms and am trying fish food right now. Looks like the fish food may be working well by the number of small sprintails I'm seeing. Will try to post in a couple of weeks about the LECA.

[beachbabe18509]

Well of what I've tried this has worked the best for me especially when it comes time to feed the springs out or when I set up a grow out tank (so maybe I just set up my first one.. put it totally worked like a charm)

quarter of an inch layer of charcoal with a small amount of water topped with wet sphagnum.

When I lift up the sphagnum they are EVERYWHERE in the water and on the charcoal and to feed out I just pull out a clump of sphagnum and toss it in the tank. I'll occasionally sprinkle some food in the or even toss in some old veggies (usually mushrooms they LOVE mushrooms). When I set up my grow out I used wet sphagnum then just a little bit of the sphagnum from my culture and they are now every where in there, and let me tell you that is one happy little froglet!

[Ed]

The calcined clay used for infield conditioner along with the crushed up wood charcoal works at least as well as LECA in my experience. once the charcoal is saturated, you can flood the containers and simply pour off the springtails into a large cup. The excess water can be removed and then springs then poured into the enclosure.

Ed

[JustinF]

I would love to hear some feedback on how well LECA vs Charcoal did, I have a lot more uses for the former then the later!

[flybuster]

I use coco chips and feed mushrooms, cultures are always booming. The best way i found to feed them off is to add a small peice of cardboard to the culture with the shroom on top. when i open the culture they run into the cardboard , tap it and it snows springs. I have about 40 16 oz cultures, after i feed them off i rotate my cultures let them start breeding again and by the time they come back around they are booming again. No need to split cultures or anything anymore.

[DCreptiles]

i use all cocofiber sometimes a soil mix if i have some jungle bed and spag left over or laying around. i keep one mag leaf in every culture thats what i use to sprinkle the yeast on twice a month and mist it to a paste they go nuts on it. and i only feed them twice a month so when the yeast is all gone they feed on the mushroom caps in the culture potato edges and cuecumber skins ect.. i also throw in left over fish flakes from what i dont use in fruit fly cultures and what not i sprinkle it on the leave not the soil. and my cultures are at a constant boom their never low or anything i have about 7 of them and one large master culture. i seed all my vivs every other week or so but i seed a large amount but it seems a few days later its sworming again. i believe there are many ways to culture them im going to try some other peoples methodes and see how well it works for me.
-Derek

[TDK]

Originally Posted by TDK

I set up 2 jars of LECA just this week because I had that on hand and no charcoal and was curious. I've been using leaf litter/peat with some success and I used old coco panels that work as well. I've used potato flakes, mushrooms and am trying fish food right now. Looks like the fish food may be working well by the number of small sprintails I'm seeing. Will try to post in a couple of weeks about the LECA.

I never di re-post my findings on LECA but it didn't work very well and now I have swithced to Coco chips. I also used leaves on top on some with food inbetween so you could pick up the leaf and shke into your tank.