Feeding and Nutrition :: Water Hyacinths

[Tenodera]

well i just bought a bunch of water hyacinths and put 1 baby one in Serra's tank, 2 in my newt's tank, and the remaining two in a plastic container.



Never mind about the one in Serra's tank, it's gone now.

Ok so I have 5 now. Anyone know how to grow these plants? Like lighting and water depth and stuff like that. Are these tropical or normal plants? Do they need hibernation or something like that?

I've read that water hyacinths are the fastest growing plants in the world. Could I just feed Serra leaves of some hyacinths instead of her daily lettuce? I would still feed her dandelions, though.

thanks!

Kevin

[xsavingsaturdayx]

Aquatic plants are supposed to be best (more natural) but for variety sake, i would still offer lettuce

[scripta_elegans]

Here's a good general guide for indoors growing.
http://www.thekrib.com/Plants/Plants/wa ... uce.html#0

[marisa]

For the past two summers I've had water hyacinths growing in kiddie pools, and when I had enough of them, they went into my turtles outdoor stock tanks. They love warmth and the sun. I never really did anything special and they grew like crazy---their flowers are some of the prettiest I've ever seen. I'd just put a few in the tank, roots and all, like you've already done; I wouldn't just cut off the leaves and feed them to your turtle. My turtles like to eat the bulb part below the leaves.

[rocky24jg]

Okay just like people, RES differ from one to the other. Our turtle Jeff #1, 6ins, finnaly ate the hyacinths, about 1 hour later he started acting funny and just stayed put. Didn't even matter what we did, he wouldn't move. We then dry docked him and called the vet. They of course really didn't care. There words were "It's just a trutle." Boy was I mad. Needless to say he died thru the night, My husband and I cried, but had to hide it from our two boys. I will never try that again. I felt so bad that I fed this to him and he died. So my boys think that Jeff went to the vet and got a new shell because it's smaller. Notice the #1, now Jeff#2 is all better and only my husband and I know there is a # 1 and 2.

[SpotsMama]

Oh my gosh! How awful! Was it a particular kind of hyacinth?

[DavidY]

I'm really sorry to hear about that. I wonder if you can report that vet to the Better Business Bureau or the ASPCA or some other animal ethics group. What a jerk that guy was! I wonder if there are certain types of water hyacinths that are poisonous? I guess we should always research any type of plant before putting it in with a turtle.

[rocky24jg]

I bought the hyacinth from PETCO, and now Idaho no longer allows it to be sold. I'm not sure why... but PETCO did nothing as well. I don't know how to contact the BBB or ASPCA. I guess I could look in the phone book. Thanks for your responses. I figured ya'll would care.

[SpotsMama]

You should be able to get both of them on-line. Just google the name of the organization and the nearest big city.

[rocky24jg]

Thanks I will do that!

[reptilegrrl]

Rocky24j: water hyacinth is illegal in many jurisdictions, because it is an invasive plant. That's probably why it's not allowed to be sold there.

I am very sorry for your loss. I doubt, though, that it was the WH that killed your turtle. He may have had a different problem that you didn't know about, or the pet store may have had contaminated plants. WH is a natural and good food for turtles- all the rescue groups around here feed it with no problems at all.

[DavidY]

That's a good point. The plant may have been grown in a contaminated environment (pesticides, etc).

[marisa]

I agree with reptilegrrl---I doubt the water hyacinth was what killed your turtle. They simply aren't poisonous (I think there is some discussion about this elsewhere...).

If the plants were in any way connected to your turtle's death, since it is considered to be an invasive plant, perhaps attempts were being made to kill it by spraying it and the plants were unfortunately harvested to be sold in petstores without anyone's knowledge.

Rocky24jg, I'm also dismayed to hear of the response when you contacted your vet's office. This doesn't sound like a herp vet (one trained to deal with turtles and other reptiles). You wouldn't have gotten such a response from a herp vet. Try to locate a good herp vet in your area just in case your turtle needs one.

[reptilegrrl]

God, Marissa, I was horrified by that vet's office too. [!!!] is wrong with some people?

[Twoster]

can anyone post a pic of water hyacinths they know are safe for turts?..are they the floating plants that have the crazy blue-ish/purple-ish roots?..