Raising triops like a gardener

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Something that I've found helpful when raising triops is my attitude as a gardener. Since triops are grown from eggs, it's very similar to planting seeds. I'll see if I can explain.

Just like when preparing to plant something in your garden, preparation is important. Being sloppy just ain't gonna cut it, and while something may survive, and grow, being sloppy just lowers your chances. So start with some preparation.

Triops like room temperature water, so it's best practice to fill the nursery tank a day or so before "planting the seeds", that is, before you drop the eggs and sand into the water. I got the nursery tank ready two days ago and dropped in the eggs and sand yesterday.

And here's where you really have to be like a gardener - you need to be patient. They will hatch, and grow quickly, but not in a matter of a few hours - don't expect them to hatch for a day or two and don't be surprised if it takes several days before they're big enough for you to even see them (they're crazy tiny, like little pieces of dust!).

They will need to be fed, but only after a few days. Your kit should have come with a packet of triop baby food, and if you need to make your own you can grind up some blood worms very fine in an ordinary pepper grinder (I keep one specially for that purpose). I take their baby food and put it in a container that says "Baby" on it (it should say "Baby Food" I guess, but there wasn't room).


So now that you've put the eggs in, you need to keep a gentle eye on the tank. No, you don't need to sit there and stare at it, but it should be somewhere close by so you can glance at it. I have the nursery tank on my desk next to my computer.

The eggs should hatch in a few days, and I've found that it's exactly one day after you were ready to give up. Give them at least a week - if nothing is happening, add more eggs.

I hope this helps.



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