Quote:
Originally Posted by DataGuru  ROFLMAO
I don't get the impression from what I've read, that people were using soil as a substrate in aquaria back then. My impression is that it is a fairly recent thing that soil is catching on as a substrate. |
DataGuru,
I can confirm what swannee54 is getting at with the references to the 1950's - this is what attracted me to El Natural to start with (btw, just so we're clear, I'm a 60's child!
)
When I was investigating setting up my first tank back in 1981 I found a (US produced) pamphlet from my grandparents dated from the 1950's advocating the use of garden soil. This was the thing to do in fishkeeping from that time, and up to almost a century before. It must've worked then too, otherwise people would have given up aquaria long before power filters and CO2 injectors appeared on the scene.
I'll try and find the pamphlet again (I think it's in my parents attic somewhere).
Tracking down historical fishkeeping literature can prove very interesting indeed.