I haven't noticed a flavour difference from feeding them mackeral in small amounts either. There's a lot of exposed gypsum here. I read it could be substituted for about half their oyster shell grit so I ground some up and they went mad for it. Also half an old cabbage - wow. They treated it like one of those pumpkin soup tureens (only eating with their beaks instead of spoons of course - THE POOR THINGS HAVE NO HANDS.) - accidentally hit the caps key but the fact seems worth stressing. The horror of it. Annp! May 26 is my sister Rosie's birthday. She's the one who as a child was given a day old chick in a cardboard box by a kind neighbour, only to have it die during the night despite the big old alarm clock we put in with it. Wouldn't it be special to give her a Rose Combed Brown Leghorn. The timing (meeting at Dysart's) would be tricky though, also the 1000 mile drive. Did I tell you I never in my life slept as well as that one night at the Best Western behind Dysart's? I hope all those chickens are for you. They sound wonderfully exotic. Just found this in the Richters Herbs catalogue: Aztec Marigold Although better known by the misnomer, ÂAfrican marigoldÂ, this Central American annual is a popular bedding plant available in many ornamental hybrid forms. However, ÂCrackerjackÂ, a non-hybrid variety, is rich in lutein, a compound that studies suggest may improve visual acuity in patients with retinal degeneration. When added to chicken feed, lutein-rich marigold flowers help make egg yolks turn a richer deeper colour. E

@jlco, Fiona et al - The round yellowish to greenish orbs are not the same as the fruiting fungal bodies seen in Emma's post. What the OP and others showed in the images uploaded are evidence of the presence of usually subterranean female relatives of the Margarodes genus and closely related to armored scale insects found on plant parts above ground. Eggs are laid in late spring or summer. The first instars (crawlers) emerge from light pink eggs laid in a cluster and enclosed in a white waxy sac. You've probably seen these two, but thought them to be a form of fungi. No pictures of the eggs have been posted to this thread. As soon as crawlers emerge, they go looking for a root to feed on, and not long after the onset of feeding, they begin emitting a secretion that becomes their protective outer covering that gives them their common name - "ground pearls." If you use magnification, you can see their mouth parts sticking out of the small balls, which are a tough waxy coating. The nymphs develop over summer and fall, and by winter, completing the life cycle as they become adults, which overwinter in the cyst/ 'pearl'. Ground Pearls/ Margarodes Ground pearls ^^^ Al

Thanks Mersiepoo! I looked for images of mosquito larva and that's what they seem to be. Yuck! But then I looked for images of mosquito eggs and they look nothing like what I found on my lily. I'm quite sure those were goldfish eggs on the lily after looking at pictures of them online. But they never hatched. It could be that they weren't viable, or moving them disturbed them and killed them? Dunno. I put them in clean dechlorinated water, but still. I should have put them indoors to keep the temperatures stable. I actually have two goldfish and I don't know what their sexes are. I suppose there's a 30% chance I could have gotten a male and female. Their chasing behavior seems to indicate this. I will do some more research to see if goldfishes can change their sex. I know this is more common in swordfishes and platys. Too bad I've rebuilt the pond so any eggs that could have been good would have been lost. I wonder if they mate more than once a Spring?

coyoteblanc.....the eggs that are turning white may simply not have been fertilized. This happens when the male fish do not fertilize all of the eggs. The sun should not have anything to do with it. I just missed a spawn but managed to pull one of my plants out of my pond and did save a few. Most turned white but I think I have a few hundred that just hatched out yesterday. I would suggest removing the white eggs and just keep an eye on the others. It only takes a few days for them to hatch. If you watch them closely, you will begin to see the "very small" fry form. You will be able to see 2 black eyes inside the egg. After this occurs, it will not be long and you will see the fry. Look closely though. They are tiny, (about the size of you bottom eyelash) and will attach themselves to the side of the tank that you have them in. While in this stage, they will eat on the egg sac for survival and once that is gone, will swim to the top and fill their air sacs. Now you can start feeding them liquid food. If it is too large, they will not be able to eat it and will starve. If you have a food processor, put some food in it and get it to a very fine texture. Add water to it and pore the liquid into the tank. Don't use to much at one time, as it can make your water bad. Feed them this about every 3 hours until they are large enough to eat it without the water. I had a spring spawn and got around 5000 fry from it. I have sold most of them but still have around 300 left. These are just ornamental Koi for my pond. I have since purchased 4 show quality Kohaku Koi. It will be at least another year before they are old enough to spawn and I can't wait. I use spawning mops in my pond when the time is right and usually can collect most of the eggs. I purchased a 60 gallon tub that I hatch them in with plenty of oxygen and (no filter) as it will suck the tiny fry into it and kill them. When they are about 1/2" long, I transfer them to a 650 gallon grow pond. You should have some eggs that are fertile and should hatch. Keep us updated and let us know.