Peat alternatives

Peat is often mentioned as a way of creating blackwater conditions for acidophile fish, but it comes with baggage. The greatest issue is that peat is environmentally unsound (damaged peatlands account for around 6% of all carbon dioxide released annually). Instead of using peat, consider using blackwater extracts, or even relying on various botanicals such as Indian almond (Catappa) leaves and seed pods to create your blackwater. Readily available alder cones mixed in RO or rainwater are a great way to create your own blackwater tonic.