Spawning activity at Sakazume
Posted 1 Jun 2010 - 17:07 by Mark Gardner
Sakazume is a breeder that doesn't get mentioned on the blog very often and perhaps then only in passing.
As I went buy today I noticed the Ornafish car parked outside so stopped to say hello to Rob and Alex who were chatting with Mr and Mrs Sakazume near their spawning set up.
It's interesting how different breeders adopt different practices when spawning, for example, as we saw at NND a week or so back - http://www.niigata-nishikigoi.com/node/799 - they use the indoor ponds and natural spawning. Torazo sometimes uses indoor ponds, sometimes outdoor ponds, and a mix of natural and artificial spawning. Maruju place the Koi in a show vat outside and use artificial spawning, Shigeo Tanaka being one of the first breeders to use the method.
On the roadside next to Sakazume's Koi houses is a small mud pond. In that various holding nets were supported from scaffold poles.
The fine white nets in the foreground contained egg laden spawning ropes from a previous day's spawning.
The 2 blue mesh nets contained a number of male and female Koi which would be spawned artificially later today.
Interestingly branches of cedar trees are being used as encouragement, as would traditionally have been used as spawning media, rather than synthetic spawning brushes.
