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As far as the plant choices for aquaria are concerned is there really any such thing as a "true" aquatic species.

I was reading somewhere that any plant you buy for your aquarium will eventually die, because it's not really accustomized to being summerged all the time.

What I mean by this is that in nature, most of these plants inhabiat areas that depending on the season can be found above or below water. So in nature they don't stay under the water full time.

This might explain why plants look good sometimes for months and then fall apart and die. I'm not referring to someone who consistently trims and replants the trimmings, etc. I'm talking about the stems of the original plant.

Any thoughts on this?


My Scapes

Disagree. There are endless lakes, rivers, streams, ponds, and other watery areas that never go dry, and they're often filled with various plants. Saying there are no true aquatics because some areas dry out is like saying there are no true terrestrials because some areas flood.

If plants are failing, I'd look to light and nutrients.

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

I don't think that's true @all. Plenty of plants grow submerged....afterall isn't that where life came from to begin with .
Terrestriall plants that can grow in wet conditions often flood (no pun intended ) the market being passed off either intentionally or mistakenly as aquatic plants.

Java fern is perfect proof, it's not propigated by trimmings grows for years and years submerged.

^_^



[hr width='40%']"I'm alright, I'm alright
It only hurts when I breathe"

I disagree too sorry! My dad is a gardener and i have called him a few times to ask advice. Aquatic plants aren't that much different from your common garden plants, if they don't get enough of what they need they wither and die. Just like terrestrials have a life cycle so do waterborne plants and they grow and sprout shoots then their main stem eventually ages and dies back. Likewise other varieties grow their main stem and the leaves die off and are reproduced. http://www.plantedtank.net/ is where i get alot of my info (and FP of course!)

Last edited by daveuk at 28-Mar-2005 14:59

Last edited by daveuk at 28-Mar-2005 15:00

SW Pics: http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/dave_slade@btinternet.com/
Saltwater tank 125G-30G sump with caulerpa refugium.
yellow tang, atlantic anemone, 11 turbo snails, 4 nassarius snails, 12 various hermits, 3 cleaner shrimp, 2 occelaris clown, yellow

Where the hell did you read this? o.o

I definitely read it in one of the trade publications (pet product news) or one of the newstand books (TFH).

When I find it I'll post the exact wording they used.

My Scapes

Everything has a life expectancy, even plants. But there aren't any true aquatic plants that I've ever seen fall apart after a few months if the conditions are correct for the plant. I've had some (some = 2, the rest I had to throw out due to my algea infestation) plants over a year and still kicking(kicking = growing like crazy now that I've figured some things out).

Last edited by mattyboombatty at 28-Mar-2005 21:21

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

I think there may some misunderstanding on what they mean by "true aquatic". I would suspect they mean in the sense that there are very few plants that NEED to be submerged, that cannot survive out of water. Actually I can't think of any off the top of my head.So maybe the article is correct in that sense

Almost all the "true" aquatic plants that we keep in our aquariums can live happily submerged for years BUT they can also live happily either fully or partially out of water.Taking Babels Java Fern example, yes it can grow for many many years underwater. But in the wild is rarely found underwater, usually attached on rocks around water falls where it is kept wet from the spray or partially submerged in fast moving streams.

So in that sense as hobbyists we consider anything that thrives fully submerged as a "true" aquatic. But from a scientific point of view a "true" aqauatic may be a plant that can ONLY survive underwater.

But I agree with the others if a plant is dieing off in the aquarium it is either not a true aqauatic (in any sense of the phrase) or is not being properly cared for.

Lets have a competition - can anyone think of a plant in their aquarium that won't grow emmersed ?

Last edited by bensaf at 28-Mar-2005 21:39

Last edited by bensaf at 28-Mar-2005 21:41

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Some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue.

Remember that age and treachery will always triumph over youth and ability.

A number of the Rotala species can't be grown emersed, I believe - even commercially, R. wallichi is grown submersed.

-Molly
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By emmersed you mean partially in water, part out right?

I don't understand how you could even do that with some plants... like, how would you get Asian Ambulia to stick out of the water... it would continue to spread across the surface, but it would never prop up on its own. Same thing with Vals, or Elodea or Hornwort. I understand with Anubias and Java Fern, but to my mind there are a lot of plants that I can't see growing up out of the water. Am I missing something here?

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Back in the saddle!

What you're missing is that a lot of plants change quite a lot when grown emersed. The emersed form of ambulia (L. indica; Asian ambulia I'm not completely sure of) is so different from the submerged form it's nearly unrecognizable, for example.

Most plants sold commercially are grown emersed, because they grow faster, there are no algae problems, the light doesn't have to be as strong, they reproduce in different and often preferable ways, and, most importantly, they acclimate better to new water conditions than plants grown submersed.

Tropica probably has a good amount of information about emersed growth on their website.

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

Thanks for the info. I didn't know any of that.

But I still fail to see how something like giant vals would grow emersed. You're telling me those 25+ inch blades go straight into the air?

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Back in the saddle!

1 word - seaweed

Nowhere,

But I still fail to see how something like giant vals would grow emersed. You're telling me those 25+ inch blades go straight into the air?

It goes back to what little mousling said, plants grown emmersed are completely different from the under water version. You wouldn't recognize most of them. The vals simply wouldn't have 25" blades out of water.
Emmersed growth tends to be thicker, harder and darker. Hyrgo grown emmersed has a much woodier stem and looks like a hedge.
It can be confusing for beginners sometimes. As LM said most growers use the emmersed technique to grow. When the plant is placed in a tank it invariably has to go through a transformation, which beginners sometimes mistake for the plant dying.
For example Tennellus is often sold in emmersed form. It's dark green with very upright stiff spear shaped leaves. In a tank these leaves will brown and die off while new shoots of the submersed light green arched leaves appear. Some people see the old leaves browning as a sign of poor health without noticing the new shoots and chuck it.The same is true of a lot of crypts.

It's often said of Anubias that they grow so slowly they don't realise they are under water

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Some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue.

Remember that age and treachery will always triumph over youth and ability.

Well thanks for filling me in on all of this, I really had no idea I'm happy to learn something new

So theoretically, I could take a piece of Hygro, put the bottom half in a cup of water, leave the top half dry, put it in a sunny window and it will grow? Interesting, I may have to try this...

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Back in the saddle!