View Full Version : Plants - stems or potted?
corrieberry
03-08-2009, 4:57 AM
I've got stemmed oxygen weed in bunches, five to a bunch with a metal clip keeping them together - and I have about four of these bunches. The fish seem happy with them, but they don't grow and they don't produce as much oxygen as it seemed to back when we were kids in science lessons! Should I switch to using potted plants? My fish (goldies) are quite vigorous in their attention to anything that interests them and I'm worried they will uproot potted plants - I need something that will last as I'm on a limited budget!
Kashta
03-08-2009, 5:40 AM
Plants don't do well in pots in an aquarium.. that works in more of a hydroponic setup. You would be off planting them and use rocks around them or some other physical barrier until the roots take hold.
Mgamer20o0
03-08-2009, 6:00 PM
well it depends on the water. they will pearl with good light co2 and ferts. never heard of the plant so i dont know.... the metal clips slows growth. also goldfish are known to eat plants too.
bluekrissyspike
03-09-2009, 12:02 AM
i think goldfish will wreck almost anything you add to the tank. you could try a aponogoten crispus or something similar. i had mine in a tank with some small goldies for a while and they did not destroy it, just nibbled the tips a bit and it did well in there. they ate my water sprite though, and i know they eat other plants.
KarlTh
03-09-2009, 5:50 AM
Is this Elodea canadensis* or Lagarosiphon major** (both are sold as "oxygenating weed"? The former is a more reliable oxygenator, generally, although the second looks better (IME). The other thing to bear in mind is that in a pond during summer the light is orders of magnitude higher than what you can achieve in a tank, so you won't see the same level of oxygenation as you would in a pond.
*Canadian pondweed
** "Elodea crispa" - an invented name used by pondkeepers.
Although sold as a coldwater and pond weed, I've often wondered how L. major would do in a tropical setup. It's cheap enough to give it a try; even if the Sev and the Buenos Aires tetras just eat it it's better they eat that than my other plants.
Anyone ever tried it?