Bamboo in betta bowl

J

Jeff Reiling

AC Members
Dec 20, 2007
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Leander,Texas
Hi there. I'm a new member and this is my first post besides the "Introduce Yourself" one. I bought a straight bamboo plant today at work and put it in my betta's bowl. Will it do ok in there? Do I need to do anything special to make it thrive? I have never kept any kind of aquatic plants before and bamboo I have been told is easy and will live in almost anything. Was I misinformed? Any info would be appreciated. Thanks.
Jeff
 
Don't submerge it completely. If the leaves up top are out of water, it should do okay. The Betta will poop and help fertilize the plant. Still, keep up with water changes.
 
OK, thank you. The small shoot on top with the leaves (only 3 so far) is above the water line. Also, can you just prune the top when it gets too big? Do you just snip it off with scissors or is there a certain way to do this?
 
what you have is not a true bamboo, but rather a type of draceana. it is not an aquatic plant, and though it can grow with its roots submerged it really should be kept in moist soil in a regular pot. in addition, I do not reccomend keeping bettas in bowls. though this idea is highly popular, it is by no means an ideal betta habitat, unless the bowl is 2 gallons or over and you change the water every other or even every day. it would be wise to invest in a small aquarium with a filter and a heater, though the betta can survive in the bowl.
 
fishcatch22 said:
what you have is not a true bamboo, but rather a type of draceana. it is not an aquatic plant, and though it can grow with its roots submerged it really should be kept in moist soil in a regular pot. in addition, I do not reccomend keeping bettas in bowls. though this idea is highly popular, it is by no means an ideal betta habitat, unless the bowl is 2 gallons or over and you change the water every other or even every day. it would be wise to invest in a small aquarium with a filter and a heater, though the betta can survive in the bowl.
Click to expand...

Bravo. In that last bit, "survive" is the key word.
 
Thanks for the info on the "bamboo". I'll give it a try in the bowl (1 gallon by the way) and if it starts to decline or not grow I'll get a pot for it. Regarding the betta issue, my male betta (Rocky) is doing just fine in his less than ideal habitat-yes I realize this. He's over 2 years old now and has long flowing fins and bright colors. Being that we live in a small apartment (also a less than ideal habitat for humans but we manage to survive) another tank in addition to our 55 gallon goldfish tank with 3 small goldfish just isn't feasable at the time being. Bettas can be found in their natural habitats in very small amounts of water and are equipped with a labrynth organ to supplement their oxygen supply via taking in small gulps of air at the surface. This is why bettas are not considered (by the average fish keeper) to be abused when kept in bowls (unlike goldfish). His water is changed once a week and although the bowl is not (of course) heated, we keep the room temp above 75 in the apt., hence keeping the water temp at an acceptable level (I know bettas are tropical). If your really clever, you'll note that the room temp of 75 creates a less than ideal environment for the cold water goldfish aquarium. Can't afford a chiller, so I hope they'll be ok. I've been told they can do fine in a wide range of temps. We'll see. Thanks again for the info.
Jeff
 
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