Coco Pots

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iam1ru12

I am 1; R U 12?
Jun 15, 2008
76
0
0
Philippines
Hello! I have a 50g tank with an Asia blue snakehead (Channa sp. "Assam Blue"), an Asian bumblebee catfish (Pseudomystus siamensis), two peacock eels (Macrognathus siamensis), a rainbow shark (Epalzeorhynchos frenatus) and schools of arulius barb, rosy barb and tiger barb.

It used to be planted but because of the peacock eels, the plants have slowly been uprooted. Now it's bare except for some driftwood that the bumblebee and snakehead use for hiding places.

I was thinking of putting in plants again, but this time, potted, so that they won't be uprooted. I saw some coco pots (made of coco fiber and natural rubber) in a garden shop yesterday. Can I use these for my plants? Will these not affect the water parameters in the long run?
 
They'll probably tear the plants up just because. They just like to shred them.
Idk about snakeheads, but I'm sure that's what all fairly large fish do.
 
those pots sound like a great idea! I hope someone here knows more to answer your question becasue now I'm thinking of using them too! wait could you just get the small black plastic pots that most aquatic plants come in? or is this an asthetic thing?
 
Coco fibers may leach tannins. I believe your place has hard water so the tannins will not make much difference in your water chemistry.
 
marinkafuschia said:
those pots sound like a great idea! I hope someone here knows more to answer your question becasue now I'm thinking of using them too! wait could you just get the small black plastic pots that most aquatic plants come in? or is this an asthetic thing?
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I bought the black plastic pots but when I saw the coco pots I thought they would be much better as they are organic. But then, I was wondering what their effects would be on the water parameters.

As Lupin says, there would be tannins that the coco fiber might leach. That wouldn't be much of a problem, as the driftwood itself leaches tannins too. I'm a bit concerned about the long-term effects, like whether the coco pot will eventually rot.... Was planning of burying them in the substrate. Hopefully, the eels wouldn't easily uproot the plants if they're potted.
 
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Mgamer20o0 said:
how about terracotta pots? they also work. maybe try plants you can tie down to the wood or rocks.
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Ya, the terracotta pots would be the last resort. My only problem is getting the small ones; gotta look far and wide to get small ones that I could bury into the substrate. Just my fancy - don't want to see the pots protruding from the substrate.

It's also difficult to get hold of plants that can be tied down to the wood or rocks. All LFS here sell aquatic animals - no plants - so one would be lucky to get hold of Java moss or Java ferns, for instance. Besides, I don't want to put in rocks into this tank. I prefer the driftwood pieces that are already there; all that's missing are the plants.
 
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Lupin said:
Coco fibers will rot over time just like driftwoods but I don't think the fish will ever be affected severely by it.
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Thanks, Lupin. Now I can do my planting tonight and hopefully this weekend (while everyone else is getting drunk during the local festival here), this tank will once again be adorned by natural plants.
 
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