Dwarf lily habits.

[Darkness9876]

I Have a dwarf red lilly in my tank and I was wondering about its habits.

It is one bulb but it is growing a plant from both ends. It puts up one new leaf and as soon as it unfurls the smallest leaf on that plant falls off. Then it waits a day and starts a new leaf. Then 2-3 days later when that one unfurls and is the biggest and tallest the smallest leaf falls off. It keeps doing this and I now have one leaf that should float on the top when it unfurls. Is this normal behavior?

I am also wondering when or if this will bloom?

 

[KarlTh]

You can either leave it to grow like that and possibly get a flower, or keep on lopping off any leaves which head for the surface until the thing gives up and grows submersed leaves in a compact habit.

 

[Darkness9876]

Ok, Its in a paludarium so I think I will let it head for the surface as its only 6 inches deep where I have it.

Does anyone have a pic of one flowering?

Also is it common for them to lose leaves everytime they grow a new one? or do I have a nutrition issue?

I dose excell and have medium light.

 

[Darkness9876]

bump.

Do they lose their leaves frequently?

 

[kkifer]

Here are two pics I just posted of my lily flowering for the first time.
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=135151&page=3
Mine doesn't lose it's leaves until they finally get old and decay. It would cover the surface of the tank with leaves if I let it. But it is now several years old. It looked better when it was about a year old and had a nice batch of submersed red leaves.

 

[fishorama]

How much light do you have? Mine lost a leaf every couple weeks at ~1wpg but I haven't seen any since moving it to a higher light tank 30w/10g. Still no tall leaves.

One of the fallen leaves seemed to get a small bulblet while trapped in a floating fern but I lost track of it. It was tiny, I think the filter got it.

 

[Darkness9876]

It has since quit losing leaves. I quit dosing flourish and it is now forming a nice little rosette on the substrate. 4 more plants have also formed off of this bulb now as well.

If you have that high of lighting chances are it won't put leaves to the surface. The lower the light the more they reach for it.

 

[fishorama]

Oh, I just saw the original date. Glad it's doing well for you now. I like having mine stay low.

 

[Darkness9876]

Yeah, its been awhile. Atleast it got updated though.

 

[Juicybear]

I have a 55 gallon tank with a lily in it that constantly shoots pads to the surface. The only problem is that the pads get about a foot across at maturity and there can be as many as 10 at one time. At this size they really start limiting the amount of light. I have cut a total of 25 feet of lily out of my tank in one night! Could i start constantly trimmin the shoots to make it grown basil foilage and become compact or am i too far behind?
Here is a picture of some of the lily i cut out tonight. I put a glue stick in there for a reference to size.