Some of my Planted Ripariums

[hydrophyte]

...With a small tank like that you could filter/circulate the water with just a simple sponge filter hooked up to an air pump. I prefer to use either canister filters or submersible power filters, but air would work fine too.

Ripariums probably are somewhat easier to tend than traditional planted aquariums. For one thing, you can have a nice bright display with lots of kinds of plants without having to inject carbon dioxide into the water. The emersed plants also stay totally algae-free. However, ripariums do require the same routine maintenance steps as any other aquarium with live fish, such as water changes, glass cleaning and occasional gravel cleaning. I have run into algae problems with my planted ripariums, but these tend to be less problematic because the emersed plants throw some shade on the underwater area and compete with the algae for nutrients.

If you might like to set one up I have extra cuttings and divisions of quite a few good riparium plants. I also have a few extra plants already in pots which I could send along too.

Here is a picture (with bad lighting) of that same 20-gallon form a while ago.

 

[Notophthalmus]

Thanks so much. They might not seem so clean if you could see them in person.

Those are some neat plants that you have gotten going. Did you collect them yourself? Do you have any pictures? I had some Heteranthera for a while, but I found that it ran all over and was difficult to keep in a planter. Some of those things, such as the Alisma, might not do so well in an aquarium setup because they have real strong seasonal cycles.

I did collect them myself, except for the Lobelia and Pontaderia, which I nabbed from a nursery clearance sale. I don't have any pictures yet; my setups are not yet close to looking the way I want them too. The main tank I'm working on is a 120 gallon curved-front corner tank; I also have some growout tanks.

 

[Notophthalmus]

A suggestion for Martha: you might like to try dwarf shrimps such as Cherry Red shrimp in your riparium. They are colorful and active, easy to take care of, and have a low bioload.

 

[hydrophyte]

That's a good idea. Cherry shrimp get along OK with guppies too.

How did you plant those emergents? Did you root them right in the bottom of the tank? I have thought that it would be fun to do that with Pontederia, Alisma and similar stuff.

 

[hydrophyte]

Here is that same picture of the 20-gallon with emersed stem plants, but with numbers and accompanying list of observations for each plant. This picture is 1000 pixels wide, so click it for a larger display and better detail...

1. Ranunculus inundatus. This one just sat in its planter for a long time--months--but now it's growing well. However, it doesn't have the best growth habit for riparium planters; it runs.
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2. Staurogyne sp.. What a neat little plant. This one actually has a pretty sturdy stem and it stands straight up. Right now it is covered with flower buds and I am excited to see its flowers. Maybe I will be able to determine the species.
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3. Pilea sp.. This plant is in the nettle family, Urticaceae, and it has the general look of the wild nettles we have around here, but it doesn't sting. This is one of my new favorite plants. It has a perfect habit for planting on a raft. It grows great with its roots right in the water. It will probably do best planted in this was with regular water column dosing, especially for N and Fe.
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4. Alternanthera reineckii var. rosaefolia. This is an easy plant to grow like this, but it gets leggy. It might do best with regular pruning of growing tips to encourage a more bushy habit.
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5. Ludwigia sp.. This might be L. repens(?). This plant was very slow to establish in the the lanter, but now it's growing well. I saw a response when I added mineralized topsoil to the planter cup.
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6. Limnophila aromatica. This one has had performance similar to the Ludwigia. It started slow, but is just now starting to grow better. I want to turn this one into a nice floating carpet.
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7. Hyptis sp.. This plant has been circulating in the hobby as Hemigraphis traian, but it's not a Hemigraphis. It grows well on a raft with its roots right in the water, as I have it here, but it grows sort of tall and leggy. I am going to see if I can encourage more bushy growth by pruning the growing tips.
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8. Bacopa caroliniana. I was disappointed in the initial performance of this one--it almost fizzled completely--but it also turned around when I added MTS to the planter cup. This might be the magic solution for some of these plants. This plant develops as attractive floating mats along the edges of ponds and streams and I am going to do my best to nurture these little stems along.

 

[hydrophyte]

This is from a while ago and with a different assemblage of plants in there, but these pictures give an idea of what the whole thing looks like.

 

[dgmcs]

Oh My, I would love a 20 gal tank but there is not enough space not already used for my hospital bed and such in my room....I have guppies and endler guppies in my six gal aquarium and a betta named Bently in my 2.5 small tank....that's more than I was supposed to have in here....I just thought that the riparium would be sort of like outside on the inside ...if you know what I mean....I would gladly pay you for the plants if you would pick out the ones to go in my 10 gal. I have an aide that could be talked into fixing it for me if you could explain how you get the plants planted and still have enough room on the bottom for the fish. Do you just build a shelf out of rocks and then set the pots on it? Can the shelf be a solid rock or does there have to be holes in it so the roots can go down? Or are the plants partly underwater with the pot setting on the bottom? Any help will be greatly appreciated... Thanks..Martha

 

[hydrophyte]

Martha, I would love you send you some plants; I have lots of them. Do you have a light fixture to go with that 10-gallon?

 

[hydrophyte]

The pots actually stick onto the rear pane of glass with suction cups. There are also foam raft pieces that hold up the plants. These accessories make it pretty easy to set everything up.

That 10-gallon ought to work well enough, although it would be pretty tight for the plants and the planters and only leave you about 3-5 gallons of water at the bottom. If you might have the inclination to shop for an additional tank the 15-gallon High has the same footprint (20" X 10") as the standard 10-gallon, but it's taller.

 

[dgmcs]

I don't get to go out of the house so I have to make do....and yes there is a light fixture with 2 aquarium bulbs in it...Where in the world do you get flower pots with a side suction cup? The is an aquarium store on line....Drs Fosters and Grants....I think...would they carry them? I know they have plants....I would love to have some of the plants you mentioned and I'll get all the aides thinking about the riperium.... there's going to be a big celebration here in Waterford, Ohio when we get this riperium set up!!! I'll see if one of them has a camera to send a picture to you...I'll PM my address and phone# and you send me the amount for the plants and I'll send it to you...I hadn't even considered shrimp but I like the idea....thanks...Martha