What floating plants do well in tannic water?

platytudes

platytudes

AC Members
Nov 4, 2006
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Panama City, FL
Real Name
Nicole
Anyone have tea colored water and success with floating plants? I know some things will "sort of" float, like anacharis, hornwort, etc. but I'm really looking for true floaters.

How about Amazon frogbit? (Does it even COME from the Amazon? ;) If so, I suppose it would be the obvious choice!)
 
My tank is pretty dark from tannin, and I don't have problem with floating plants. My salvinia is unstoppable (I gave a handful to a friend and it took over her five-gallon tank in three weeks.) The problem I have found with floating plants is that they don't thrive in surface movement. In my smaller tanks I have to throw salvinia away with each water change, but in my main tank it just dies, because there is a lot more water movement.
 
Everyone's fav ... Duckweed. :)
 
I have two 54 watt T-5s over a 55 gallon tank, so I think the lighting would be adequate for frogbit, just not sure if there is any other I am forgetting. Has anyone tried water sprite in tannic water? I have never had much luck with it in my low light tanks, this is my only tank with anything besides a single fluorescent tube or a couple of CFLs.

I have an air powered undergravel filter with coarse sand and an AC 70 turned all the way down. I don't think the agitation would bother the plants too much. I think I will start with some frogbit and water sprite and see how it does. If one does better than the other, I may just stick with the one. And yes, duckweed will be included...once I have other plants for it to grow in between ;)
 
Actually, it's more likely that the other plants will grow between the duckweed if the aquaclear doesn't suck it up. I use penguin powerhead reverse-flow replacement sponges for prefilters on all my hob and canister intakes to keep plants from cutting off the water flow.
I have water sprite in a couple tanks. Tossed a big clump into the 125 which has very tannic water, all the Mopani wood is still constantly trying to make my water black. I think it was the lack of proper lighting and water flow from the AC 110 that caused the decline, though the 4 severums and 5 silver dollars don't help either. I just netfuls of duckweed from other tanks into the 125 every so often for the fish to eat, was hoping the water sprite would grow fast enough to keep ahead of them.
 
Depending on your current...Azolla would be a nice addition as well.
 
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