tim
Member
Shouldn't cause any issues it'll cut in and out as the surrounding water reaches temperature.
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Grow tank?
- Thread starter James O
- Start date
James O
Member
Thanks. Wanted to be sure I understood that as it's running in reduced water level 
What about light timings? At the moment it's turned on manually around 7am and off when I go to bed around 11pm
What about light timings? At the moment it's turned on manually around 7am and off when I go to bed around 11pm
tim
Member
Long as it's covered with water should be fine, it may well turn on and off more so you could expect a shorter life span, photoperiod will be fine I ran a wabi kusa on a 6am- 11-12pm photoperiod and was all good.
James O
Member
Groovy! Let the growing begin.....
James O
Member
This morning all walls and glass lid were covered with condensation. The thermometers registered a maybe 2deg oC difference from inside to out (20deg outside & 22deg inside air temp)
The heater is set to 24 degrees so I might bump it up a touch
The heater is set to 24 degrees so I might bump it up a touch
James O
Member
Quick update: Smells like the Palm House at Kew, all warm, damp and fertile 
All the Anubias are happily opening new leaves and I think I have a flower on the way. The crypts. haven't melted yet either
Am going to swap over one of the Microsorum to an upturned plastic bottle to see what happens.
A quick question - How many plants can I stuff in there? Does it matter if they touch? Obviously I'd avoid heavy shading of other plants. It's just I keep seeing bits and bobs on the sale/swap/want thread and I would ideally end up with excess for my big tank. Excess = Choice
All the Anubias are happily opening new leaves and I think I have a flower on the way. The crypts. haven't melted yet either Am going to swap over one of the Microsorum to an upturned plastic bottle to see what happens.
A quick question - How many plants can I stuff in there? Does it matter if they touch? Obviously I'd avoid heavy shading of other plants. It's just I keep seeing bits and bobs on the sale/swap/want thread and I would ideally end up with excess for my big tank. Excess = Choice
James O
Member
Oh goody! Let the collecting of random plants begin
Good thing about growing emersed is you can grow things that you can't normally grow in a low tech tech. I'm planning on setting emersed displays in the future. You can try to grow some more difficult plants in your setups and use the emersed box as a back up supply for you to try over and over again should you fail.
James O
Member
Interesting idea. A self replenishing organic 'redundancy bank'. That will be very helpful as I'm sure I can see a failure or two in my future......
James O
Member
Well I've started collecting!
4x crypts, 3x microsorum & 3x anubias
I got to wondering how emersed growing compares to say a CO2 or liquid carbon submerged setup? Would the microsorum, for example, be happier submerged?
4x crypts, 3x microsorum & 3x anubias
I got to wondering how emersed growing compares to say a CO2 or liquid carbon submerged setup? Would the microsorum, for example, be happier submerged?
James O
Member
Added a small pump to circulate the water as it was getting a touch scuzzy.
Plants are still in rockwool in their pots. Some are single plants but several are 2 or 3 in a pot. I'm thinking of moving them singly to pots with clay balls as substrate. This should offer improved flow for the roots and more room to grow larger.
Do you think this would be a better idea than the rockwool?
Plants are still in rockwool in their pots. Some are single plants but several are 2 or 3 in a pot. I'm thinking of moving them singly to pots with clay balls as substrate. This should offer improved flow for the roots and more room to grow larger.
Do you think this would be a better idea than the rockwool?
Hi James,
Its hard to say if a plant prefers submerged of emersed, but they should grow faster emersed. Apparently some plants should at some point in their life time spend some time out of water - Don't remember where I have read that from.
Many suppliers grow emersed plants in rock wool as it does well in soaking up water for the plants. I think you can substitute if for something like cat litter - foxfish mentioned this in another thread too, I have certainly grew plants successfully in cat litter, I know some will use coconut coir as a growing media for plants too! I can't say which is the best as all the plants I've ever kept emersed came from my aquarium and before I planted it in the tank I would have removed the wool. But you can perhaps experiment with it in your setup and report back in the thread.
Its hard to say if a plant prefers submerged of emersed, but they should grow faster emersed. Apparently some plants should at some point in their life time spend some time out of water - Don't remember where I have read that from.
Many suppliers grow emersed plants in rock wool as it does well in soaking up water for the plants. I think you can substitute if for something like cat litter - foxfish mentioned this in another thread too, I have certainly grew plants successfully in cat litter, I know some will use coconut coir as a growing media for plants too! I can't say which is the best as all the plants I've ever kept emersed came from my aquarium and before I planted it in the tank I would have removed the wool. But you can perhaps experiment with it in your setup and report back in the thread.
James O
Member
Well I've been to a local hydroponics place to buy 40 mesh pots for uniformity. It seems in Brighton lots of people are interested in fast efficient plant growing.......
I decided to update the internal layout. Using gravel as a medium to cope with various pot heights was a pain in the whatsits. As the base of the storage box isn't uniformly flat I needed something to create a level base. Wood? No. Metal? No. Plastic? maybe. Glass? YES!! So I had another piece cut to fit the bottom of the box.
Once home I removed the plants and gravel and also washed the gravel. As an experiment I subdivided the Anubias Petite as there where couple of rhizomes per pot. I split these out of the rockwool and popped them into new pots with gravel as substrate holding the roots with the rhizome just above the edge of the pot. The gravel also means the post stay where you put 'em! Will see how this all pans out.
Glass bottomed box
Lots more room and expandability without the gravel
3 Anubias Petite become 7
I decided to update the internal layout. Using gravel as a medium to cope with various pot heights was a pain in the whatsits. As the base of the storage box isn't uniformly flat I needed something to create a level base. Wood? No. Metal? No. Plastic? maybe. Glass? YES!! So I had another piece cut to fit the bottom of the box.
Once home I removed the plants and gravel and also washed the gravel. As an experiment I subdivided the Anubias Petite as there where couple of rhizomes per pot. I split these out of the rockwool and popped them into new pots with gravel as substrate holding the roots with the rhizome just above the edge of the pot. The gravel also means the post stay where you put 'em! Will see how this all pans out.
Glass bottomed box
Lots more room and expandability without the gravel
3 Anubias Petite become 7
James O
Member
More plants! 4x Crypt. W. Petchii, 3x Anubias N. petite (which need dividing) & 3x Microsorum 'narrow' - all tropica plants so in very nice condition
Am going to see how plants progress before messing about any more. Am a little concerned that the gravel is too heavy for roots and may look at clay or cat litter depending.
James O
Member
Okay I lied! Started playing again......
Well washed Tescos cat litter is way lighter but runs out the slots in the pots so I doubled up and partially obscured the slots with another pot. It fills in well but a little tends to find its way out now and then. I devided up the tropica plants I received (amazing quality btw) and now have 18 Anubias n. Petite
I'll be receiving another 12 cryptocorynes from a member here and think I'll move all the crypts to another tank (60cm 55l). Here's the question: what would these be best grown in? Submerged with John Innes no.3 substrate, emerged with the same, emerged/submerged cat litter with osmocote tabs. Would growing them on submerged be of benifit when it comes to transplanting them to the main tank?
Any answers much appreciated. Lots of reading has led me to information saturation......
Well washed Tescos cat litter is way lighter but runs out the slots in the pots so I doubled up and partially obscured the slots with another pot. It fills in well but a little tends to find its way out now and then. I devided up the tropica plants I received (amazing quality btw) and now have 18 Anubias n. Petite
I'll be receiving another 12 cryptocorynes from a member here and think I'll move all the crypts to another tank (60cm 55l). Here's the question: what would these be best grown in? Submerged with John Innes no.3 substrate, emerged with the same, emerged/submerged cat litter with osmocote tabs. Would growing them on submerged be of benifit when it comes to transplanting them to the main tank?
Any answers much appreciated. Lots of reading has led me to information saturation......
James O
Member
Update time:
some of my Anubias n petite have suffered catastrophic failure. A white furry mold type thing has taken nearly half my stock.
A little reading and it seems that my tank was just too damp. I hadn't been taking the lid of to play and so the air was extremely damp and they werent drying off. None of the affected rhizomes were underwater or even in the water. I shall be opening the lid and wafting in fresh air once a day now. This is how the Anubias box looks now with several new A. nanas added:
And that time will be when I swap the light over to my new emersed grow box!!! I got a load more Crypts and decided to give them a box all of their own. I split up 2 pots and am trying them in separate containers. Once has tescos cat litter and Osmocote and the other is john innes no.3.
I've read that plants have emergent and submerged type leaves and so was wondering about submerging the Crypts to minimise leaf loss on transfer to main tank. What do you guys think?
some of my Anubias n petite have suffered catastrophic failure. A white furry mold type thing has taken nearly half my stock.
A little reading and it seems that my tank was just too damp. I hadn't been taking the lid of to play and so the air was extremely damp and they werent drying off. None of the affected rhizomes were underwater or even in the water. I shall be opening the lid and wafting in fresh air once a day now. This is how the Anubias box looks now with several new A. nanas added:
And that time will be when I swap the light over to my new emersed grow box!!! I got a load more Crypts and decided to give them a box all of their own. I split up 2 pots and am trying them in separate containers. Once has tescos cat litter and Osmocote and the other is john innes no.3.
I've read that plants have emergent and submerged type leaves and so was wondering about submerging the Crypts to minimise leaf loss on transfer to main tank. What do you guys think?
Looking good mate! Do what you feel is right, the good thing about emersed in my opinion is that when you go to submerge you are going to submerge a lot of plants, even if you lose lots of leaves here and there you will make up with the number of plants you now have. Its not like the plant will necessarily die, if kept nicely new submerged leaves will growth out.
James O
Member
James O
Member
EMERGENCY!!!!
A couple more of my anubias are getting thins white fuzz mold stuff growing on them. As the mold is only above water level I'm going to flood the tank to save what I have left.
Any other suggestions?
A couple more of my anubias are getting thins white fuzz mold stuff growing on them. As the mold is only above water level I'm going to flood the tank to save what I have left.
Any other suggestions?
