• You are viewing the forum as a Guest, please login (you can use your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Microsoft account to login) or register using this link: Log in or Sign Up

Limnophila hippuridoides

Wisey

Wisey

Member
Joined
19 Jul 2014
Messages
1,061
Hi,

I fell in love with Limnophila hippuridoides watching Tropica videos, but I have not had much luck with it so far. The only plants I could find for sale were tissue culture and not Tropica plants. I planted in to Unipac sand with Tropica plant growth substrate underneath. I am using pressurised CO2, I have had a few issues in the first few weeks with unstable CO2, but according to the Tropica site, this plant requires low CO2 and medium light, so I am not sure if my problem is CO2, or just a struggle to get the tissue culture plants established. My lights are a TMC 1500 Ultima tile, 6 hours a day at 20%, its also quite high above the water surface. The stems are at the back, so not bright light, but not too dark, its not in shade.

I planted most of the stems when I bought it, but put a few in a propagator where it grows slowly. Most of the stems showed some new growth initially, just a fresh set of leaves at the top of the stem, but then the bottom of the stem just melts. I moved over stems from the propagator and these seemed to be doing much better, fresh growth again, but then the bottoms just rot again. These are only about an inch or so tall being tissue culture, so when the bottom rots, there is barely anything good left at the top to try and replant. I'm now down to a tiny group of about 6 stems which I am trying to keep alive, but worry that I will have the same issue again.

I'm wondering if you know anywhere in the UK that stocks the Tropica version of this plant which is a pot and not tissue culture, so I can try and get more established plants in to the tank that might have a better chance please? Also any tips for growing this plant that might be useful for my next attempt to be more successful please?

Thanks in advance!
 
What I found when using Limnophila species if that it took a very long time for it to established in the aquarium, once established (2-3 months) it grew like a weed!
 
LondonDragon said:
What I found when using Limnophila species if that it took a very long time for it to established in the aquarium, once established (2-3 months) it grew like a weed!
Click to expand...

I just can't get it established, new growth for a week then the bottom half rots, so frustrating. I thought it was just the emmersed leaves melting and the new submersed growth would do ok, but then the actual stem rots and I come back to find the thing flat on the substrate and ruined.
 
Wisey said:
I'm wondering if you know anywhere in the UK that stocks the Tropica version of this plant which is a pot and not tissue culture, so I can try and get more established plants in to the tank that might have a better chance please? Also any tips for growing this plant that might be useful for my next attempt to be more successful please?
Click to expand...

Saw this the other day when I was looking for shrimp.
http://www.freshwatershrimp.co.uk/product.php?id_product=518
 
Wisey,

I had the same problem with the tissue culture plant. I put the rotting down to the possibility that some of the gel remained on the plant.

Normally I would have given up but I stuck with it and it has now started to grow.

Whether it's a coincidence or not I don't know but they plants have done better when planted individually rather than in groups of 2 or 3 stems.
 
I bought mine from TGM. I've had difficulty with them but seem to have it sorted now. No sign of red on the leaves yet though.
 
Lim.hipp. really is a lovely plant - I can understand, why you fell in love.
I have actually never had problems,during testing of the plant - including testing material from the Lab. (= in vitro). It adapt readily to conditions of quite low to very bright light, and high or low addition of CO2, changing leafcolour and -size accordingly. There is a transition-time, ofcourse, adapting to life submerse - but it really should not take more than days or weeks. Never months.
The individual stem needs to "gather energy" (=grow some size), before showing good colour. Colouration will increase with amount of light, be it generally or stem growing closer to surface. Stems in good growth, will very readily branch from being even very low cut. Re-planting the biggest cuttings continuously, will ensure maximum possible colouration of the group.
 
I started with the normal pots which had already been growing submersed for some time. They grew so well that I was always chopping of the tops and replanting them. They would soon grow to the surface again.

However, I had less luck with getting the bottom parts to re-grow new shoots. It seemed that without enough CO2/flow the lower stems would at worst melt away or at least lose all their leaves from the bottom to about halfway up. As ever the solution is more CO2!

P
 
If you have another go at in vitro plants, my advice is to wash carefull off all gel. Divide material into bits of single or a few stems and plant rather deep. If possible, give it an open space with good light - at least to get it started growing.
As you washed off the tiny plant-lets food resource, and they have extreemely little energy stored, you need to ensure nutrients are easily available from the very start (=water dosing).
I consider flow self evident, though I personally manage with (sometimes much) less than the 10 times turnover.
Personally I do not trim in vitro plants, untill they show good growth and have gained size (= stored energy for regrowing).
 
Yes - this plant has the tendency of becoming so dense, it block out light and flow.
Solution (other than continue upping CO2), ofcourse is to (heavily) trim out, so light and flow can allways enter the group.
The "Black Current Method" of trimming off 1/3 of group in each trimming works perfect for this plant. By this method there will be full-grown stems, young stems and new-cut stems at any time - making the group healthy and presentable at all times.
 
What a lovely plant! And noone bought it in our shop til we demonstrated the best side of it 🙂

For us lot of light, soft water, co2, water temp 22-24, daily fertilizers do the work in both world. As this plant looks awesome under and above the water too!
Isn't this super sexy? 🙂

15168531486_d6a1000bc2_b.jpgWater change with a view 🙂 by Viktor Lantos, on Flickr

14878385398_228ac67d14_b.jpg
Green Aqua Showroom by Viktor Lantos, on Flickr

an older shot where both world can be seen

14601747720_a8b9ac3079_b.jpgGreen Aqua Showroom by Viktor Lantos, on Flickr

I never seen any other aquatic plants which gives so much flower. And this was not only for a day or a week, but has bloomed all the year! Was hard to let it go and do something else in this scape 🙂
 
Last edited:
Thank you everyone for all your input on this thread, I'm determined to have this plant succeed one way or another, so I appreciate your comments.

Andy D said:
Wisey,

I had the same problem with the tissue culture plant. I put the rotting down to the possibility that some of the gel remained on the plant.

Normally I would have given up but I stuck with it and it has now started to grow.

Whether it's a coincidence or not I don't know but they plants have done better when planted individually rather than in groups of 2 or 3 stems.
Click to expand...

This was my experience too, the first time I planted they were all in groups of 3 stems and I had problems very quickly. I then separated out the good stems from the melted and replanted the good stems individually. These ones then put out new growth, but ultimately the bottoms melted too. The stems that I have now have all come from the propagator and had put on extra emmersed growth since I got them. They have done better, they did get a second wash before going in to remove any soil and possibly some gel that may still have been there, but I think just soil.

Mick.Dk said:
If you have another go at in vitro plants, my advice is to wash carefull off all gel. Divide material into bits of single or a few stems and plant rather deep. If possible, give it an open space with good light - at least to get it started growing.
As you washed off the tiny plant-lets food resource, and they have extreemely little energy stored, you need to ensure nutrients are easily available from the very start (=water dosing).
I consider flow self evident, though I personally manage with (sometimes much) less than the 10 times turnover.
Personally I do not trim in vitro plants, untill they show good growth and have gained size (= stored energy for regrowing).
Click to expand...

My substrate is quite deep at the back, about 2 cm of Tropica substrate, but then around 6-8 cm of sand on the top as its banked up a bit in that back corner. I'm dosing EI though, so they should have access to ferts in the water. Flow was maybe an issue behind the bogwood where they are with them being so low to the substrate at the moment, but I added an Eheim skimmer and used a piece of hose to divert the flow from that down behind the bogwood. I can now see the stems waving in the flow and that is what makes it obvious when the stem starts to melt at the bottom, they just bend over and wave around then lay flat on the substrate. The good ones sit there quite happily just gently swaying in the flow. I put the drop checker down behind the bogwood and I was getting the lime green there, so hope that they are getting a reasonable amount of CO2. I guess not as much as the plants right at the front, but the DC is not blue.

I looked last night after replanting things a couple of days ago and I have a few stems that seem to be doing ok, but a couple that are already bent over in the flow as the bottom has started to melt. I'll see if I can keep these few stems alive and then make a decision at the weekend. I may still buy the Tropica pot and that should give me some more established plants that I can grow alongside any of these smaller stems that survive.
 
When I got home this evening, a number of the stems I had have melted. There are still a few hanging in there, but really not that many. Flow is good, I can see them all moving and the melting ones are flat on the substrate due to flow. Drop checker is green, borderline yellow after turning up the CO2 last night. With TGM having 20% off on the new website, I decided to take the plunge and have ordered two pots of Tropica Limnophila hippuridoides, so lets hope that starting with a more established plant and my CO2 now being high gives me a better chance of getting this plant to succeed and establish itself. I also ordered a pot of Tropica 1-2 Grow S. Repens so that I can fill in my left hand side faster. The S. Repens I planted last week has started to put out new growth already, but I am impatient, so figured seeing as I was paying for postage, I might as well add another plant on the order and fill in the gaps faster.

I do still have a few Limnophila hippuridoides stems in the propagator, so I think when I do the water change on Sunday I will plant these right at the front of the tank in the open sand. Will be interesting to see if they grow well there where there is probably more light, more CO2 and more flow. If they do well there, then once they are established I will move them back and add them in with the new Limnophila hippuridoides that should arrive next week.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top