Re: Aquariums

Allen Stile (astile@candelo.dpie.gov.au)
Thu, 6 Apr 1995 12:05:03 +1000

G'day CP world
AQUARIA
My experience says NEVER grow any plant including CPs in still water.
For an aquarium with a lid, keeping 100% humidity will mean that "excess"
water is irrelevant, but there again Sarracenia Pinguicula, Utricularia and
Dionaea all grow best with a constant flow of water over their roots. If
you cannot arrange that, placing some hollow medium under pots to allow
excess water to drain away is fine.
Just to re-iterate, if you are using an aquarium, you shouldn't have to
water at all!

I grow U biloba in a tropical aquarium with circulation going. Also works
on Aldrovanda, but I do not grow Av now - too boring. --------Question -
has anyone flowered Av?

CHEMICALS
Most pesticides contain, besides the poison, detergents and suspenders (ie
talc if solid, or solvents). Don't blame the Daconil fungicide for the poor
health of your plants - it is the detergents fault. All helophytes and
aquaphytes are very sensitive to disturbance in membranes, and of course any
detergent will wreck root or leaf membranes.
All fungi need a lot of nitrogen to grow, so if you have fungi, change your
medium and/or water!

>
>freidm@teleport.com (Rebecca Patchett) wrote:
>
>> Hi folks.
>> I've been catching threads of discussions about different ways to grow CPs
>> placed in aquariums. Currently, my plants are in individual pots placed in
>> the tank, with water around the pots. I chose this method as it allows me
>> to use different growing media for the different types of plants and
>> facilitates repotting.
>
> And makes it easy to move plants around to find where they're happiest
> with the light/heat/etc.
>
>> But the standing water appears stagnant and has some
>> algae. Is it better for the plants to fill the tank with growing media,
>> skipping the pots, and planting them all in the mix?
>
> I haven't tried it, but I can't see the water will be less stagnant -
> just be less visible and harder to change...
> And harder to isolate and treat any problems of disease or infestation.
>
>> And if not, how often
>> should I be completely changing the standing water and/or cleaning out the
>> tank of algae? I'd appreciate any advice on tank growing from the group.
>
> I have to confess to not always being as organized as I'd like to be -
> I've got some trays that should have been swilled a couple of months
> ago, but the plants show no ill effects - in fact they're bursting
> into life in a most satisfying manner. Outdoors I don't change the
> water, just top it up as it evaporates - it doesn't go stagnant;
> indoors on windowsills the trays get a bit rancid within a couple of
> months - faster under artificial lights in closed terrariums ( I do
> change them at least monthly to stop mould. ) I use a horticultural
> water filter and change the filter frequently to prevent salt/chlorine/
> lime buildup, but the plants show no sign of disliking algae or
> stagnant, scummy water.
> I guess a lot of CPs are used to stagnant bog-water - it's more of
> a problem for people living in the house when it starts to smell:
> *then* you know it's time to change the water <g>
> Of course, YMMV, but for my money poor ventilation, mould and chemical
> contamination are far greater evils for most CPs.
> Hope this helps,
>
> happy growing,
>
> Peter
>
> Peter Cole | carnivor@bunyip.demon.co.uk | Admiring the 28" pitcher on
>Swansea, WALES | new mailbox, same account | my S. X (alata * flava) :)
>
>