shiuh Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 hi everyone.. can the Plant Gurus out there please advise what plants i got from the lfs...i am a newbie to plants and i think i got tricked by the lfs by selling me what is not it is or some supposed to be emerged plants. first of all they sold me this plant as stargrass. but keeps me wonder why the foliage is not spiky????? i was told when they grown a bit matured they will start to look like stargrass? is this true? :roll: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shiuh Posted December 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 and these plants below.....what are their names and are they to be grown submerge or emerge? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 It looks like you have Cabomba and Java moss but I can't Id the rest. They look like they're in their emergent form at present. Many aquarium plants are grown emergent (top out of the water) as they are easier to grow and there's no algae. They can look totally different when grown under water. If what you have is star-grass then only the new growth will look like it should. As it's been 10+ years since I bought any aquarium stem plants I have forgotten what they look like when grown as terrestrial plants. If nobody can help, give it a couple of weeks and put up a new photo showing the new growth. By then you may have worked it out for yourself... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenbok Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 > and these plants below.....what are their names and are they to be grown submerge or emerge? The green plant forming runners in the top photo looks to be Ranunculus amphitrichus - a NZ native (I had it in my tank a few months ago, growing well, but it's a bit sparse looking for my liking). http://www.fnzas.org.nz/plant_survey/aq ... 467febf140 I've seen the rounded-tips version of "star grass" before - I don't think it's Heteranthera zosterifolia like the normal one. Perhaps another species. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 The first and second picture are stargrass (Heteranthera zosterfolia--grown emersed) Red hygro (alternanthera reineckii roseafolia--grown emersed) and cabomba grown submersed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 The other is a buttercup as suggested and the last one is pass (turtle tucker) The stargrass will convert to submersed easily, red hygro needs strong light and grows slowly but should develop a lovely red colour, cabomba does not like water movement and I think the buttercup doesn't like it too hot. There is a similar alternanthera sold as beetroot (rubra) which should never have been taken out of grannies pot and will rot in a few weeks. I think you have the right one. Great to see you have seen the light and are in to plants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shiuh Posted December 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 yes..i am really into plants lately..i think i caught the plant bug. with work been hectic lately..i think i have given up on breeding fish... :-? . my question is ....since the first picture is indeed stargrass, will the foliage grow spiky when matured? that is essentially what i want it to look like in my tank. round tips just look darn ugly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 yes..i am really into plants lately..i think i caught the plant bug. with work been hectic lately..i think i have given up on breeding fish... :-? . my question is ....since the first picture is indeed stargrass, will the foliage grow spiky when matured? that is essentially what i want it to look like in my tank. round tips just look darn ugly. Yes, new growth will look like it should. Don't be surprised if the existing leaves fall off, this sometimes happens and is usually nothing to worry about. Not sure what happens to star-grass as I've never had it - so the leaves may or may not fall off. Someone else who's grown it before may be able to comment. Good on you for getting into plants. They really add a lot to the tank and the fish are a lot happier with them too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 Stargrass is a great plant and has very fragile leaves so travels better if grown emersed (also grows quicker) It needs a lot of light so does best if you plant it in loose bunches and trim it regularly so it remains in shortish clumps (maybe 100-150mm) and replant the bits you trim. If you have it too dense the bottom foliage doesn't get enough light and goes black and straggly. It is the tips that look good ( the name zosteraefolia means star leaf) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishboi Posted December 4, 2006 Report Share Posted December 4, 2006 i have round tip stargrass and even though it does taper at the ends its a noticebly rounder. so time will tell on that one. ur 4th picture has hippurus vulgaris [thick spiky looking plant] the look will change now its submersed. and i am sure u already know some lovely X-mas moss on the driftwood Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shiuh Posted December 4, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2006 yes,,,i do know some of the common ones like cabomba, java moss, hair grass, tenellus etc...just some of them which completely looks different when grown emerge for fast propogation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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