caserole Posted February 27, 2007 Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 What substrates do you use in your tank Warren - just just 3-5mm gravel or do you use clay balls as well?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted February 27, 2007 Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 I use 2-4mm gravel and iron rich home made clay balls pushed into the gravel around plants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted February 27, 2007 Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 I use river sand from tha local nursary (next to Petworld in Smith St). Seive out the larger stuff with a large kitchen seive and wash. Mix unwashed fine sand with JBL micronutrient (daltons aquatic mix is probably as good and cheaper). Place washed fine gravel over mix and fill carefully into jug on plate to avoid disturbing too much. Add JBL nutrient balls under Echinodorus sp. I have a number of Echinodorus sp. thriving this way. I find Crypts from Sri Lanka like walkeri, wendtii and petchi as well as from Tailand like balansae do OK with this set up as they don't need soft acid water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted February 27, 2007 Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 I am trying to propagate a number of swords and have a few varieties available. Working on Red special, uraguayensis, ozelot, leopard, amazonicus,bleheri,red rubin and a number of smaller ones which I think are types of tenellus. Hoping to get barthii and more red rubin today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted February 27, 2007 Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 Warren-- what is the chain sword? It doesn't look wide enough in the leaf to be magdalenensis, but might just be the conditions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted February 27, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 Alan, I'd love to checkout you plant setups sometime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted February 27, 2007 Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 I'm surprised there aren't many opinionated freshwater keepers chiming in. Must be more mellow than the reefers. LOL, yeah, notice how earlier in the thread there was a misunderstanding and they were all very polite and apologetic. The reason I am setting up my tank again as a planted tank instead of setting up a reef is for the relaxation and calming effect of the fresh water tank, it has far less movement purely because the water isnt turning over at 100x. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted February 27, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 Yeah, similar reasons here too. Something a bit different, hopefully low maintenance... having said that, i'm still keeping my reef tank. I don't mind opinionated people, it's when they start causing trouble for the sake of it, I get annoyed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted February 27, 2007 Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 Looks a lot like std quadricostatus to me. I've never had quadricostatus var. magdalenensis before so I don't know exactly what it looks like. The std version I had looked just like the photo's above. Also not too sure about what other variants of this plant there are. Many of the swords in NZ are hybrids... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted February 27, 2007 Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 I have a number of the smaller swords from various sources and have been trying to identify them but they send runners but no flowers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caserole Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 A little off topic but.. Reef, nice discus and Someone said the liked Wild discus, I just happen to know an importer in New Plymouth has wild heckels on there list out Monday just gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 I just happen to know an importer in New Plymouth has wild heckels on there list out Monday just gone These are the same discus as above. They had them for some time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bOi Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 John at Organism would be the exception, he really has got things looking good there, a really high standard, in a league of it's own. It would be great to see other shops around town raise their standards to match. I second that and totally agree.. the plants I bought off him a few years back (4?) are still surviving and growing.. But the point, everything in his shop is personally taken cared for by John. Who is very picky on the condition of almost everything.. we need more shops with personal touches like that IMO.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted February 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 I have a number of the smaller swords from various sources and have been trying to identify them but they send runners but no flowers I've been doing some reading on Echinodorus sp. and some people induce flowering by altering the photoperiod. I guess you've tried that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 the blue light also makes them flower Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quack Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 hey reef you got some fulltank shots? looking good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 I tried altering the photoperiod but the sun did not respond to my request. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted February 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 I don't mind opinionated people, it's when they start causing trouble for the sake of it, I get annoyed Mutters something about pots and kettles! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted March 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2007 Is Eusteralis stellata available in NZ? If not, are there any plants similar around? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted March 2, 2007 Report Share Posted March 2, 2007 Have a look a few posts back in this section under Plant ID please. I thought the plant was (and still do) Eichornia azurea, but Plantman thought it might be Tonina. I have not seen Eusteralis, but talk to Bob Ward at Redwood about Eichornia azurea (first cousin to water hyacinth but permitted as I understand) Needs strong light-- I used to sell it to the shops years ago. Bob had grown it to the surface where it converted to emersed and flowered ( not easy) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted March 3, 2007 Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 What Hydrocotyle were you interested in? I normally have verticillata and leucocephala. Both are pretty easy to grow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted March 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 I prefer verticillata. Do you have Mayaca fluviatilis? I've not seen it in any of the shops, but apparently it's around somewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted March 3, 2007 Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 I don't have Mayaca but I think I saw it in a few shops in Jaffatown last year-- you might have to talk nicely to the locals or contact Pupuke as they are pretty good with plants. I grow verticillata emersed but it is easy to convert to submersed. If you want to go planted you don't want to wait too long as plants will start getting harder to obtain in about a month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted March 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 I grow verticillata emersed but it is easy to convert to submersed. Does it grow submersed as a low foreground plant? If you want to go planted you don't want to wait too long as plants will start getting harder to obtain in about a month. Why is that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.