mouse ears

[DantezGirl]

hi do mouse ear plants need alot of light will they be ok for axie tank?

[alanmin4304]

I would say they need moderate light. They need more light when converting from emersed to submersed growth. I have grown them OK in tanks 400 to 500mm deep with 60 or 80 watts of flourescent for 16 to 17 hrs/day.

[DantezGirl]

the tanks is 120cm long 44cm deep and 44cm wide the water level is 22cm i have axies in there so no light

but there is a window close by but has a heavy curtain is closed at all times but some light gets in but not to much

1: can plants survive useing sand?

2: do i need to use any chemicals to keep the plant alive?

3: they are not underwater just sitting in potplant in shallow water

[alanmin4304]

Yes,no but they need to feed on something. They will grow well if they get enough sunlight and food---they are heavy root feeders.

[DantezGirl]

can you recommend a natural food for the plants not to keen on chemicals or anything that will add ammonia

[alanmin4304]

Fish or axy poo

[DantezGirl]

sweet thats good news ok im going to attempt to plant my axie tank has any1 used watercress as a plant for axies?

[alanmin4304]

Only with bacon bones.

[Faran]

Unfortunately it is very difficult to maintain live plants in an aquarium with axolotls. Plants need light, and axolotls are nocturnal and need cooler waters. You can use aquarium lights but if temperature is a concern then don't use lights, which usually means you can't keep plants alive.

Straight off caudata.

[alanmin4304]

I understand that what is proposed is to pot the plant and grow it emersed with the roots in water and give it light from a window. If this is the case it would be the same as having mouses ear as a potplant which is what it realy is.

[Faran]

Light from a window on any aquarium can cause unwanted algae growth and direct sunlight may cause the normally cold water aquarium to rise to temperatures unsuitable for the axolotl. I lost 5 large juvenile axies this way over the summer.

But to answer your original questions -

1. Plants are very happy in sand provided they do not get uprooted and nitrogen pockets are avoided by aerating the substrate - this happens in any sand substrate planted or not.

2. No chemicals should be needed with cold water plants, as long as you have at least a simple sponge filter for bacterial filtration to break down waste into plant food.

3. Not really a question is it As Alan mentioned the plants will be fine planted this way as they'll basically be potted house plants with submerged roots and would grow very well IF they had enough light.

So when it all comes down to it you really won't have enough light for the plant to thrive. Hardy plants like java moss are recommended as they don't need light, absorb nutrients from the water, and can also be used for spawning mops. Downside of java moss is that it can break up and the whole tank ends up difficult to clean as you don't want to accidentally throw away the moss.

Aside from java moss, I ecommend plastic plants with axies all the way and I'm a live plant guy normally. I have a nice plastic twisted vallisenaria with a weighted base which the axies love and have used for spawning. The best part is that you can remove the whole plant with eggs attached to another container, just like java moss.

Hope that helps!

[DantezGirl]

well i knew light would be an issue and the heat and stress to the axies from the light and the algae thing just thaught these may be one of the ones that can handle not much light

1: is there any plant that can survive not much light?

2: i only choose this particular plant because of the leaf design

3: any plastic plants with similar leaf design?

[alanmin4304]

I am sure it would grow OK emersed near a window as a pot plant. It was very popular like that in England in Victorian days.

[rollergirl]

There are some pretty good silk plants out there these days that look very similar to the real thing

[Clarry mcmurray]

Will my mouse ear plants survive with only the roots submerged?.They keep getting eaten by my bronze golden carp

.

[Caryl]

Goldfish love to pull up plants so they can eat the more tender bits at the base/roots. Your plant may have difficulty coping with this. I found the only plant they really didn't like was Java fern. I am told it tastes bitter but can't verify that personally ?

[maxxi1]

you can try house plants such as pothos, philodendrons and Syngonium with just roots in the water ( from my experience goldies wont eat the good roots) some of my nicest vines are growing out of fish tanks