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Native Aquatic Plants


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Hey guys, RE my other post in the Freshwater board [New Native Tank Setup], I'm looking for native plants & fish to stock a new tank I'm getting in about a fortnight's time.

I've been browsing through the NIWA website (awesome reference there!), and I've found a few that from what I can tell, are natives. I'm hoping someone here can help me out!

What I've found so far:

Potamogeton ochreatus

Ruppia megacarpa

Ruppia polycarpa

Elatine gratioloides

Myriophyllum penduculatum Hook f. subsp. novae-zelandiae

Isoetes kirkii

Ranunculus limosella

Glossostigma diandrum

Glossostigma elatinoides

Lilaeopsis ruthiana

I'm going to be googling a lot over the next few weeks I think!

Basically, I've read through all the posts here on native fish & plants, and I'm still wanting more information! I've also emailed Dr John Clayton from NIWA about plants, as that's his speciality, so I'm just waiting to hear back from him.

So can anyone help me? More information on those plants, or ones I haven't mentioned, availability etc.

I really really really really (I think you get the point) want to get an AWESOME native freshwater tank setup!

I want people to go :hail: when they see it... :lol:

Nik

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MAF have a PDF file with a list of plants they consider noxious and that you shouldn't be getting, but beyond that what you have already found is the only information I could find on the web about New Zealand aquatic plants when I last looked.

Good luck and keep us posted about what you do find out.

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I was up on a high country station recently and a lot of the tarns up there had all sorts of interesting plants growing in them. If I'd had a plastic bag with me, and hadn't known that they wouldn't get planted for a week, I would have grabbed some there and then.

I suspect all you need is a reasonably still, reasonably shallow area of water.

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Shallow won't work, as the tank is a unit setup, with powerhead @ the top etc, so the water needs to be filled right to the top, or the powerhead burns out! Unless I can do something clever with clear plastic pipes or something, anyway :lol:

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NZPC-095.jpg

I have this one called Myriophyllum robustum - it looks really pretty in the tank, much nicer than the photo actually. It is growing towards the light at a rapid pace much to my dismay but I think I might pinch off a few and replant them to see what happens. This is what the tag says about it - I purchased it at Palmers in Gt North Rd Kelston a few weeks ago:-

NZ Native. Oxygenating. A plant now so rare as to be classified as vulnerable. Great spawning grounds for fish, incredible submerged foliage. Planting Depth: 5cm-2m.

I could find lots of info on the Net about it but only this one photo which doesn't do it justice, I'll see if I can get a photo of mine later today.

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lilaeopsis.jpg

I also have this Lilaeopsis Brasiliensis in my cichlid tank but I'm removing it to another tank very soon because they keep on digging it up and about half of it has floated to the top over the last two weeks!

Purchased from Mitre10 New Lynn, tag says:-

Oxygenating. A lovely plant that forms a carpet at the bottom of your pond. Great for foraging fish. Will take greater depths than other oxygenating plants. Planting Depth up to 1m in good light.

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By the way, your website looks great Dawn! It even appears to render correctly in FireFox, which is always good in my books ;) Apart from the odd 'bubble' that's stuck in one place on the screen, but I can live with that!

Take back the web!!

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Yes, perhaps we can do some swapping?

Don't know how good it would be swapping with me, this will be the only tank I've got in my house!

But if the pond up on Mt St John is still full of greeblies, I could bag some for you! :) I'm sure your fish would love some food that actually requires effort to ingest! :lol:

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0_o you can harvest from their ponds? Not that I knew they even had ponds, but now I do know! Is this the monstrous old building on the Shore on your left as you come over the Bridge? I might have to con my mates into taking me for a drive! :D

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Bingo thats the place. I last went there to get plants about 5 years ago. No body stoped me :P. there are plenty of different plants in those ponds. Also not too far away is lake pupuke it has Potamogeton crispus. I'm not sure if it is native or not, any idea guys? I think that stuff might grow a bit to big for the tank you might have in mind. But there has to be other natives down there.

I hope this help, get ready to get wet at chealse they will be a bit hard to find if you intend on staying dry.

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Also not too far away is lake pupuke it has Potamogeton crispus. I'm not sure if it is native or not, any idea guys?

P crispus isn't a native, no... Although I think it's pretty similar to P ochreatus, being the same family and all :P

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It almost looks like a weird type of Cabomba!

Now that you mention it - when I was looking on the Net for a picture of it I came across this - so perhaps it is related to the Cabomba:-

Myriophyllum robustum

cabomba (Portuguese-Brazil), Carolina fanwort, Carolina water-shield, fanwort, fish-grass, Washington-grass, Washington-plant

Here:-

http://www.issg.org/database/species/Si ... &fr=1&sts=

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