Water Wisteria question: Also, I'm new here! hi!

Mangala · 07-23-2006, 05:14 AM

Hello! I just started a planted 29gl (US) tank. I got into the hobby from trying to grow live plants with 2gl betta bowls :-) Anyway... My Water Wisteria seems to be thriving rather well, and everything I've read says if you just chop it in half and plant the top half elsewhere in your substrate, it'll grow new roots and thusly, a new plant! Well, one of my 12" long guys got chopped in half (on accident while cleaning/rearranging) recently so I thought, "cool, chance to test this theory!" but every time I plant the top half, it sticks for a bit, then slides right out of the substrate and floats to the top due to the current from the filter. Right now I've got it planted in my betta tank, but the light that's in it is just barely good enough for the java moss that's growing there and wisteria just tends to sit rather than grow new leaves every single day like in my 29gl...

Any ideas? should I tie it to a rock?? I'm afraid of bruising the stem...

crazie.eddie · 07-23-2006, 06:14 AM

Someone gave the idea, sorry if I don't remember you, of wrapping the stem with a piece of cotton and wrap it with a string. The cotton will help weigh it down when it gets wet and will easily help secure it in the substrate.

Mangala · 07-23-2006, 06:51 AM

Hey, that's good! better than me using a dubious rock from the parking lot...

who knows how much oil had dripped on them...

oo, also, I've got two stems of what I'm assuming is a type of ludwigia... which I had previously thought were dead (I'd had them for three months and they did nothing but shed leaves...) now, finally they're starting to put out green shoots! *excited* but the bottom parts are dead looking, and I can't seem to find much info about exactly what to do for them... just info saying they grow like crazy... but if the bottom half of it is brown and like, dead looking, should I just lop it off and maybe... tie it to cotton like my wisteria? I'm hoping it'll propogate somehow... it was really attractive when I bought it in the store 3 months ago. I'm hoping it'll take up the back corner of my tank a little... maybe I should get a photo of my tank or something and try to post it...

**Hoppy** · 07-23-2006, 02:55 PM

I hope you will soon start fertilizing, if you aren't already doing so. Ludwigia Repens grows very easily, rapidly, and prunes easily, so you should be successful with it if you have enough light and add fertilizers. Try reading http://www.rexgrigg.com/ to learn more. The problem with not doing so is that you may run into easily preventable problems, get discouraged, and quit trying.

I have a 29 gallon tank too, but am upgrading shortly to a 45 gallon to get more planting room. Welcome to the forum!!

Mangala · 07-23-2006, 04:30 PM

Ha! why do you think it's "suddenly starting to sprout"? I've learned a lot about plants since I bought that couple of stems... I'm just glad it seems to be sticking in there... I've already culled the non-aquatic plants that petsmart sold me... I'm down to Wisteria, Java Moss (just recieved yesterday from a friend who was trimming hers back), some kind of sword, and the ludwigia. I'm really proud of my lil' tank.

I'm hoping everything fills in very nicely.

07-23-2006, 05:14 AM	#1
Mangala Planted Tank Enthusiast (View User Tanks) PTrader: (1/100%) Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 560	Water Wisteria question: Also, I'm new here! hi! Hello! I just started a planted 29gl (US) tank. I got into the hobby from trying to grow live plants with 2gl betta bowls :-) Anyway... My Water Wisteria seems to be thriving rather well, and everything I've read says if you just chop it in half and plant the top half elsewhere in your substrate, it'll grow new roots and thusly, a new plant! Well, one of my 12" long guys got chopped in half (on accident while cleaning/rearranging) recently so I thought, "cool, chance to test this theory!" but every time I plant the top half, it sticks for a bit, then slides right out of the substrate and floats to the top due to the current from the filter. Right now I've got it planted in my betta tank, but the light that's in it is just barely good enough for the java moss that's growing there and wisteria just tends to sit rather than grow new leaves every single day like in my 29gl... Any ideas? should I tie it to a rock?? I'm afraid of bruising the stem...

07-23-2006, 06:14 AM	#2
crazie.eddie Wannabe Guru (View User Tanks) PTrader: (8/100%) Join Date: May 2004 Location: Illinois Posts: 1,681	Someone gave the idea, sorry if I don't remember you, of wrapping the stem with a piece of cotton and wrap it with a string. The cotton will help weigh it down when it gets wet and will easily help secure it in the substrate. __________________ 125 gal (473 liter): Low Tech (1.5wpg PC for 10 hours, no CO2/ferts, gravel substrate), Equipment (72" Coralife PC, Eheim Pro II 2128 w/built in heater, FilStar XP3 w/Hydor ETH201 inline heater), Fish (6Discus, 2Angel, 5Clown loaches, 4L-018 Gold Nugget pleco, 1L-260 Queen Arabesque pleco, 7Cories, Farlowella cat)

07-23-2006, 02:55 PM	#4
Hoppy Planted Tank Guru (View User Tanks) PTrader: (53/100%) Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 17,206	I hope you will soon start fertilizing, if you aren't already doing so. Ludwigia Repens grows very easily, rapidly, and prunes easily, so you should be successful with it if you have enough light and add fertilizers. Try reading http://www.rexgrigg.com/ to learn more. The problem with not doing so is that you may run into easily preventable problems, get discouraged, and quit trying. I have a 29 gallon tank too, but am upgrading shortly to a 45 gallon to get more planting room. Welcome to the forum!! __________________ Hoppy

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07-23-2006, 06:51 AM	#3
Mangala Planted Tank Enthusiast (View User Tanks) PTrader: (1/100%) Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 560	Hey, that's good! better than me using a dubious rock from the parking lot... who knows how much oil had dripped on them... oo, also, I've got two stems of what I'm assuming is a type of ludwigia... which I had previously thought were dead (I'd had them for three months and they did nothing but shed leaves...) now, finally they're starting to put out green shoots! excited but the bottom parts are dead looking, and I can't seem to find much info about exactly what to do for them... just info saying they grow like crazy... but if the bottom half of it is brown and like, dead looking, should I just lop it off and maybe... tie it to cotton like my wisteria? I'm hoping it'll propogate somehow... it was really attractive when I bought it in the store 3 months ago. I'm hoping it'll take up the back corner of my tank a little... maybe I should get a photo of my tank or something and try to post it...

07-23-2006, 04:30 PM	#5
Mangala Planted Tank Enthusiast (View User Tanks) PTrader: (1/100%) Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 560	Ha! why do you think it's "suddenly starting to sprout"? I've learned a lot about plants since I bought that couple of stems... I'm just glad it seems to be sticking in there... I've already culled the non-aquatic plants that petsmart sold me... I'm down to Wisteria, Java Moss (just recieved yesterday from a friend who was trimming hers back), some kind of sword, and the ludwigia. I'm really proud of my lil' tank. I'm hoping everything fills in very nicely.