fleshgear Posted October 22, 2009 Report Share Posted October 22, 2009 i have a bowfront 5 gallon tank i am going to take the water out of the tank. it had about 2.5 wpg. it is sealed pretty good but not completly, so humidity should be good? i have a 1-2 mm gravel in the tank. was thinking about some crypt's, swords, anubias, java fern. all of these plants i took out of other tanks with water i am planing on keeping the water level to the top of the gravel. what do i need to do for fertalization? the gravel is still dirty i never cleaned it, so there should be some ferts in there. will the leaves melt off and new ones grow? will the plants grow faster? different? can i grow ludwigia or pogostemon helfri in there? or is there any other plants that would work good? i would like to try some hc but i have none. wink wink, any one in calgary have some to spare? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted October 22, 2009 Report Share Posted October 22, 2009 Just about all of our aquatics will grow emmersed, but most look markedly different. High humidity is the key, and a nutrient rich substrate will help. If you have CO2, it wouldn't hurt to pump it into the tank, as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oneiroid Posted October 22, 2009 Report Share Posted October 22, 2009 > i have a bowfront 5 gallon tank This will be okay for smaller plants (HC, some crypts, micro swords, etc) but you are going to run out of space fast if you want a lot of diversity in your emersed tank. I went from 2.5g to 5g to 10g to 25g to 45g for my emersed culture in the span of about 5 months. If I had the space, I would have gone straight to a 90g from the 25g. > it had about 2.5 wpg. Emersed plants aren’t particularly picky about the intensity or spectrum of light they get, but it is still important to keep a consistent schedule, so hook it up to a light timer. > it is sealed pretty good but not completly, so humidity should be good? You’ll have to keep an eye on the humidity for the first while after you set it up. More humidity is normally better. If you are losing too much of it, you can easily seal up the tank with saran wrap. Keep your spritzing bottle by the tank - you’ll be using it regularly. > i have a 1-2 mm gravel in the tank. This should work well, especially for your first experimental emersed tank, but you may want to consider mixing in some peat. There are two typical emersed substrates you should consider: 1) soil based, and 2) hydroponic. Personally, I use a soil substrate made up of 50% sand and 50% peat. This can get a bit messy, but looks really natural, and I like that. The hydroponic method usually involves potting individual plants in their own containers filled with clay pellets, and placing the containers on the bottom of the tank (filling the tank with water just below the tops of the containers) or suspending the containers in a higher level of water either by floating them or physically attaching them around the edges of the tank so you can use the central water column for other purposes. > i am planing on keeping the water level to the top of the gravel. The idea with a soil substrate is to keep it saturated - this is not the same as keeping the water level at the same height as the top of the substrate. If you have excess water pooling on the top of your substrate, you risk uneven growth, algae, fungus, and bacteria problems. > what do i need to do for fertalization? A general purpose garden fertilizer (like 20-20-20) will satisfy most of your plants. You will have to balance the amount of ferts you use with the type and quantity of plants in the tank (just like aquatic plant dosing). You’ll have to experiment a bit to get it right for your setup. An advantage to the hydroponic method of keeping emersed plants actually allows you to perform water changes which may help you control your ferts better... but this is personal preference. > the gravel is still dirty i never cleaned it, so there should be some ferts in there. Don’t rely on your dirty gravel for ferts. Your substrate shouldn’t have anything bad in it by any means, but you should start your ongoing ferts regime as soon as the tank is set up. > will the leaves melt off and new ones grow? will the plants grow faster? different? Yes, yes, and yes (typically). > can i grow ludwigia or pogostemon helfri in there? or is there any other plants that would work good? Most aquatic plants naturally grow in emersed environments. I could go on and on to list great species to try emersed, but again, this is a personal preference thing. With your 5g, stick to smaller species, and just try different kinds of plants out as you get the opportunity. > If you have CO2, it wouldn't hurt to pump it into the tank, as well. I would definitely advise against this. Additional CO2 dosing is excellent for aquatic plants, but is not necessary for emersed plants. There is already enough CO2 in the air naturally for your plants to metabolize, and you wouldn’t have a prayer of keeping the levels at all consistent anyway. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewels Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 > If you have CO2, it wouldn't hurt to pump it into the tank, as well. I would definitely advise against this. Additional CO2 dosing is excellent for aquatic plants, but is not necessary for emersed plants. There is already enough CO2 in the air naturally for your plants to metabolize, and you wouldn’t have a prayer of keeping the levels at all consistent anyway. Greetings from Canada's suniest city! Every greenhouse around here has a Co2 bottle on it - - Ten feet high and Twenty feet long! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oneiroid Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 > If you have CO2, it wouldn't hurt to pump it into the tank, as well. I would definitely advise against this. Additional CO2 dosing is excellent for aquatic plants, but is not necessary for emersed plants. There is already enough CO2 in the air naturally for your plants to metabolize, and you wouldn’t have a prayer of keeping the levels at all consistent anyway. Greetings from Canada's suniest city! Every greenhouse around here has a Co2 bottle on it - - Ten feet high and Twenty feet long! I'm confused... is the greenhouse 10x20, or is the CO2 bottle 10x20? For small-scale applications, I've had no problems growing hardy to really-not-so-hardy plants emersed without additional CO2. A lot of the research I've done on the subject also suggests that injecting CO2 into emersed cultures is overkill and even wasteful. I'd be interested if anyone here were to document a controlled study on this topic (small scale, like using a couple 10g). Emphasis on 'controlled'... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aquatica Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 One suggestion I would make is if at all possible start with plants that are grown emersed to save time and aggravation. Most potted plants that arrive in stores are grown in this way(Tropica). Best is to get some when a shipment is arriving as this way you will eliminate the meltdown etc. Once plants have been placed in water for a day or so things begin to get more difficult. The complete wetness of the plant can cause molding or just gradual decomposition. Having brought in plants on a commercial scale for over 20 years I can attest to this. Even with Tropica plants it is important to acclimatize them slowly to the "new" humidity that you will be growing them under. This is best done by floating them in trays and putting plastic over them and gradually removing the plastic over time as to allow them to harden in a sense. If you happen to be at the ACE auction this weekend I will be bringing in several plants including Ludwigia glandulosa(pereunsis) that have been grown in this manner. There are always many challenges with emersed culture also including aphids an other critters as you will certainly find out in time..... maybe a couple frogs would help in your case. Hope the info helps Regards Rudy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewels Posted October 24, 2009 Report Share Posted October 24, 2009 (edited) I'm confused... is the greenhouse 10x20, or is the CO2 bottle 10x20? Sorry, these are commercial green houses hundreds of feet long. The C02 tanks are as big as a school bus. I too, wonder about the amount they disperse, , , the cuke pickers do not wear SCBA'S or the like. There is one down by Medalta Potteries, I walk my dog around there on occiasion. It really is something to see, I will grab a photo. Ineresting info here Edited October 24, 2009 by jewels Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oneiroid Posted October 24, 2009 Report Share Posted October 24, 2009 That is interesting information. It does make sense to rig up CO2 tanks for large applications like commercial greenhouses where CO2 loss and general air chemistry can be controlled to a pretty good degree (you won't be 'opening the lid' to the greenhouse every so often). But for a small-scale hobbyist emersed tank setup, I still think adding CO2 is excessive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewels Posted October 25, 2009 Report Share Posted October 25, 2009 Like a true Diplomat , , , Well Put. excessive. Excess is the rule of wrist in this case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oneiroid Posted October 25, 2009 Report Share Posted October 25, 2009 You put my 10-pounder to shame. Thanks for the pic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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