flowering anubias! yay!

[BettaFishMommy]

ok, ok, i know.... not all that exciting for those that have had planted tanks for some time. but this is my first flowering plant. yippeee! lol.

and now for the noobtard question......

do i do anything to the plant or flower if i want it to propagate into more plants? it is currently underwater, about three quarters of the way down in a standard 55 gallon tank.

thanks in advance for any info from all you plant gurus! me, i just plant them, they do their thing. lol.

[Cgy_Betta_Guy]

You can just cut the anubias rhizome to propogate. I had 3 leaves per section and they survived quite well.

[BettaFishMommy]

so i don't do anything to the flower then? will it drop seeds in the tank on its own?

i have two anubias (one of which is the flowering one), both have good size rhizomes, and i may cut the non-flowering one apart to spread them around the tank (currently both are fairly front and center).

[Cgy_Betta_Guy]

I have never done anything with the flowers so I dont know if they will eventually grow if it seeds... I dont know anything about growing it from seeds but I would imagine it would need to be germinated somehow like emersed plants do before it will actually grow... someone else might know. I just leave my flowering anubias alone and it eventually gets covered in algae and then I cut it off.

[Sean Westle]

Eventually the Anubias will grow large enough that it can be divided to form two plants. You can tell that is ready to be divided when it has a long enough rhizome that both pieces after division will be at least 2-3” long, have several leaves and a good root system. You will want a sharp pair of scissors to cut the rhizome as it is very dense making it hard to cut through. A sharp pair of scissors makes the task much easier and will result in a cleaner cut which is easier for the plant to recover from. It can take a few weeks for the plant to recover, after which it will start putting out new leaves again. Often the rhizome with develop one or more new branches at the point where it was divided.

Anubias is one of several plants that are excellent for beginners due to their durable nature and ability to survive in a variety of conditions including extremely low light. I would recommend anyone with an interest in aquatic plants give it a try.

Found this on the net, hope it helps

Edited February 3, 2010 by Sean Westle

[werner]

Unless the flower spike has extended above the water, you probably won't get seed development. Even then, you may need a second flowering plant to pollinate it.

There has been some anecdotal evidence that Anubias sap may be toxic to shrimp (and possibly other sensitive critters), so if you're cutting or breaking the rhizome, don't do it inside the tank.

[Cgy_Betta_Guy]

hmm... well I didnt know about it possibly being toxic to shrimp... I cut 3 of mine inside my 31G tank at the same time and my shrimp are still kicking. (2 amano and 2 red crystals)

[Kronosdelsol]

Can you take a picture of the flower and post it? It would be interesting to see. My Anubis have never flowered before.

[darkangel]

There has been some anecdotal evidence that Anubias sap may be toxic to shrimp (and possibly other sensitive critters), so if you're cutting or breaking the rhizome, don't do it inside the tank.

I've never had a problem with anubias. I take an exacto knife and make 5 to 6 slices on either side of rhizome on up to a dozen plants at the same time and my shrimp and fish are all fine. Everywhere you make a slice, a new plant grows from that spot.

[Cgy_Betta_Guy]

Everywhere you make a slice, a new plant grows from that spot.

Neat! I didnt know that would happen... I might have to try that tonight!