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I have not had much success growing stem plants.
I just purchased 3 big bunches of Didiplis diandra directly from the grower Aquagreen in Darwin NT

What is the best way to plant stem plants and is there any thing special I should do before I plant them. Depth, and spacing.

They are going at the back of the Betta tank in an area 25cm X 5cm

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Keith

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Keithgh,

I have not had much success growing stem plants.

From my understanding, Didiplis diandra is one of the harder plants to grow. I have never tried it but that is what I have heard(somewhere). You might be more successful growing some less demanding plants(hygros or ludwigia).

Planting tips:
~ Plant the stems in groups of 3-4 per hole about an inch or so apart.
~ Stick the stems at about a 45 degree angle into the gravel. This will help them from pulling up.
~ Make sure your new plants are not shaded out by anything as they need as much light as you can get them.

Best of luck!



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
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Do any have a root system starting to grow? If not pull the leaves off for two to three nodules above the cut and plant that whole area in the gravel, as this will encourage roots to grow from where the leaves were.

Good luck!


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The plants arrived Wed and I planted them today Sat.
I removed the bottom leaves and put them in small bunches of five. I finished up with 5 tall bunches and 5 shorter bunches. The shorter bunches were planted between the tall bunches.

The grower said it could take 3-4 weeks for them to settle in and start growing.

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Keith

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Keith:

Plant them deep into the substrate and 1 inch apart. These plants take a while to establish whatever passes for them as roots. If you plant too close they will start loosing leaves and the stems can melt. Patience is the key with didiplis but it is a very rewarding plant. I have relatively high light (3.7 WPG) but they should do fine with >2 WPG. Don't forget to add ferts and a carbon source. Good luck!

I use Seachem liquid ferts plus Fert tabs every three months, so there should be no problem there.

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Keith

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Hi Keith,
About the only thing I'd have done differently would to
have planted them in groups of three. In a sense it
depends upon how "bushy" you want them to appear in the
position in which you planted them. However, if you put
too many stalks together, then the bottoms tend to rot
instead of getting the necessary light and growing.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

That's exactly what I tried to tell in my post - lumping them together will cause rotting of the stems. As a consequence the plant will be anchored to the substrate with extremely fine roots that extend from higher up where there is still a stem or not at all. It appears as if the plant is floating without attachment.

Before I planted them I checked it out with the grower and not a problem as they are a very forgiving plant.
I will be posting a photo of them in the next few days.

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Keith

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Keith

I have also got some of that in my 20 gallon tank. Its a very fine stem plant and hard to keep from breaking. How did you do it?

How do you keep them in the substrate also??

Thanks for your input as always, Shane
http://thetanklog.blogspot.com/ - [ Thanks to ScottF ]
http://www.natureaquariumclubofutah.com/main.html

I received a good tip from another grower. First the plants I received came directly from the grower which meant they were not in a LFS tank and being handled rather roughly.
The stems in mine were strong yet thin there was no sign of any softness or rot. The grower told me there was no need to to remove any of the bottom leaves but I did remove well over one inch.
I was also told I could lay them at a 45degres and I could get a good depth that way.

All I did was put tooth picks in the places where I wanted them to be planted. I just pulled the tooth picks out gripped the 5 stems firmly between my thumb and finger and pushed down (the end were not actually pushing into the substrate it was my thumb and finger). I would have planted them over the one inch. I then pushed some substrate around the base of the plant and that is all. Less than one week later they are already on the move.

I would say I received a very healthy strong variety, very well grown by the grower.

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Keith

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I know it won't be long before we see pics of this Keith

I got a couple VERY tiny Stargrass bits too, hoping they will grow, that plant is very nice indeed

The Amazon Nut...

Here is the photo DaMossMan
I am extremely pleased with the plant it is growing extremely well.
The Didiplis diandra has only been planted for about 3 weeks.

I use Seachem liquid ferts every day and fert tabs every three months.

I would say at a guess they are growing about 1ins-25mm per week.

I still say buying them direct from the grower I got a better deal $$ wise but in the quality of the plant.

As you can see it is up against the heater and the dark shape at the baser is the air wand. This is acting as a boundary as well.

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Keith

Attached Image:

Didiplis diandra Keith 3-08

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Very nice plants Keith and I know they'll do well for you

I'm trying some new stem plants myself gotten thru local trade but think I have to replace my old light tubes lol.
Did a couple things tho, dosing Excel and got the homebrew co2 going *hopes it helps*

The Amazon Nut...

Kieth

Ihave those and they are doing well in my 20 gallon right now, these were not the ones I was talking about tho. They look good tho mate.

Shane

Thanks for your input as always, Shane
http://thetanklog.blogspot.com/ - [ Thanks to ScottF ]
http://www.natureaquariumclubofutah.com/main.html

I thought I had Didiplis diandra (Blood Stargrass) Keith but I wasn't sure. I checked further and what I have is
Star Grass (Heteranthera zosterifolia).

Whether it'll grow is another question all I have is 2 tiny bits lol.

The Amazon Nut...

DaMossMan,

If you give star grass the things it needs it will grow quick!



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

thanks working on that right now

The Amazon Nut...

My stem plants must like what ever I am doing as there is no die back at their base. They are also up against the heater and have an air wand in front of them.

I have just taken a photo and I will post it in photos.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
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