Plant questions - Kindly guide me

nagukush

nagukush

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Jan 1, 2008
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Hi Friends !

Just wanted some advice and guidance regarding the below-

Hornwort

The Hornwort which I tucked under a small piece of driftwood is really doing well and has grown to the surface and is now spreading. Can I cut the stem and replant it else where ? At which point in the plant do I cut for best results - above the node ?

Also I'm afraid that the stem part that is tucked under the drfitwood might break due to insufficient light and spoil the display (which I'm loving so much), is this possible ? I mean will the stem still survive though its under the drfitwood and not getting any light or is it sure to break soon ?

Also wanted to request on some guidance on how to plant the new stems ? Actually the plant is so light that it keeps floating out of the gravel if I just tuck it in.. Can I use small stones and rubber band the stems on it ? or is there any other way of efficient planting of hornwort ?

Kindly guide me friend...
Thanks !
Kush
 
Some pet stores carry small strips of soft metal that you can wrap around the stem of hornwort or other bouyant plants to help them sink. You could also use a bit of wire (do not use copper wire, it is toxic), either to wrap around the stem as a weight or to tie the stem to the driftwood.

I think you can cut hornwort anywhere along the stem with equal results.
 
Notophthalmus said:
Some pet stores carry small strips of soft metal that you can wrap around the stem of hornwort or other bouyant plants to help them sink. You could also use a bit of wire (do not use copper wire, it is toxic), either to wrap around the stem as a weight or to tie the stem to the driftwood.

I think you can cut hornwort anywhere along the stem with equal results.
Click to expand...

Hi there !

Thanks for caring and for the kind reply. I tried but I'm not able to get any lead plant weights etc here. Can I use metal wires ? Wont they rust and harm the water and fishes etc ?
Please advice.. Thanks again !
 
Rust is unsightly, but will not harm plants or fish. You can use plastic coated wire, such as that used by florists, to avoid visible rust. For additional weight, you can use stainless steel nuts or washers; they will not rust.
 
Also if the stem is thick at the bottom it will survive.

Roots get no light and the bottom of my tank is one big tough root ball.

you can trip the hornwort pretty much anywhere and replant the top and let the bottom grow shoots out.

I would not recommend using wire or metal strips to hold down plants unless it is fitted loosely to the plant for a short time while it roots. Even then I would only use the lead strips that plants come bunched in.
 
Notophthalmus said:
Some pet stores carry small strips of soft metal that you can wrap around the stem of hornwort or other bouyant plants to help them sink. You could also use a bit of wire (do not use copper wire, it is toxic), either to wrap around the stem as a weight or to tie the stem to the driftwood.

I think you can cut hornwort anywhere along the stem with equal results.
Click to expand...

Those soft metal things you mentioned, I bought some awhile back at petco and have been using them. Do you know if they rust and need to be changed every so often?
I have shrimp in the tank and I'm really worried about the wiring from rusting :(


By the way, Nag, the way I "plant" my hornwort is by getting two strands or so (depends on how much you like), lay them out next to each other and try to keep their centers together. Then wrap the metal wiring on the center and let that area be the base as you drop it into the tank. You get a nice bush this way. I use them as a background plant and my java moss covers up the metal, so none of it is showing. Just a hornwort bush in the corner. It looks great :)
 
The metal strips are not iron-based and so will not rust. I'm not sure what is in them, but I assume lead is a major component, and they may be pure lead. Sometimes they get a whitish corrosion on them, which may be lead oxide.

If anything, rusting iron is safer than lead. But everyone seems to think those strips are safe, and I've never heard any problems attributed to them.
 
The weights are not lead. Pewter is my guess. Lead would end up killing the fish. Another option would be to tie them to some of the ring type bio media.
 
Thanks for the info! I feel much better, knowing it's safe in my tank :-)
 
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