Feeding and Nutrition :: Keeping plants alive

[FLhaven4strays]

I got some anacharis for the first time last week. Most went into the pond & I assume it was instantly devoured as I haven't seen it since.

I put one bunch in with my son's map hatchling (1.5"?) but it didn't do very well. He nibbled at it and loved swimming among it, but within a week of floating in the tank it was wilted, shriveled & disintegrating so I removed it. (falling apart I expected...wilting / brown spots I didn't)

I also took some water lettuce from the pond & put it in the map's tank. It became very wilted / spotty / sad looking pretty quickly too.

The tank has a UVA / UVB set up, proper turtle temps - any ideas on why live plants don't do well in it? Sorry if it sounds silly - I've never had indoor turtles or tried to grow live aquatic plants indoors.

[untsmurf]

You might want to test the water, to make sure everything is balanced.

[SpotsMama]

Anacharis needs some good light. If the tank has a heat and UVB light that should be enough. It also needs a little fertalizer. In most tanks the nitrate produced as a by-product of ammonia breakdown provides the fertalizer. I think map turtles require very clean, running water don't they? Maybe there's not enough nuitrition in the tank for the anacharis to thrive because the water is so clean.

Or perhaps it was already dying when you got it but didn't show the effects for awhile.

[Turtle_Turtle]

Or it could be that you just used plain tap water because thats what happened to mine and it melted

[marisa]

I've found it easy to keep anachris alive (and root) by just keeping it in a sunny window and keeping the water clean. It does not like warm water---it will rot, especially if there's no filtration.

Water lettuce is another story and I suspect is difficult to keep going, as is water hyacinth (which I'm doing battle with now).

[FLhaven4strays]

Well, we do have a filter (little fluval-1, but it seems to be doing ok in the 15 gal) & we're keeping the water pretty clean - doing 3/4 or so changes 2-3x's each week & bottom-suctioning daily since mississippi maps are sensitive to dirty water. The tank's not near a window, but there is a bit of surface alge forming (don't mind that though). Obviously the temps are warm - 78-79, so that may be it, Marisa.

Right now we're out of dechlorinator, so that may be an issue too - didn't even consider that possibility. I'll try again next week using chlor-out. I was suprised at the water lettuce going downhill so quickly though since it takes over EVERYTHING in the pond. I have to weed it out several times a week to keep it in check - water hyacinth was just as bad when I had some. Guess indoor tanks are another story for plants.

I'll post when I get more & try it w/ dechlorinated water. Also, that little filter makes quite a current in the small tank, so maybe between that & Jimi climbing on it was just too much for the plants.

Does lack of aeration (bubbles) matter? We don't have feeders or a pleco in the tank yet, so haven't gotten around to an air pump, but plan on adding one soon. I wouldn't think it would matter to a plant though... Thanks for the ideas all!

[industrial_girl_2000]

Lack of aeration doesn't matter for the plants. They thrive on the waste from the turtle/fish in the tank, and as someone already mentioned, anacharis needs very bright light in order to thrive. So put the plants in the water around the basking dock, and I think you will never see brown spots again!

De-chlorinator is a good idea. Chlorine is bad for pond plants.

[marisa]

I've got a bunch of water hyacinth in a 50-gallon Rubbermaid stock tank in the basement with a Gro-Light on them for most of the day. They are already yellowing in some spots. I'm going to add the Fluval 4+ this weekend for filtration (at last some use for this filter). They grew so beautifully outdoors this summer, I tried to save just about all of them, so I'm sure the overcrowding is not helping either. I've also got two painteds in the basement in a 100-gallon stock tank that has the surface just about covered with water hyacinth as well. It will be interesting to see which does better. I'd really be pleased if even just a few of these plants made it over the winter so I can start them up again outdoors in the spring.

Anachris is know as an oxygenator, but I think a little filtration is still helpful.