During October I uploaded a simple diagram to show new growth in one of my orchids. Bulbophyllum auratum didn’t look too healthy when I first receieved it, but started to revitalise once placed in a humid environment. Still, I was surprised to see it put out new leaves (A) in a relatively short period of time.
3 months on and the plant displays great signs of improvement. New leaves and pseudobulbs are highlighted via (B)
The first Anubias plant to flower emerse in my vivarium.
Over at Aquatic Quotient a forum member has uploaded some images of an aquarium in Barcelona’s science museum – Cosmocaixa. I accidentally found this via google images while doing some reading on Echinodorus spp. The giant display replicates a flooded tropical forest, placing the viewer at eye level with big prehistoric fish like Arapaima. Above the waterline is vast vertical area for emerging buttress root trees and leafy canopy, which only adds to the sense of scale.
Even from the photos you get a feeling of awe; and you can see them here: Cosmocaixa
I intended to have done another full update of my vivarium, but I couldn’t get a large enough range of decent pictures. I will do this hopefully sometime soon, but for now, here’s a photo showing the explosive root growth of Bulbophyllum saurocephalum. This offset is almost a fully grown plantlet, not bad considering it was a tiny bud 2 months ago.
I’ve also been busy fussing over the aquatic portion of the vivarium. At first I filled it with Anubias and other plants, doing my best to hide the piece of cork bark, which in turn, conceals the filter pumps. I hated it; I reworked about 6 different aquascapes (and almost came close to ripping the cork out) before I settled on this one. The bottom of the tank is now minimally planted, but heavy on wood. Floating plants (Salvinia natans and Limnobium laevigatum) block out some of the light to discourage algae and filter unwanted nitrates via their nice long roots.
(Edit: 15 minutes after posting this I repositioned the branch pictured to the right; what’s wrong with me?)
Chris Lukhaup uploaded a video this year celebrating the results of an expedition to Hong Kong. Funded by Dennerle aquatics, and accompanied by a team of explorers, he managed to find the natural habitat of Caridina cf. cantonensis, otherwise known as the Bee Shrimp.
Many aquarists may be familiar with the heavily colour-bred varieties kept by specialist shrimp keepers but not of the original stock. I find this surprising, not only because new information regarding natural behaviour, environment, and endemicity has recently become accessible, but that generations of specimens have been in the hobby for so long despite it. Caridina cf. cantonensis hosts two main cultivars, the previously mentioned Bee Shrimp, and a more popular red variant – the Crystal Red. Each of these have sub varieties and even their own colour grading system so they may be exhibited at shows!
Anyway, although I personally have to admit that a lot of the cultivars are very beautiful, there’s something about seeing them in their natural habitat that just makes sense. The black, white, and translucent banding camouflages well against fallen vegetation, and is something i’d love to recreate at home.
(Check out Chris Lukhaups other uploads including findings in Lake Sulawesi)
Whether you’re aquascaping or vivarium planting, I can’t recommend Anubias enough. Although I have little experience with other species, I currently grow three varieties of Anubias barteri, namely the miniature ‘nana petite’, slightly larger ‘nana’, and much larger ‘caladifolia’. At first I familiarised myself with the former varieties, acknowledging their notoriously slow growth in my 2ft aquarium; before planting out my new vivarium, however, I decided to do a bit of experimenting.
After an almost continuous flow of failure in keeping aquatic stem plants healthy, I looked into a cultivation method known as emerse culture. This is where a plants roots are submersed while the leaves and new shoots have access above the waterline. This way the specimen not only benefits from a continuous supply of liquid nutrients, but also a direct exposure to light and air.
I took out all my melting stem plants and placed some of them in pots with soil, I then put these in saucers half-full of water on my windowsill. I found that over time the leaves that previously grew underwater can’t cope with the sudden change in environment, so these fall off, but not before sending out new shoots. The new leaves tend to be a lot more compact, quicker to produce, and generally more robust. It was nice to finally have some success.
This then begs the question, if these plants really are aquatic then why do they thrive much better out of water? A recent issue of Practical Fishkeeping Magazine actually answers this in an article entitled ‘The Shady Side of Houseplants’. The simple truth is, none but a few of them sold in the shops actually are fully aquatic! Even in nurseries, all, apart from the true floating plants are cultivated by means of emerse culture. The reason people manage to grow them well, submerged in aquascapes, is all down to a high-tech setup large on lighting and CO2 injection.
I don’t have this.
And neither do I particularly want it, but how am I going to have success with plants in my aquarium if most of them won’t grow without it?
Simple.
Focus on plants suitable for low-tech setups, such as the trusty Anubias, Cryptocoryne, or Microsorum. There are loads of plants that will readily thrive in setups of low-mid level lighting and without the need for expensive pressurised canisters of CO2, just look online.
Failing that, change a factor in the setup itself. Some of the most difficult of plants grown submersed in high-tech setups will flourish above the waterline in a low-tech enclosure – literally think outside of the box and design a riparium, paludarium, or vivarium.
In my case, I went for both. I currently have an aquarium full of Cryptocoryne and Microsorum, topped with floating (and nitrate consuming) Salvinia natans, and of course, my recently constructed vivarium – which leads me back to my original point about Anubias.
Instead of only cultivating Anubias submersed as I did before, these too now grow above the waterline, not only around the margins, but halfway up the background as well! The plant in the image above (top left) sits in line with a drip wall, its epiphytic roots are constantly wet and slowly creep outwards along the cork bark. This particular ‘nana’ seems to enjoy the spot so much that it has grown twice the size of the others lower down in the tank. I wouldn’t be surprised if I saw flowers anytime soon, as the production rate of new leaves is incredible compared to that experienced underwater. This isn’t to say that I have abandoned submerse culture altogether, though, as I have a handful of plants towards the foreground wherein slow growth is actually appreciated.
Providing a humid environment is maintained, Anubias itself is a very hardy plant; portions of one rhizome can even be seperated into many pieces and grown on to develop as individual plants. Their ease of keeping is exemplified by minimal lighting demands and no need for a substrate, while their visual appeal speaks for itself.
