10 Litre Nano Hitech With Utricularia Graminifolia

Bumblefish

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Jan 29, 2018
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You added a cover glass, I’m willing to bet that keeps more CO2 in the tank. How much of the top gets covered? And the condensation of water on the glass would also help bring down the amount of light getting to the plants. There was this tank I looked at one time, it had 450w of led lights on it. They were ecotech radions, and the guy who was looking after the tank was wondering why he was pulling fistfulls of hair algae out of the tank every week. Without a par meter it’s hard to say but I think the glass reduced the light on your tank more than you might guess. I’m glad the nightmare is over for you!



You could test it and see if it was light related, just take the cover glass off, and bring the light back to the level when the problems started happening. See if things repeat themselves. I can’t speak what might be happening physiologically, but it could be a neat little experiment! Then you’ll know for sure.

Hehe, maybe in a few weeks I'll throw that monkeywrench in the works! For now I think I'll just sit back and enjoy the cleanliness! :)

The tank is doing quite well. I still have some pale and lanky UG in tangled masses. I've been chopping them up and replanting them. Its been tough to get larger bunches anchored at the front of the tank. ADA powder is only about 3cm deep at the very front. Smaller bunches are holding much better.

I had similar problems with ADA powder type in another tank. 7cm deep and was finding it nearly impossible to get Nesaea crassicaulis cuttings to stay put. They're super buoyant. I tried planting at an angle, leaving lower leaves on and, in the end, I had to jam them up against other, established stems. Anyone have any tips regarding this? I'd much appreciate!
 

Kyalgae

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Hehe, maybe in a few weeks I'll throw that monkeywrench in the works! For now I think I'll just sit back and enjoy the cleanliness! :)

The tank is doing quite well. I still have some pale and lanky UG in tangled masses. I've been chopping them up and replanting them. Its been tough to get larger bunches anchored at the front of the tank. ADA powder is only about 3cm deep at the very front. Smaller bunches are holding much better.

I had similar problems with ADA powder type in another tank. 7cm deep and was finding it nearly impossible to get Nesaea crassicaulis cuttings to stay put. They're super buoyant. I tried planting at an angle, leaving lower leaves on and, in the end, I had to jam them up against other, established stems. Anyone have any tips regarding this? I'd much appreciate!


I’ve never grown it myself, but maybe @burr740 might know, he has far more experience with different plants, the selection of plants here in Canada can be a bit on the slim side. I was reading about it and apparently it’s actually a carnivorous plant, and I did read it was difficult to maintain in a carpeting form. I don’t know if you ever saw the ‘mini’ version of dwarf hairgrass, but it makes a nice carpet too, and it’s much shorter than regular hairgrass.
 

burr740

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Never tried UG or had a tank with Aquasoil, Im fresh out of ideas what to say. :)
 

Bumblefish

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Jan 29, 2018
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It's my first successful attempt growing it.
My observations so far regarding UG with aquasoil powder...
1. Plant it as deeply as possible in very small bunches i.e. 1cm diameter.
2. Trim it often (once acclimatised) to promote better/denser growth.
3. Avoid shrimp and snail presence during acclimatisation.

I tried growing it in other established tanks, both planted and floating, and it was a shrimp and snail magnet. Maybe when it's acclimatising it leaches some attractant. Within days, a whole pots-worth of Tropica 1,2-grow tissue culture, floating, (a very dense clump) would be reduced to shreds by shrimps and snails. Also, Amano shrimp and, to a lesser extent, Neocardinia uproot newly planted UG. However, in this new tank, now that the UG is more established (in the absence of 'pests'), ramshorn snails don't bother it at all which is why I suspect that it leaches something during acclimatisation. Maybe one of the gurus can shed some light on this issue. I am very interested to know what happens physiologically to a plant when acclimatising to new environmental conditions.
It could simply be that it's the tissue culture solution itself which attracts 'pests' because it doesn't wash off adequately prior to planting and the specific one Tropica use for UG is particularly attractive. Anyone know?
 
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Bumblefish

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Jan 29, 2018
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How’s your tank coming along?

Thanks for asking! The tank is doing pretty well apart from a minor snail issue! Easy fix I know but I've become quite fond of them!

The UG is insanely dense in the front. Does anyone know how aggressively I can trim it down? It's approx 3cm thick after the last trim.

As you can see in the pic, when cutting it down to 3cm I exposed two patches with yellowed blades. Ideally, I'd like to cut it down to 1cm but I'm pretty sure it would all be yellow at that depth. Is that a bad idea?

20180322_101914.jpg
 
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msb

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Cut edge with credit card like in that video and sell to me :D Other Youtube videos show that you can trim the grass like a lawn mower too. Also, interesting that its attracting pests (snails). I looked around the web and found its a carnivorous plant. Im guessing the flowers though. Maybe it gives off something to attract little bugs or snails.
 

Bumblefish

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Jan 29, 2018
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Cyprus
Cut edge with credit card like in that video and sell to me :D Other Youtube videos show that you can trim the grass like a lawn mower too. Also, interesting that its attracting pests (snails). I looked around the web and found its a carnivorous plant. Im guessing the flowers though. Maybe it gives off something to attract little bugs or snails.
It's attracting the snails as the blades are leaking, what I assume to be, sugars from the wounds caused by the trim. Today the wounds have already "healed over' and the snails are on the rocks instead! The plant is indeed carnivorous. It is a bladderwort. This family of plants produce tiny bladders with 'trap doors' that capture small organisms which are then digested to provide the plant with nitrogen as the soil they are naturally found in is very poor in nutrients. I will find you some information regarding the bladders...

Utricularia graminifolia Article_Sample Layout_24667_image004.jpg
20180327_092202.jpg
...

The above superb image is an award-winning visual from Wai-Man Chan from the University of Illinois at Chicago and appeared in:

https://www.popsci.com/this-unassuming-plant-has-carnivorous-secret
 
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