Growing aquarium plants. Simple method

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Algae are also plants

Algae is one of the broadest subkingdoms in the plant kingdom. The outdated name, lower plants, is used less and less in our time, however, this concept is due to the simple structure of plants.

Basics of algology

Algae are single-celled and multicellular photoautotrophic plants - they use light to generate energy. Algae grows not only in water, but also in wet conditions, great place for algae to live, for example, a stone located near a reservoir can become.

There are a large number of different algae, they also differ in color: there are green, brown and red algae.

Algae, entering into symbiosis (mutually beneficial cooperation) with fungi, form a new organism - lichens.

Common characteristics for a large number of algae are:

The presence of chlorophyll.
Photoautotrophic nutrition.
The body of algae does not have a clear demarcation and is called thallus or thallus.
Algae live only in a humid environment - damp soil, water, or any other place with big amount water.

Application of algae

Most often, algae is used as food for humans or livestock. There are many popular seaweed-based dishes in coastal countries. Algae are cultivated to obtain biomass for livestock feed. In coastal areas, seaweed is also used as a fertilizer.

Algae, rich in iodine, are used in pharmaceuticals to create medicines.

The chemical industry uses algae to produce iodine, cellulose, alcohol and acetic acid.

Algae are not only unique plants that can double their mass per day, under favorable conditions. They are great for use as livestock feed - in the United States, algae are pressed into briquettes that are then sold to animals.

Despite the fact that algae is the simplest plant, a large number of different food products can be prepared from it: bread, soups, chocolate, marmalade. Burlap and cloth for clothes are also made from seaweed.

It is necessary to choose which type of algae should be grown on your own, they differ in color, size and area of application.

In order to grow algae at home, you do not have to carry out lengthy preparatory measures.

All algae need is nutrient-rich water, carbon dioxide and lighting.

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In the last century, scientists discovered substances that affect the work of certain functions of a plant. With the help of these substances, every gardener can affect life cycle plants, accelerate or slow down its development. Such substances are called growth stimulants.

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Modern technologies allow you to control the development of plants at the will of man. Back in the 20th century, scientists discovered phytohormones, substances that stimulate all vital processes and control their course.

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When growing plants without sunlight, you need to work hard to provide everything you need. After all, the plant feeds on light rays, without which growth and development is impossible, soil and fertilizer play a secondary role.

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Under artificial lighting of any green space, powerful lamps are used that can produce a large amount of light rays. But in addition to the number of rays, their qualities are important to the plant, that is, the length of the light rays.

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LED lights are undoubtedly the most in a modern way lighting. Their design allows you to work with negative temperatures and generate a minimum of heat during long-term use.

An aquarium is a corner of wildlife in your home. Important correct selection fish and other inhabitants. In this review, we will tell you about which plants to choose for your aquarium and briefly describe the main aspects of care.

Types of aquarium plants

The following types of vegetation in the aquarium can be distinguished:

mosses and ferns - there are no full-fledged roots and leaves, no flowering, no care needed, they grow in different conditions, unpretentious, perfectly decorate the aquarium (azolla, bolbitis, kladofora);
stem plants - are distinguished by the presence of a trunk (alternantera, tradescantia, rotala);
rosette plants - do not have a stem, foliage grows from one point, forming a rosette (Cryptocoryne, Echinodorus, Vallisneria);
ground plants - planted in the ground (hygrophila, kabomba, echinodorus);
unpretentious plants - require a minimum of attention (nayas, hornwort, elodea);
floating plants - float freely on the surface (duckweed, salvinia, marsh flower);
ground cover plants - very undersized up to 10 cm, their shoots and roots beautifully envelop driftwood and stones, decorate the facade (riccia, sitnyag, hemiantus cuba);
fast-growing plants - they grow rapidly, absorb organic and inorganic substances, enliven the landscape (ludwigia, lemongrass, ambulia);
meristemic plants - they are obtained through microcloning, they are identical to each other, not susceptible to snails, algae and fungi.

Description of popular plants

There are many varieties of aquarium plants. Here is a small overview of the most common ones.

Schisandra

The plant smells like lemon, reaches big size, has spiky leaves, is sensitive to chemicals in the water, requires a quarter of the water to be changed and applied every week mineral dressing... Schisandra grows in nutritious silted soil, has a powerful root system, needs intense lighting and propagates by cuttings.

lemongrass

Hornwort

It's thick perennial decorates the aquarium, plays the role of a shelter for fish, filters water from harmful substances... Hornwort is characterized by long, hard stems, it has no roots, the alga grows a meter in a month, floats in the upper and middle layers of water, has small inflorescences and fruits.

hornwort

Elodea

Aquatic Elodea reproduces successfully, grows rapidly almost all year long, requires a lot of light and cool water, thrives well in all but tropical aquariums, can attach to soil or swim freely. The plant resembles tropical vine, requires pruning and minimal maintenance, has a long stem with bright green translucent leaves.

elodea

Anubias

anubias

Cryptocoryne

The cryptocoryne plant is often found in home aquariums, there are many species that are difficult to distinguish from each other, the flowers are quite beautiful and rarely appear. It is possible to breed in dimly lit aquariums without supplying carbon dioxide, food comes from the ground without additional feeding.

cryptocoryne

Echinodorus

Aquarium lovers prefer Echinodorus for its high adaptability in different conditions, there are excellent decorative properties, most species have roots, petiole leaves and are arranged in a spiral. The plant requires bright light, often grows overgrown with algae, needs carbon dioxide feeding.

echinodorus

Kabomba

You can grow a kabomba in different aquariums, it is very beautiful, it takes root pretty well almost everywhere, it is unpretentious and does not create problems, which is why aquarists love it so much. This plant has a high growth rate, prefers a moderately warm or tropical environment and has a pronounced effect on the metabolic processes of the habitat.

kabomba

Nymphea

Nymphaea has not thick, but strong roots, is in demand due to its beautiful flowering, large heart-shaped leaves, it can only be grown in spacious aquariums. In the soil where the plant is located, there must be enough nutrients organic matter, for example, peat, charcoal, clay acts as top dressing.

nymphea

Riccia

Water moss is generally unpretentious, but it grows better in intense light, it floats in water of any temperature, likes frequent water changes. Riccia has stems filled with air and collected in rosettes, does not require fertilizing with minerals.

Riccia

How to plant aquarium plants correctly?

Priming

Aquarium soil is neutral, with a nutritious substrate, granular, earthy. This product can be natural, such as crushed stone, sand, pebbles and stones. Also on sale you can see the soil obtained after processing natural raw materials with chemicals. And one more group is developed artificially materials.

Most of the plants are attached to the ground, only a few are buoyant. Upper layer should be fine gravel or sand. The substrate is selected based on the wishes of the breeder. For an aquarium, gravel with fractions of 3-4 mm and river sand with fractions of 1.5-2 mm. Fine sand such as sea sand or quartz is not appropriate.

The soil should have normal porosity, an appropriate nutrient medium and as little limestone as possible. Welcomed dark color and the absence of harmful impurities.

Before placing the soil in the tank, it is washed and boiled for about 15 cans with stirring. Alternatively, you can use a warm solution with 25% hydrochloric acid for preparation, this allows you to fill the material with potassium useful for plants. After such treatment, a triple rinsing is required.

There are plants that can be found exclusively in soft water. The soil is suitable for them, cleared of magnesium and potassium salts. This is done with sulfuric acid. When the aquarium vegetation requires an anaerobic environment, then planting is done in clay pots. Good soil usually not dyed. Most plants are comfortable with a soil thickness of 5-7 cm.

The soil collects bryozoans, fungi and bacteria on its surface. It promotes the processing of fish waste products, filters water.

For planting plants, it is preferable to use natural soil, for example, small stones, quartz and quartz sand, lava, volcanic sand, pebbles. Application without treatment is possible. This material lacks nutrients. Plants planted in such soil give flowering after six months. At this time, enough silt will appear.

It is undesirable to use glass, expanded clay, layered soil, garden soil for planting plants. Artificial multi-colored shop material made of plastic and glass is appropriate.

Fertilizer

Aquatic plants will not do well with regular garden flower food. Against the background of nitrogen deficiency, aquarium plants suffer - their leaves collapse and fall off. When there is not enough potassium, the foliage appears brown spots and holes.

With iron deficiency, intense yellowing of the leaves is observed. Calcium and boron are also important for plants, without these elements, deformation of plants occurs, small leaves that turn white along the edges appear.

Fertilizers are applied to the water in strict accordance with the attached instructions. The most significant factors are the volume and types of vegetation, carbon dioxide nutrition, the nature of lighting, and the properties of water. Novice aquarium enthusiasts will not be mistaken if they start with ready-made fertilizers.

Modern feeding substances are available in liquid form, as well as in the form of tablets or capsules. The liquid is poured into water, this fertilizer is useful for floating plants. Tablets and capsules are placed in the aquarium soil, they feed the roots well. There are also clay balls on sale, they contain trace elements, birch coal, sapropel, peat.

Before starting the aquarium, until the vegetation has adapted, usually no additional feeding is added, only potassium is used. It is also obvious that in an unbalanced aquatic environment it is useless to add additives. Therefore, you must first set all the parameters correctly. Care should be taken when adding different products together, it is worth checking the compatibility in advance, and in the worst case, a precipitate is formed that does not dissolve.

At the beginning, the dosage of the new top dressing should be small, it is reasonable to add a third of the usual dose. So you can observe the changes. In case of an overdose, algae begin to multiply actively, which is undesirable.

As a rule, macronutrients are added to dark time and trace elements in the morning. Nutrients have a delayed effect, after about a month, changes appear.

Examples of renowned manufacturers aquarium feed for the growth of beautiful and healthy plants:

Tetra;
Aqua Medic;
Florastim;
Sera;
Aquarium Pharmaceuticals;
Tropical;
AquaPlants;
Zooworld;
Dennerle.

Lamps and light

Daylight hours in the aquarium should be close to natural environment where the plants live. For example, for a tropical aquarium, this is 12 hours. With a lack of light, plants grow slowly, their leaves fall off. Due to the excess of light, aquatic vegetation can also suffer and blue-green and green algae will begin to grow.

Today, fluorescent, LED, metal-halogen, mercury-organic lamps are popular. When choosing lighting, one should build on the depth and volume of the tank, plant varieties.

For aquariums high up to 50-70 cm, it is advisable to use organic mercury lamps. There are 80 and 125 watts of power. The light from the lamp reaches the bottom.

For an aquarium with a depth of 1 metric, metal-halogen lamps are needed, they are not cheap and give good light output, color rendering and intensity.

It should be borne in mind that individual plants do not like bright light. And some of them can change appearance under the influence of light. Most species thrive under 0.5-0.8 watts of light per liter. When buying an aquarium with built-in lighting fixtures, it is necessary to select plants for the existing environment.

Aquariums with dense vegetation require at least 0.8 watts of light per liter. The best choice for a home herbalist (a water reservoir inhabited by plants), this is a special phyto-lamp.

Water parameters

The total hardness (GH) of the water should be 6-8 degrees. Plants do not need a too soft environment, and the maximum show is 15 degrees.

The temporary hardness (KH) of the water is also important. The indicator of RN and KN are interrelated. If the KN is equal to 2-4 units, then the PH should be equal to 6.6-7.5 units. This environment is good for vegetation growth.

You will also have to monitor the pH level, the best range is 6.6-7.5. In such conditions, plants grow well and absorb CO2 as much as possible.

There must be an optimal concentration in the water nutrients, therefore, all fertilizers should be applied in a timely manner. average temperature- 24-25 degrees. If it drops below 24 degrees, then the plants can grow sluggishly, less algae appears. When the temperature exceeds 25 degrees, algae grow intensively. In the first week of a herbal tank's life, it is recommended to start at 22 degrees and gradually increase the degree.

Diseases and care

Why aren't plants growing in the aquarium?

If you notice a slowdown in the growth of aquatic plants, then you will need to check the hardness of the water, to populate fish that respect the landscape. Some plant species take a long time to get used to a new place. Try cleaning the soil and partially replacing the water. And most importantly, reconsider the temperature.

Why does plaque appear?

The cause of black plaque is infection with harmful algae. To get rid of this problem, it is necessary to regularly change the water, remove all unwanted impurities from the soil. Blackbeard is treated with a remedy called JBL Algol. It may also be necessary to update the entire aquarium, replace some of its inhabitants and the feeding regime.

Why do plants rot and turn black?

Blackening and rot on the roots is a consequence of soil problems. It is possible that organic deposits lie deep in the ground. Excessive soil density can also be a problem; loosening is required. And soil acidification is also undesirable.

Rotting and depletion of stems occurs with poor lighting. It is worth revising the light supply schedule.

Sometimes Cryptocoryne and some other plant species get rotted. This disease is provoked by oversaturation with nitrates, sudden cooling or a change in the properties of water. For treatment, you do not need to touch the plant, it is enough to set the correct parameters of the environment and change the water frequently.

How to disinfect aquarium plants?

Plants are disinfected according to the instructions given by the manufacturer. They are kept in a disinfecting liquid for some time. Only experienced aquarists can do everything right. Suitable drugs are:

bicillin;
whiteness solution;
buprofezin;
methylene blue;
imidacloprid;
alum solution;
trichlorfan;
peroxide solution;
ammonia solution;
sodium permanganate solution.

How to care for plants?

Aquarium plants it is necessary to prune in time and skillfully multiply, feed well, create the correct temperature and other water parameters for them, set optimal lighting.

It is also important to control siltation, change water strictly on schedule.

It's wise to buy an aquarium book, consult a specialist, or watch instructional videos on a regular basis. Some fish can damage leaves and stems, this should be considered.

To growing aquarium plants it is necessary to approach with no less responsibility than to fish. Do not buy tropical plant species from cold storage tanks. When choosing plants for your aquarium, you need to pay attention first of all to their color - it should usually be bright green, to their integrity, the absence of rot.

It is undesirable to catch aquarium plants on your own.- as a rule, the plants of our natural reservoirs live at low temperatures and can rot in a warm-water aquarium with exotic fish. Such plants must first go through a complex and lengthy process of acclimatization in a separate reservoir with a gradual increase in temperature. Therefore, it is best to buy aquatic plants from a pet store or aquarist.

There is no need to fill the plants with water immediately after purchase, they just need to be warm and moist. Plants are sold either cut - with a stem, leaves, growth buds, but without roots, or rooted. Remember that young plants take root better in a new place and you should not pay extra money for large specimens - they are far from always able to transfer a transplant.

Preparing aquarium plants for planting

All plants should be rinsed before planting. clean water room temperature, each plant is cleaned of filamentous algae, snail eggs, rotten areas adhered to it. It is also advisable to disinfect them as follows: dilute a 1% solution of alum or a 2% solution of manganese in 1 liter of water and lower the plants there for 5-10 minutes. Then rinse the plants under tap water... Do not forget to remove rotten leaves and roots and shorten the long roots according to the thickness of the soil layer to awaken them to the fastest growing. Your plants are ready to be planted in the aquarium!

When landscaping the aquarium, you should not place the plants too close to each other. Plants continue to develop, and their fast-growing species can greatly increase in just a few weeks (vallisneria, sagittaria, egeria).

Rules for planting plants in aquarium soil

The soil used to plant the plants should not squeeze the roots too much so that the water can flow freely around them. The roots should be placed according to their natural growth. Plants rooting in the soil are planted so that the growth bud is on the surface of the soil, and the roots are completely covered.

Cryptocorynes and Vallisneria root vertically downwards, this should be taken into account when planting. Aponogeton and Echinodorus have flat roots, they go down only a few centimeters and spread mainly horizontally.

Aquatic plants that suck up the substances they need directly from the water using the special organs of their leaves, must be planted in the ground in the form of cuttings, without roots, after removing the leaves from the two lower nodes of the stem. Creepers should be planted in 4-6 pieces together, like bushes. To achieve a solid wall effect in a frontal view, plant the plants in a checkerboard pattern.

Sometimes it is better to plant plants not in the ground, but in pots. This is done when there are fish in the aquarium that like to dig in the ground, or when it is necessary to limit the growth of the plant. The pot culture also has the advantage that when cleaning the bottom soil, the vessels can simply be removed from the aquarium and then put back without damaging the roots.

Larger, bushy plants will look best if planted in the background with the light on top of the tank. Being in the foreground, these plants will obstruct the view in the aquarium and overwhelm the fish.

Fast-growing plants such as hornwort and elodea serrata are excellent oxygen suppliers and absorb nitrate from the water, which promotes algae growth.

Smaller plants look good in the middle and on the side walls of the underwater corner. Stand-alone plants need large space from the side and look better when they stand individually in the center; bush plants, for the most part, have a slender stem and are most representative, as their name suggests, in the bush.

Small plants are suitable for the foreground, which do not obscure the view in the aquarium. It is better to leave the part of the aquarium closer to the front wall free in order to better observe its inhabitants.

In that part aquarium What is best lit should be plants that require a lot of light and grow quickly. Place the marsh plants as high as possible so that they soon emerge from the water and can bloom.

Aquarium Plants Compatibility

You cannot plant any plants nearby indiscriminately. Their individual species must be combined into groups, and then separated from each other using stones or snags.

Different types of mosses and plants can be used to cover the driftwood. Thin feathery moss, and in larger plants, like a fern, only the roots, are carefully placed in narrow cracks in the wood.

If you have purchased different types of aquatic plants, then place them in the aquarium in the following order: plants rooting in the ground; plants floating in the water column, and the last - plants living on the surface of the water. Naturally fill the tank with water before the second step.

Growth must be constantly monitored plants in the aquarium, remove overgrown shoots, make sure that plants floating on the surface and in the water column do not obstruct the light of those that grow in the ground.

If you find a diseased shoot or leaf, immediately remove it from the reservoir. Once a week, you need to change the water in the aquarium by 10%, this is beneficial not only for plants, but also for fish.

Number of plants in the aquarium

The ratio of the number of fish to the number of plants in the aquarium plays an important role. The more plants there are per fish, the cleaner the water will be.

The resulting in smaller quantities of mud particles are decomposed by bacteria and absorbed by the roots of plants. An overabundance of mud particles always indicates too many fish, which does not allow achieving biological balance.

You can arrange the plants according to your taste, but in most cases the vegetation should not cover more than 1/3 of the aquarium area.

First, many fish will feel uncomfortable in a small amount of water.

Secondly, plants produce more oxygen during the day than carbon dioxide, and in the dark they only absorb oxygen, and this can lead the fish in the aquarium to oxygen starvation.

Algae are aquatic plants that grow thanks to the nutrients in the water and solar energy... People grow a lot different types algae, which have a myriad of uses in Everyday life... Different types of algae are grown for different purposes: for food or as a source of biofuel for trucks. One of the advantages of growing algae is that it is a fairly straightforward and straightforward process.

Steps

Part 1

Prepare your growing medium

Choose a container that is transparent so the light shines on the algae. A glass or plastic container is perfect for this purpose.

If you are growing algae for a science exhibition, take plastic bottle or something larger, like a small aquarium.

Fill the container with water. The culture medium will mainly consist of sterilized water. Pour the water into a clear container.
Add nutrients to the water. In nature, algae live together with other aquatic inhabitants. These creatures balance the underwater ecosystem and provide them with ample amounts of nutrients such as nitrates, phosphates and silicates. Since the water bottle does not contain these nutrients and trace elements (such as trace metals and vitamins), you must add them yourself. Buy them from the store, or take some water from your aquarium or pond and add them to a container.
- Water from a pond or aquarium can contaminate the nutrient medium with various particles.
- Nutrient salts can also be added to the container. Find a nutritional formula that works for most types of algae.
- Analyzing the effects of different nutrient mixtures on algae may be one of the topics of your scientific exhibition.
Find a sunny spot. Before adding algae to the bottle, find one for her appropriate place(window sill or sunny area in the yard where you can safely leave the algae). This will allow the algae to receive enough sunlight to grow in a nutrient medium. If you can't find a suitable place, place a container of algae under the phyto lamps.

Part 2
Add algae
1. Choose the type of algae. According to the latest estimates, there are now about 70,000 species of algae in the world, and this is not counting those that have not yet been classified. People use different types algae for many different purposes. Many types of algae are used to produce biofuels that power electrical components. Other types of algae, such as spirulina, are used in food. Sometimes algae are grown in schools or for scientific experiments. The choice of algae depends entirely on the purpose for which you need it.
  - For example, if you want to include algae in your diet, start growing spirulina.
  - Spirogyra is sometimes used in science exhibitions.
2. Take a sample of the algae. For a simple experiment, you can take any sample of algae and observe them further development... If you just want to observe the development of algae in general, take a sample of algae in a pond, lake or other natural source... Remember that there are many different types of algae in nature. If you want to study a particular species, take a sample from the appropriate location. In this case, it is best to purchase a specific algae species or algae culture from an algae company or order them online.
  - For example, many people are interested in growing algae such as spirulina. Since it is often used in food, purchase a sample from a reputable company.
  - If algae are needed for school project, take a plant sample from a local pond.

Instructions

Prepare the plants for planting seaweed... Remove rotten or sore parts. Remove dirt from the roots. Prepare a weak saline solution at the rate of 1 teaspoon of salt per liter of water. Rinse each one thoroughly, then let it sit for at least five minutes to kill any pests. Rinse with running water. Shorten unnecessarily long roots.

Choose a planting method for algae There are two planting methods that take root in the soil. Can be planted seaweed in already partially filled with water, but you can first plant the plants in the ground, and only then pour water. Each of these methods has its own advantages and. In the first case, it is much easier to give seaweed the desired position, in the second - it is easier to fix the plant.

Consider the algae planting site It should be remembered that plants, as a rule, should occupy no more than 1/3 of the area. Thick and seaweed it is recommended to plant at the far wall. If planted forward, they can obstruct the view and crowd out the fish. Plants of size will look good on the sides and in the middle. Freestanding seaweed it is recommended to place it in the center. seaweed, leaving part of the front wall free. Make sure that light-loving plants are located as close to the light source as possible and do not shade each other.

When planting algae in a dry aquarium, it is necessary to make small indentations in the previously marked places of the soil. Gently lower the plant into the formed hole and make sure its roots are pointing down and not coming out to the surface. Lightly compact the soil around the planted plant.

Purchased plants Before placing them in the aquarium, you must treat them with a disinfectant solution to rid them of the bacteria living on them. Prepare a solution of table salt, consisting of 1 tsp. NaCl and 1 liter of water, rinse the acquired sprouts in it.

But for some sprouts, this is not enough. Plants with increased buoyancy should be tied to a stone with a nylon thread and dug in with sand. After rooting, the thread can be removed.

Top up the aquarium with water, straighten plants, give them the desired shape... After that, you can launch the above-water plants... Place them in the corner where you want them to be. If plants blur, build a small nylon network and limit the area of their distribution.