looking for a native floater??? American Frogbit…

[Magnum Man]

in my 3 season porch native fish tank, I’been looking for plants that will over winter ( my tank will always be above freezing or the glass will break ) likely because of the nature of our hobby is structured around “topical” fish, finding cool water plants are more challenging… I’d like several floating plants to make the blue spot sunfish feel more at home… so i have been looking at plants like red root floaters, amazon frogbit, etc. but these are all tropic plants, that I expect will not tolorate cooler water… then in searching, I found American Frogbit ( Limnobium Spongia ) that can over winter, but not freeze, is my understanding… curious if anyone has played with it… it appears larger than amazon frogbit…

American Frogbit AKA Spongeplant (Limnobium spongia)

This larger floating plant is commonly used in ponds, but it is also very useful for providing shaded areas in the aquarium!

aquaticarts.com

 

[Back in the fold]

I suppose a Water Lettuce would be too big but I think there’s a smaller variety of it too . I see submerged aquatic plants in creeks and streams around here that look kind of like Anacharis and another leafy variety almost Elodea looking but I have to wonder if the current is something they need . I don’t know .

 

[Magnum Man]

I had water lettuce a while back, it got big and ugly, and reproduced near as fast as duck weed, I ended up throwing it in the burn bin… I have seen the dwarf water lettuce, but saw a note, that it can still get pretty big under the right conditions… I have giant duckweed, easier to deal with than the smaller variety, but near as tough to get rid of… trying not to introduce any of that to the native fish tank

 

[TwoTankAmin]

I have Amazon frogbit but my tanks are warmer water. According to the Google AI, which may have it wrong, both Limnobium laevigatum or spongia have almost the same temperture ranges: 64 - 80 F. However they cannot thrive at a constant 64 but can survive an occasional drop the that level but not a sustained one. Some sites give a higher upper level by a few degrees to the spongia putting it at 86F.

Since you have stated the lowest temp for this tank would be 59F, neither form of frogbit would work.

 

[Rusty_Shackleford]

If you uncover the aquarium during the summer, Pontederia crassipes (water hyacinth) would be a good choice if it's not illegal in MN.

 

[GaryE]

You still face the problem of seasonal plants. They would be expected to die off all winter. They have the capacity to return come the Spring, but not the certainty. I find the easiest source of native plants is outdoors, but coaxing them into a 365 day life cycle isn't automatic and is severely limiting with a lot of these species.

I find the famous Innes book of value, in its descriptions of the plants available to hobbyists 75 years ago. The surprise for me was the first time I went south to Florida and noticed Bacopa I battled to keep growing in my tanks thriving everywhere there was a neglected ditch.

 

[Back in the fold]

I don’t know why people find duckweed so hard to eradicate . I have no problem doing it . You have to be very thorough and meticulous but it is easy to do . I’m one of those oddballs that likes duckweed and the Hornwort that finally died off on me in my Endler’s aquarium has been replaced with duckweed . A tiny portion introduced only two weeks ago has become a covering mass . I like how the light has changed color when diffused through the duckweed .

 

[Rusty_Shackleford]

I don’t know why people find duckweed so hard to eradicate . I have no problem doing it . You have to be very thorough and meticulous but it is easy to do . I’m one of those oddballs that likes duckweed and the Hornwort that finally died off on me in my Endler’s aquarium has been replaced with duckweed . A tiny portion introduced only two weeks ago has become a covering mass . I like how the light has changed color when diffused through the duckweed .

I agree. Duckweed requires maintenance just like any other plant requires maintenance. But if you're willing to do it it's a great floating plant. Really how hard is it to take a net and scoop some out every week or two? Less than 5 minutes of your time? If that's too much of a time and effort commitment maybe fish aren't for you. Just sayin.

 

[Magnum Man]

my goal here, is to be able to relocate floaters for the winter, to an inside tank… just thought the @American frog bit, might be more authentic???

 

[GaryE]

My problem with duckweed is just scooping it also causes scooping of unseen fry sometimes. In some of my tanks where the fish breed steadily, it's a pain in the butt.


I have some Canadian native plants doing well, but they need super intense lighting. Ask me in 2 months when they'll all be gone in the rivers if they haven't done an autumn leaves thing in the aquarium. I think they still might.
If you want authentic, get Vallisneria americana.