Short Red Plants

[jimbooo]

Hi Guys and Girlies

i have some tiger lotus lillies in my office tank (rekord 60) but as you know they grow pretty quickly and reach the surface within days. if i train them to grow submerged leaves they get too broad to be in sync with the planting scheme.

what i need is short red plants. something that will stay below the 10 inch mark. not stem plants as i have very little maintenance time. all i can think of is Echinodorus Rubin var Narrow.

any other ideas. the rest of the layout is very green and i need some colour to break things up.

light and co2 are not a problem and substrate has laterite.

any ideas would be great.

thanks people

James

 

[Themuleous]

Tricky one mate, without stems cant really think of anything that will give you the same vibrant red colour.

Sam

 

[dasmall1]

Finally I think I can help Jimbooo out! Maybe. Look on page 24 of Nature Aquarium World book 1 if you have it, and Barclaya longfoilia (orchid lily) is used to much success.

 

[RadaR]

Linky link

Barclaya longifolia

 

[jimbooo]

thanks guys great idea but i think i would have the same problem with that as i do with the tiger lotus lillies. the problem with lillies in a small tank (in particular those with lids) is that you either let them grow to the surface where they cant be seen at all unless your lying on the floor in front of the tank. or make them grow underwater leaves, because the underwater leaves are further from the light than they would like they grow BIG thick leaves instead.

in a rekord60 one leaf like this will block out 1/3 of the tank. i need something petite really, something like a rosette plant i suppose or maybe crypt's (i've never grown them so dont know if any go red)

thanks for the suggestion and link though. most appreciated

edit: just google imaged it!! not as bad as i thought in actual fact. it seems to have elongated leaves rather than lilly pads. still may be a bit too big for the tank but hey, it's an option. thanks again

 

[jimbooo]

good idea, not too keen on bacopa though. it looks too rigid to me. i like things to sway about in the current. (now he's just being difficult!!!)

sorry but thanks for the suggestion anyway.

any more thoughts people?

 

[dasmall1]

How much lighting do you have? If you have high enough lighting it would open your possibilities to such things as blyxa japonica.


Edit: spelling, haha

 

[jimbooo]

How much lighting do you have? If you have high enough lighting it would open your possibilities to such things as blyxa japonica.


Edit: spelling, haha

2.5wpg ie enough to grow it but it's green..... (according to tropica anyway)

i'm after reds.

thanks for the suggestion though

FKNM -

 

[atmmachine816]

Couldn't you do a stem plant and just cut it, then it wouldn't be growing as much besides a few side shoots and once you cut those it wouldn't grow that much?

atm