Mangrove Planter Suggestions

[zoohed]

Pretty much as the title states I'm looking for suggestions on what to plant my mangroves in.  They will be going in the main display which is a 40b.  Currently have 2 in seperate systems that will be transplanted and will be ordering more.  The plan is to put them in miracle mud.  I can probably build some sort of eggcrate contraption to use as a base for rock similar to what Brad did but looking for other suggestions as well.

[seabass]

5 hours ago, zoohed said:

I'm looking for suggestions on what to plant my mangroves in...  The plan is to put them in miracle mud.

You want the substrate deep enough for the roots, but you don't want to use a fine grain substrate (as that will cause oxygen depletion).

 

https://reefbuilders.com/2015/10/06/properly-care-mangrove-trees-aquaria/

 

 

https://www.bing.com/search?q=site%3Anano-reef.com+mangrove&qs=n&form=QBRE&sp=-1&pq=site%3Anano-reef.com+mangrove&sc=0-27&sk=&cvid=EF54C1E2EACA4ABCB2EB64FC909E1964

 

[zoohed]

Yup I've read this all before and have actually had my current two about 2-3 years but one is in a fuge chamber that it was acceptable to fill with miracle mud and plant and the other is in a pico that again a few inches of mud was acceptable to place in one end.  However the amount of mud needed to keep them planted and above the water line is more than i want to pile in my 40b display.  That's why I was looking for suggestions of a container either large enough to get them high enough I can put mud in and plant them in or any other ideas.

[Ratvan]

14 hours ago, zoohed said:

Yup I've read this all before and have actually had my current two about 2-3 years but one is in a fuge chamber that it was acceptable to fill with miracle mud and plant and the other is in a pico that again a few inches of mud was acceptable to place in one end.  However the amount of mud needed to keep them planted and above the water line is more than i want to pile in my 40b display.  That's why I was looking for suggestions of a container either large enough to get them high enough I can put mud in and plant them in or any other ideas.

Plant pots, orchid pots. I kept the root ball in an empty Soda Bottle once. Grew nice and straight 

[Orangutran]

18 hours ago, zoohed said:

Yup I've read this all before and have actually had my current two about 2-3 years but one is in a fuge chamber that it was acceptable to fill with miracle mud and plant and the other is in a pico that again a few inches of mud was acceptable to place in one end.  However the amount of mud needed to keep them planted and above the water line is more than i want to pile in my 40b display.  That's why I was looking for suggestions of a container either large enough to get them high enough I can put mud in and plant them in or any other ideas.

How about a tupperware and pile rocks around it? You can also elevate the tupperware with egg crate to make it taller. I have mine in tupperware, but it's in the sump.  Just do your research on sand/mud depth... what are your plans when the leaves get too high for your lights? Which is my problem now...

[zoohed]

46 minutes ago, Orangutran said:

How about a tupperware and pile rocks around it? You can also elevate the tupperware with egg crate to make it taller. I have mine in tupperware, but it's in the sump.  Just do your research on sand/mud depth... what are your plans when the leaves get too high for your lights? Which is my problem now...

Tupperware was my plan unless someone had something more sturdy or different.  They will have their own independent PAR bulb on that side of the tank and I'll just keep elevating it as needed. 

[SeaFurn]

12 hours ago, Ratvan said:

Plant pots, orchid pots. I kept the root ball in an empty Soda Bottle once. Grew nice and straight 

I have 6 pods right now. Can I plant them in a jar with sand and freshwater just to get the

roots growing? 

[seabass]

2 hours ago, SeaFurn said:

I have 6 pods right now. Can I plant them in a jar with sand and freshwater just to get the

roots growing?

They don't require saltwater, but will need light and nutrients.

http://www.saltwateraquariumblog.com/mangroves-in-a-reef-tank/

[Ratvan]

4 hours ago, SeaFurn said:

I have 6 pods right now. Can I plant them in a jar with sand and freshwater just to get the

roots growing? 

Yes. Much easier to grow in fresh/brackish 

[SeaFurn]

11 hours ago, seabass said:

They don't require saltwater, but will need light and nutrients.

http://www.saltwateraquariumblog.com/mangroves-in-a-reef-tank/

I was going to put them in a Southern facing window. Would Seachem flourish work for now?

 

Obviously I’ve got a lot of reading to do to get more knowledgeable but I’m really thinking about the possibilities with these things. 

 

Sorry for hijacking your thread zoohed. I should probably go start my own thread for what could turn into a REALLY REALLY LONG project considering how slow they grow. Nonetheless following along to see what you come up with! 

[zoohed]

No worries hijack away.  Of the two I have one sits near an east facing and also a northern facing window and it seems to do the best of the two as its in the pico tank and only gets minimal light from a par bulb.

 

[seabass]

1 hour ago, SeaFurn said:

Would Seachem flourish work for now?

Flourish does not contain significant levels of nitrogen or phosphorus (it's more like trace elements).  You would probably still need to dose nitrogen and phosphorus, and potentially potassium.

[Ratvan]

1 hour ago, SeaFurn said:

I was going to put them in a Southern facing window. Would Seachem flourish work for now?

 

Obviously I’ve got a lot of reading to do to get more knowledgeable but I’m really thinking about the possibilities with these things. 

 

Sorry for hijacking your thread zoohed. I should probably go start my own thread for what could turn into a REALLY REALLY LONG project considering how slow they grow. Nonetheless following along to see what you come up with! 

Miracle Mud would be good for mangroves. Or let fish food break down in the tank with the mangroves

[SeaFurn]

I saw this one at MACNA in the Two Little Fishies booth. 

 

I’d like to achieve this look with mine in the future. Do you think it was grown in a planter to get it to look this way? I ask because there were several more still in planters within a big large tub filled with water. 

 

This one looks like it could have been grown that way and then placed in this IM10 for the show.

 Nonetheless it was pretty impressive!

 

 

[Ratvan]

2 hours ago, SeaFurn said:

I saw this one at MACNA in the Two Little Fishies booth. 

 

I’d like to achieve this look with mine in the future. Do you think it was grown in a planter to get it to look this way? I ask because there were several more still in planters within a big large tub filled with water. 

 

This one looks like it could have been grown that way and then placed in this IM10 for the show.

 Nonetheless it was pretty impressive!

 

 

It does have a very trained look about it

[zoohed]

That looks sweet.

[SeaFurn]

Here is is from another angle. Love those roots! #goals

 

[seabass]

Nice display.  I'd guess that it was grown in a bucket, then transferred to the tank just for the show.  The roots can be strong enough to crack a bucket or tank (with a bucket being the more disposable of the two).  Plus, transporting it in the tank sounds a little dicey.

[mcarroll]

Whenever something looks too good to be true it usually is.  (

 

Growing a mangrove that big that looks that good in a tank that small seems to good to be true.

 

The same goes for any picture that you see this way...plenty of coral pics are like this, taken with a camera and lens that sees things the human eye cannot....even some whole tank photos you see of tanks with massive colonies were glued together just before the shot.   That's just two examples of things that look too good to be true. 😉

 

(When you start noticing that last part is about when you also realize that North America seems to be the only place on the planet that deals in tiny little frags like we have.)

[SeaFurn]

1 hour ago, mcarroll said:

Whenever something looks too good to be true it usually is.  (

 

Growing a mangrove that big that looks that good in a tank that small seems to good to be true.

 

The same goes for any picture that you see this way...plenty of coral pics are like this, taken with a camera and lens that sees things the human eye cannot....even some whole tank photos you see of tanks with massive colonies were glued together just before the shot.   That's just two examples of things that look too good to be true. 😉

 

(When you start noticing that last part is about when you also realize that North America seems to be the only place on the planet that deals in tiny little frags like we have.)

Yes...I get your point.

I didn’t actually think that mangrove was grown in that tank. I know was put in there for the show. I was mostly curious if others also thought it was grown in a pot with soil to get the prop roots to look like that.

I think it’s a little more complicated (and not sure it’s even possible) to get the roots to look like that if it was simply grown in an aquarium stuck into the sand. 

[seabass]

I think if it's suspended (and supported) that the roots will "reach" for the substrate.  Although I've never personally played around with mangrove trees.

[Ratvan]

28 minutes ago, SeaFurn said:

Yes...I get your point.

I didn’t actually think that mangrove was grown in that tank. I know was put in there for the show. I was mostly curious if others also thought it was grown in a pot with soil to get the prop roots to look like that.

I think it’s a little more complicated (and not sure it’s even possible) to get the roots to look like that if it was simply grown in an aquarium stuck into the sand. 

Pretty much as per the below. You can suspend them in water as long as the leaves are not submerged and get enough good light to promote growth. Salinity of 1.010-1.015 (brackish) makes them grow like mad. 

 

To elongate the roots you keep moving the plant up and up as the roots reach a point where you are happy with the growth. You can also place the roots in an upside funnel of sorts to shape the root into the above type shapes.

10 minutes ago, seabass said:

I think if it's suspended (and supported) that the roots will "reach" for the substrate.  Although I've never personally played around with mangrove trees.

It's fun. Going to try and sourse some reds and blacks for the new 34g

[SeaFurn]

26 minutes ago, seabass said:

I think if it's suspended (and supported) that the roots will "reach" for the substrate.  Although I've never personally played around with mangrove trees.

That’s what I’ve read too. I’ve got 6 of them I’m going to start. Just trying to figure out what method I want to use to get the roots to grow like these pics.

[SeaFurn]

13 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

Pretty much as per the below. You can suspend them in water as long as the leaves are not submerged and get enough good light to promote growth. Salinity of 1.010-1.015 (brackish) makes them grow like mad. 

 

To elongate the roots you keep moving the plant up and up as the roots reach a point where you are happy with the growth. You can also place the roots in an upside funnel of sorts to shape the root into the above type shapes.

I think I’m going to use freshwater and then acclimate them to salt in the future. Just need to decide if I want to put them in a pot or use suspension method. 

 

@zoohed have you considered just suspending yours in the tank until the roots are developed rather than putting them in a planter in the tank? 

[zoohed]

I have not.  Only reason I might avoid that is then having to figure out a way to place them in the display once the roots are developed.