"Branded" Potted Plants

[blackghost]

hey guys,

its been 2-3 years since i decomm my old planted tank. i recently decided to try my hand back at planted with a small tank in my room.

as i was looking around c328 for stuff. i came across this.. "branded" potted plants. the instructions behind was to wash of the growing media and just cut into 6-8 pieces and just plant!

there are other plants also but seems like got more HC "cuba". could anyone help me with this brand.. so dat i can do my proper research before purchasing? 14dollars vs 2 dollars pot of HC. haha

[tubularistical]

Hey there, welcome back to the hobby I think you're referring to the Tropica plants right? I noticed those too and balked at the price!
http://www.tropica.com/en/home.aspx

I used to surf Tropica for info about aquarium plants, they have a pretty comprehensive and helpful database (they even have an app now!) When I was younger I think the aquarium at Sunset Way used to be able to bring in Tropica plants for people (not 100% sure on this) but they never had them out in trays like C328.

The only advantages I saw is that they "guarantee" that there are no contaminants, parasites, algae etc. Also seems to suggest that it will propagate quickly therefore a small pot is enough? Anyway I was never convinced enough to buy a pot of these - they're emersed and probably will suffer the same fate as local HC when they enter my tank

[Urban Aquaria]

So far i have used the Tropica 1-2-Grow Eleocharis sp. 'Mini' in my planted tank and the results were very good, the plants adapted quickly and spread well.

You can see the growth progression of that particular plant in my tank journal (i only used one tub): http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum...dge-quot-Tank!

The Tropica 1-2-Grow tubs are definitely much more expensive than regular pots at the LFS, but the plants inside the tubs are healthier (though you have to check, as some tubs may have been sitting on the shelf for too long and start degrading). They also come pest and algae free, so there'll be no issues linked to those plants later on.

The tubs look small but the plants are densely packed in them, so the yield is actually more than what it looks like. I would estimate the plant density in one tub is probably equivalent to around 3-4 pots from LFS (when comparing similar hairgrass selections). Overall, its still works out to cost more though, so it really just depends on your budget.

[blackghost]

haha. thanks guys for the first response.

i guess it looks like Tropico. will go down c328 again to double confirm.

for me. my selling point is to.. because of the way the "local" potted plant is grown. they are grown in the wool and into pots. so. even before planting, there is so much work to be done. to carefully remove the roots from the wool else risk killing the plant even before it touches the soil.

so, as i was reading the instructions. it gave me the sense that i dont have to individually remove the plants and just stick the HC into the substrate in bunches and they will spread.. so yea.. i was thinking if this way.. it would be a less stressful way for my small.. 20cm tank.

[tcg170980]

20cm tank may not need much. you will still need to wash away the gel in the tropical tub.

[Urban Aquaria]

haha. thanks guys for the first response.

i guess it looks like Tropico. will go down c328 again to double confirm.

for me. my selling point is to.. because of the way the "local" potted plant is grown. they are grown in the wool and into pots. so. even before planting, there is so much work to be done. to carefully remove the roots from the wool else risk killing the plant even before it touches the soil.

so, as i was reading the instructions. it gave me the sense that i dont have to individually remove the plants and just stick the HC into the substrate in bunches and they will spread.. so yea.. i was thinking if this way.. it would be a less stressful way for my small.. 20cm tank.

Yeah its confirm Tropica, pretty much the only "branded" plants-in-tub at C328... there is also another brand called Anubias (not the plant, its a brand from italy), also tissue cultured plants in tubs, but only available at other places like Bioplast and East Ocean.

I found that if these plants are planted in large bunches, the plantlets at the outer edges of the bunch will grow well as they have contact with the soil, but the plantlets in the middle will tend to melt as they have less or no contact with the soil, so there is abit of wastage there, which may result in patchy coverage.

Although it takes abit more time and effort, its better to separate them into smaller bunches, the smaller the better. Best is each bunch only 2-3 plantlets, so you'll end up with alot of small bunches to plant. The advantage here is all the plantlets will have full contact with the soil and there will be alot less melting, and when they start growing and spreading, the coverage will be more even.

You can check out how George Farmer at the UKAPS forum prepares his Tropica 1-2-Grow plants for planting in his tank, he uses a pen knife to slice the bunches into smaller portions:

http://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/g...14#post-264245

In this thread, he separates them into individual plantlets for planting:

http://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/g...5/#post-310700

For your 20cm tank, one tub will be enough to fill up most of the base quite evenly and it should develop into a full carpet in a relatively shorter time.

[AQMS]

@ blackghost - Are you still staying in Tampines? if you do, try checking KK aquarium first, i remember they have the 'branded" potted plants but im not sure it is tropica or anubias brand.

[qool]

My willingness to pay comes after seeing small snails and dragonfly nymph hatching from eggs, which I failed to wash off even after soaking for 2 days. If you have more expensive plants, fish or shrimp this is the one reason you would ever need to convince yourself to buy 1 tub.

[Ingen]

I grew tropica 1-2 HC in both of my tanks and they carpet very well, I didn't notice significant melting during the transition.

[blackghost]

@ blackghost - Are you still staying in Tampines? if you do, try checking KK aquarium first, i remember they have the 'branded" potted plants but im not sure it is tropica or anubias brand.

yeap. wow. KK is at 201 there right? thanks alot! will definately check it out. no need to travel so far to clementi! haha



thanks guys for the fast replies. i will definitely consider to get one and if i do. i will report back with my review/experience.

from experience, buying two-three pots of HC was alot of work. locally grown ones always have their roots firmly dugged into the wool. so if this could make my small tank nice nice with less work.. maybe the bigger price is more worth it?

haha.. will report back soon!