Leaves vs Roots

[bigjohnstud]

Hi All,

For plants such as H.Deformis, how do we get the leaves to grow at the nodes rather than roots. Can be pretty unsightly when roots grows all over the body of the plant's stem.

Thanks for all replies!

[bigjohnstud]

Hi All,

For plants such as H.Deformis, how do we get the leaves to grow at the nodes rather than roots. Can be pretty unsightly when roots grows all over the body of the plant's stem.

Thanks for all replies!

[bigjohnstud]

Hi All,

For plants such as H.Deformis, how do we get the leaves to grow at the nodes rather than roots. Can be pretty unsightly when roots grows all over the body of the plant's stem.

Thanks for all replies!

[bigjohnstud]

Hi All,

For plants such as H.Deformis, how do we get the leaves to grow at the nodes rather than roots. Can be pretty unsightly when roots grows all over the body of the plant's stem.

Thanks for all replies!

[vinz]

Eh... is not one or the other right? It's either just leaves or both.

Read somewhere that excessive roots at the nodes are indication of a poor substrate or lack of nutrients. Wanna test that theory? Go stick some substrate fert at the base of the plant.

[budak]

at the risk of repeating myself, i restate my view that roots on plant stems are a sign of health rather than deficiency, in addition to being natural buttresses and stilts to support the plant. Hygrophilas particularly root freely from the stem and the best way to manage it is trim the upper stem regularly and replant it, throwing away the lower rooty part, although this section can regrow new leafy shoots too.

[bigjohnstud]

Hmmm, so 2 completely different schools of thought here. Guess have to do some experiments as what vinz had suggested but at the same time remove unsightly roots manually as per Budak's suggestion.

Thanks for the advice.

[vinz]

Hmmm... didn't say it was an unhealthy plant.

Look at it this way... a healthy Hygrophilia grows really fast and it soons attain a huge mass. This mass is too big to be nourished by the original roots, so it has to grow new roots to get more nutrients from the substrate. Err... pretty much the same idea as Budak's. So we agree... in a way... a very round about way. []

Now, if the area around the original roots is really fertile, the plant may delay growing more roots.

Anyhoo, thinking back, my hygros have not been putting out roots from the nodes for some time already, at least not from the upper branches. Could be two Reasons. First, I prefer to leave the bottoms intact and let the cut ends regrow, replanting only every few months or so. So, the bottoms could have put out enough roots to support the entire mass. Secondly, I also prune them regularly, once every one or two weeks, cutting away the longer upper branches. This probably keeps the mass small enough to be maintained by existing roots.