# Swiss Cheese Plant and other house plants



## zhuth (14 May 2013)

So here we go my first post 

I want to ask your opinions what you think about this. Long time ago i saw some Ivy like plans I think in London Aquarium going through the tanks. so when i was doing "cutting" on my potted house plants and they roots have grown already i took one Swiss Cheese plant and I think delis Ivy and put it in my tank through the lid. Unfortunately the Devils Ivy I re-potted but the Swiss Cheese plant I left in the tank and it is growing nicely (see pictures). Its roots just are hanging in the tank and everything is fine.

Does any of you have other plants in your tanks in similar position?
I am currently looking to get some other species (cuttings) to grow some roots and will try then in my tank (names will Google and update once its ready) once they ready will post some pictures and keep you updated.
Thanks for reading.


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## zhuth (14 May 2013)




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## zhuth (14 May 2013)




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## Iain Sutherland (14 May 2013)

welcome to the forum, philodendron species all do very well


also have ficus colombia


if you want to see some really class examples of emergent growth have a look here
A Chocolate Puddle - | UK Aquatic Plant Society
or here
Tom's Bucket O' Mud - Sawbwa fry video p21 | UK Aquatic Plant Society


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## zhuth (14 May 2013)

Thanks Iian 
You have a very nice looking little tank there.
Will have a look at the Chocolate puddle. Also will check out ficus colombia as i have not had any experience whit this plant.
I'm not sure, is Devils ivy part of the philodendron family?
Not sure but i have something similar now "rooting" (don't know the right expression for it but waiting the roots to grow on a cutting ) will post picture later as cant find the name.


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## BigTom (14 May 2013)

Yup, I have various plants in my tanks (Iain already linked my journal).

There's quite a nice little article here as well - Indoor plants for water purification and nitrate reduction in aquariums «  tuncalik.com – Natural Aquariums and Sustainable Life


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## Henry (14 May 2013)

BigTom said:


> There's quite a nice little article here as well - Indoor plants for water purification and nitrate reduction in aquariums « tuncalik.com – Natural Aquariums and Sustainable Life


 
Always loved that guy's philosophy on planted tanks.


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## zhuth (15 May 2013)

So since I could not log on yesterday for some reason I could not post photos so I goggle them but will post pictures soon.

The next plants cuttings I am rooting are (if goggled right):
-Nephthytis, White-veined arrowhead vine
-Parlour palm, Chamaedorea Elegans
-Dumb Cane, Dieffenbachia
-Chain of hearts

The first two a definitely want to try in the tank, the Dumb cane……?
Since goggling for the names I read that dumb cane is poisonous so maybe you could give advice if any of you have it or not, also not 100% sure about name will post picture but if it’s poisonous I won’t use it. The only interesting thing is I saw this plant is a tank or terrarium somewhere but your opinion is most welcome. Especially that I have an 11 month old son so if it’s too dangerous it will have to go completely

I'm not sure about Chain of Hearts that will survive and not just rot.
And I have an Elephant's ear (Alocasia amazonica) which I would like to try maybe as well but that is sitting in a pot at the moment as a happy house plant should.

So these are the ones I try just now. Your ideas are most welcome 

The links are brilliant thanks guys. I try to do an open tank “Amazon style” biotope from my 100 L tank will do a journal for it. I will try to do it "Walstad method" style low tech. Definitely I will take some inspiration (or simply just nick some ideas) from Big Tom and Alastair, but more in the journal 

Ps.: forgive my English but is “rooting” the right word at all?


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## BigTom (15 May 2013)

The only one of those I've tried myself was parlour palm and it didn't do so well. Survived for ages but gradually died off a stem at a time over the course of a year. 

Rooting seems like a perfectly good verb to me! 

Sent from my LT30p using Tapatalk 2


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## Alastair (15 May 2013)

BigTom said:


> The only one of those I've tried myself was parlour palm and it didn't do so well. Survived for ages but gradually died off a stem at a time over the course of a year.
> 
> Rooting seems like a perfectly good verb to me!
> 
> Sent from my LT30p using Tapatalk 2



Hey tom ive still got that bit of your parlour palm you sent me  Its now planted up in soil and growing well 

Sent from my GT-I9305 using Tapatalk 2


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## BigTom (15 May 2013)

Ah good, I can stop feeling guilty about it then


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## zhuth (15 May 2013)

as promised i have a couple of pictures. The Nephthytis, White-veined arrowhead vine is already "swimming" in the tank


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## Mick.Dk (15 May 2013)

Dieffenbachia is defenitely poisonous - I've worked with'em professionally ....... the sap (juice)  is quite bad!
Chamaedorea palms generally accept wet soil - but I doubt they'll survive sitting in just water.
A lot of the lianas and other climbers (especially philodendrons ) will do quite well, being grown this hydro-culture-way.
( I've worked, doing the vegetation at a tropical zoo,  some years ago )
Mick.


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## Henry (15 May 2013)

Hydrocotyle leucocephala is a nice plant to grow emersed out of the top of the tank too. It's a nitrate hog though.


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## zhuth (15 May 2013)

sorry but got interrupted (relatives visiting) will post second picture with the rest of the cuttings in rooting process:
-Parlour palm, Chamaedorea Elegans
-Dumb Cane, Dieffenbachia
-Chain of hearts
-Devils ivy
if i wrote something wrong please correct


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## zhuth (15 May 2013)

Mick thanks for the info. I might consider to get rid of the Dieffenbachia then completely.
The Hydrocotyle leucocephala is a cool looking little plant. Might get some in future 

( finally Mick how did you work in a zoo man my dream job.... can you pull some strings?  )


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## sciencefiction (16 May 2013)

I ordered some hanging planters from Devin from ripariumsupply.com and he was very kind sending me a list of plants that grow well in aquarium. He is very helpful and will go out of his way. I asked for species that will do well in aquarium with not too much humidity so they can grow outside and here is the list he gave me to try.


Spathiphyllum peace lily - very easy to grow, houseplant
Anthurium - houseplant
Echinodorus cordiolius & E. cordifolius 'Tropica Marble Queen' - emersed grown, aquariumplant
dwarf Cyperus umbrella sedge - pond plant
Hygrophila salicifolia, and other Hygrophila sp. - emersed grown, aquarium plant
Bacopa monnieri - emersed grown, aquarium plant
Pilea aluminum plant - houseplant
Pilea 'Moon Valley' - houseplant
Alternanthera - aquarium plant, houseplant
Fittonia nerve plant - houseplant


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## Henry (16 May 2013)

Dracaena does well too (lucky bamboo). I'd be wary of planting Cyperus alternifolius or similar in the aquarium substrate. It tends to spread laterally quite quickly once established and has quite a heavy root system; it could end up being a real nuisance. Kept in a pot, however, I can't see any issue.


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## sciencefiction (16 May 2013)

They aren't really for the substrate, but either in caddies or similar planters, otherwise you can keep just a few inches of water in the tank as they are to be grown emmersed.


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## sciencefiction (16 May 2013)

These are mine at the moment but just recently planted. A Calathea corona and spathiphyllum lily. I also planted hydrophila corymbosa with just the roots in the water as it was already growing emmersed in another tank but I am yet to see how it will go, just two small leaves so far.






And another peace lily and hydrophila corymbosa I am trying emmersed as it normally keeps trying to grow outside the surface in all my tanks. It's got two new small leaves so hopefully it will adapt to drier conditions but it may need more humidity.


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## Henry (16 May 2013)

H. corymbosa tends to adapt to emersed growth really well. It can be a target for spider mites in summer though, so keep an eye on it.
I grow it out of all of my tanks, and gets damn tall, but is a very beautiful plant.

Here's some of mine after it had flowered:


Some of the leaves are slightly burned, but that's just due to heat and light from the T5s.


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## sciencefiction (16 May 2013)

> The next plants cuttings I am rooting are (if goggled right):
> -*Nephthytis, White-veined arrowhead vine*
> -Parlour palm, Chamaedorea Elegans
> -*Dumb Cane*, Dieffenbachia
> -Chain of hearts


 
Some *Nephthytis* species are also toxic. From a search : "Nephthytis can cause irritation to skin and be toxic if ingested by pets and humans. Keep the plant out of children's reach."

*Dumb Cane-*contains toxic oxalates salts- " _Produce mucous membrane irritation and pain _
_and/or swelling of mouth, lips, tongue, esophagus and stomach"_


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## sciencefiction (16 May 2013)

Wow, I never knew hydrophila has such beatiful flowers. Very nice Henry. I'll keep an eye on my spiders  if we ever get a summer here


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## zhuth (16 May 2013)

Sciencefiction & Henry thanks for your input guys.

The hydrophila looks really nice, and the others too (but its too many names to learn to type so quick   I think I must make a dictionary with photos and plants, back to school ...)

I really like it here on this forum its so much better then I imagined I think I will learn a lot here from every one.
Since yesterday I realized I know nothing about no plants and will Google all the plants i have at home regarding which is poisonous as I have a little son (he is 11 months old) who hopefully learn to walk soon so good idea to get rid of some plants i think...


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## zhuth (17 May 2013)

So just a quick update on my Swiss cheese plant. the first picture was take in the middle of January (if i can believe the right click properties) but that sound about right as I needed to make the photo to another forum to show it to someone at around the same day.
So here is the picture I took today morning:


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## zhuth (17 May 2013)

In your opinion is it a good growth rate if you compare the two picture and the time (approx. 4 months) since the first was taken?


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## zhuth (17 May 2013)

Also I have a sad picture from the tank I want to make my new project.

 

please forgive the picture it looks worse then it really is but I used the "good old" mobile phone for the photo.
as you see it is pretty bare with just some wood cave stone and two bristle nose pleco's

As I plant to do it open top “Amazon style” tank, is approx. 90 -100 L tank. I will try to do it "Walstad method" style low tech, bought already soil to go in but have awful difficulties with the plants.
Most shops-sellers don't even answer on my e-mails (wont say names yet as still hoping for answer or trying to make a deal) but some who answered where not too keen to help so kind of disappointed but have now written to couple of new ones and also oversees shops and wait for answers
(any way when i get my plants will write a brand new post for this subject).

These are the plants I was looking for:
Cyperus (poss. C. helferi), Echinodorus grandiflorus, E. macrophyllus, E. amazonicus, also floating plants, such as Eichhornis crassipes, Pistia stratoides, Azolla sp., Salvinia natans (or other Salvinia), Sagittaria sp.

So either back to the drawing board (plant wise) or will get some luck. But once will have a plant supplier and date for plants will start my journal.

The soil i have is Westland aquatic soil and plant to cover it with some play sand.

The fish will be a pair of bristle nose plec. cardinal tetras,  kuhlie loach, i got two upside down catfishes, plant to get some small corydoras and shrimp(cherry or some other nice critters).
Also I have a big male blue gourami 3+ inches which i currently testing with feeding shrimp but if he is showing aggression i might re-home him.
I know that big fish with small things are not really compatible (if it fits in the mouth it will get eaten) but so far he did not show any interest and it is over two week now that they are in the same tank.

The other part is lighting. I don't know if i should stay with the good old conventional tubes or should i change for the new (at least for me new) LED craze?
Definitely will get some night light to see my fish in a "moon light way"
But need some ideas as i plant to have it open top.

In the meantime please have some suggestions for the tank I'm open for Ideas...


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## foxfish (17 May 2013)

I have grown all sorts of house plants in my hydroponic trough that is fitted around my tank.


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## BigTom (17 May 2013)

I loved the giant emergent Echinodorus I used to have in the big tank. If doing an open topped South American themed tank I would definitely have a stand of several different varieties, all emergent. Most of them are in emergent form anyway when you buy them, so it would just be a case of starting them off in planters/caddies and lowering them slowly into the water as they grew taller, to prevent them switching to submerged growth.


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## zhuth (17 May 2013)

That looks really nice foxfish if it not too much top ask would you include how you did it and what you used (meaning the system fitted around your tank)


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## zhuth (17 May 2013)

I'm definitely will go for Echinodorus some type (whatever i can get) especially after seeing your Tom definitely will get some
(by the way don't you plan a trip to London soon? you could do my tank  and bring half yours with you as a present  )


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## foxfish (17 May 2013)

I made up a glass box to fit across the back & one side, filled it with baked clay & set up a drip system that feeds water from my tank into the trough & overflows back into the tank.


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## zhuth (17 May 2013)

thanks will look in to this how i can incorporate it maybe to my tank, l really like your idea/solution.


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## foxfish (17 May 2013)

It could be quite simple as long as the plant container is slightly higher than the main tank so the water can overflow back into the tank!
In my case... I have an unusual design as the tank has a sump & the water overflows into the overflow!
The clay balls also offer lots of biological filtration as well so the water going back into the tank is well filtered, it is a bit like a large hang on the back filtration unit!


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## zhuth (17 May 2013)

I don't have a sump, but i think i could use some plastic flower pot like container to go on the back or just to go to a local glass "worker" if i can not DIY it myself at home. Also where did you get the clay balls if you don't mind me picking your brain ?


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## BigTom (17 May 2013)

zhuth said:


> Also where did you get the clay balls if you don't mind me picking your brain ?


 
They're called 'hydroton', should be able to get them form hydroponics suppliers.


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## sciencefiction (17 May 2013)

What other stuff do you guys use besides the hydroton clay balls? I've put my peace lillies in clay balls as I read they like lots of circulation around the roots and that's the best way but what about other house plants? I bought a few more house plants today and not sure in what substrate to plant them?
Also, can I use hydroton clay balls in my trickle filter instead of media, and plant the plants directly? Will they disintegrate and cloud the water?


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## sciencefiction (17 May 2013)

I just found this below, not sure I can link to another website like that but it's worth reading it for lots and lots of riparium plant suggestions and pictures:

 A few of my planted ripariums - Dendroboard


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