Colectoritis: 65 Gallon South America Riparium

I have allowed the aquascape in this tank to decline somewhat because I’m suffering a case of colectoritis and using the tank to nurture several new and relatively delicate plants. The emersed area is thus incoherent–it has too many different kinds of foliage. I have also neglected the underwater region. Nevertheless, I have some pretty nice stuff in here.

So, here is a picture looking through the top of the tank.

65G South America Riparium 14-VI-09

I added numbers to identify certain plants of interest. See the list that follows this figure for specific observations.

65G South America Riparium 14-VI-09

1. Spiranthes cernua var. odorata - This is an orchid that I acquired some time ago. It seems to be doing well, with new leaf growth and healthy root development. Only the bottom 1/3 of the planter is below the water’s surface. This is a wetland plant, but I decided to err on the side of giving the roots a somewhat more aerated environment. Water wicks up from the bottom of the planter, so the planter media is wet all of the time. I shot the picture below on the day that I acquired this plant. It is quite a bit larger now.

Spiranthes cernua var. odorata

2. Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’ - I have two of these rooted in Hanging Planters and supported by Trellis rafts. I only potted them up about three weeks ago. They are growing actively and look good.

3. Phragmipedium ‘St. Ouen’ - This orchid plant has struggled, but it is growing slowly. The picture below shows new root development inside of its planter. Most Phragmipedium species grow in moist to wet habitats in nature, such as locations along waterfalls or mountain streams. However, I have found that this variety does not tolerate having its roots fully submerged in water. I originally situated this plant with most of its planter below water and as a consequence the roots began to rot. The media inside the planter is still quite wet, as water wicks from below, but I now have it hung such that only the bottom 1/2″ of the planter is in the water. This plant came with an extensive root system and I had to cut off the better part of its roots to fit it in its planter, an insult that also surely slowed it down.

Phragmepedium 'St. Ouen'

4. Echinodorus ‘Ozelot’ - This plant looks happy. Its dark purple-red coloration contrasts with the plants having bright greenish-yellow foliage. I had tried ‘Ozelot’ a couple of times before, but in my previous attempts the plants always switched to underwater form leaves–perhaps I kept them in conditions that were too humid–which did not look very good. This one has retained the emersed form so far.

5. Houttuynia cordata ‘Chameleon’ - This plant began to grow right away when I planted it in the riparium. As for the Lysimachia, it will be of interest to see whether this winter-hardy plant can be grown year ’round in an aquarium, or if it might instead require a cold-season dormancy.
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6. Colocasia fallax ‘Silver Dollar’ - A dwarf taro. This is a new selection of C. fallax that I purchased from Plant Delights Nursery (external link). I don’t yet know how well this one will perform. I am beginning to wonder if it might not tolerate wet media as well as the species(?).

7. Acorus gramineus ‘Ogon’ - This plant is growing extremely well, and is creating most of the form for the above-water area of the display.

8. Orontium aquaticum - This is an extremely cool plant that I acquired at the end of the winter. I had to cut away about 75% of its extensive root system to fit it in its planter. The whole plant declined and I thought at first that it would perish. However, it is a hardy plant and it slowly recovered. It has grown several new sets of leaves and many new roots. The leaves have a wonderful velvety texture and the flowers have a strange, exotic look. I hope that it will bloom for me someday in the display. Like Cryptocoryne and Anubias plants it is in the aroid family, and it has a similar flower with a cigar-shaped spathe.

Orontium aquaticum

9. Echinodorus cordifolius - I have a couple of previous thread posts describing this plant. It is a winner. Here is an older shot of one its blooms.

Echinodorus cordifolius Bloom in Riparium

10. Echinodorus cordifolius ‘Tropica Marble Queen’ - What a gorgeous plant! I understand that in immersed culture the white variegation on the leaves of ‘Tropica Marble Queen’ is much more subdued. Here it is well-defined, even though the plant is only receiving moderate light inside of the display.

Echinodorus cordifolius 'Tropica Marble Queen'

11. Limnophila aromatica - This planter cup holds a few stems of this plant, which are growing slowly in the emersed state. The color is more dull (a light gray-green) than the underwater form plants (with bright magenta-red undersides) that I received in trade from another hobbyist.

12. Hygrophila angustifolia - I really need to work on developing the underwater area of this display. This plant is growing well there already, with large and bright green leaves. It has a nice appearance when viewed from above.