Got me a little Anubias nana today ...

[mermaidwannabe]

And, instead of tying it to wood like I was initially going to do, I used fishing line and tethered it to what was once the base of a plastic plant that looks just like a rhizome with roots of its own growing out from it. That, combined with the living roots of the real plant, makes for a more established look. The nice thing is, since the former plastic plant is no longer on this base, the actual rhizome of the Anubias tucked itself very nicely into the groove between the little plastic pegs the fake stems were once attached to, and that made it easy to tie it in there so it couldn't slip out. Then, all I had to do was rest that base on the substrate just as I did when the fake plant was fastened to it. So now there is a nice thick abundance of roots -- both the living roots and the fake roots at the bottom of the plant.

Just one question -- when they pulled it out of the tank at the LFS, it had actually been buried in their substrate. In my tank, it isn't buried because I read you aren't supposed to bury the rhizome. Hence, the living roots are not in the gravel, but just floating in the water around the base. Is this okay, or do I need to bury those living roots? Will they eventually find their own way into the gravel and anchor there, or does it matter?

Neat looking little plant -- has several small leaves on it.

Also got me some floating anacharis.

-- mermaidwannabe

[rich311k]

Good luck with it. As long as the growing end of the rhizome is exposed it can be planted. It develops a huge root system when planted that way.

[funkman262]

There are several things you can do with anubias. You can attach it to driftwood using string or rubberband, attach it to a rock with superglue, or as rich said, plant the roots leaving the rhizome exposed.

[TazManiac]

I got a little one today too. Little potted one which solo be removed and planted on a piece of drift wood when I find a nice cheap piece.

I also bought a banana lily. Cute little plants they are.

[Rue]

They are cute plants...congrats! It should thrive!

[mermaidwannabe]

I guess my question wasn't clear.

I know the rhizome can be exposed. But is it okay for the roots that extend out from it to also be exposed (in their entirety), or should I rebury them, since they were all initially buried in the substrate of the tank at the LFS? Will they rebury themselves after awhile? Does it hurt anything if they don't? Because the base I've attached the rhizome to raises the entire root system above my tank's substrate, no part of the living roots is currently submerged in it, or even touches it. These are quite short roots, the longest one being about two inches, and it juts outward and slightly upward instead of pointing straight down. In fact, all its roots jut outward into the water. Should I just leave the plant alone and leave its roots suspended where they are, or make an effort to submerge at least the tip of that longer one into the gravel?

The tank at the LFS had sand in it, mine has gravel. I'm not sure the root tips would stay submerged even if I did bury bury them. And every time I vacuum the gravel, they will surely become dislodged. Would this be harmful to the plant in any way?

I've never kept live Anubias before, so I really have no experience with how to handle their root systems.

-- mermaid

[funkman262]

That's already been answered (indirectly I suppose). As long as the rhizome is exposed, then you can do whatever you want with it. As I said, you can simply attach it to a piece of wood, rock, or whatever else you would like to attach it to, or as rich suggested, you can bury the roots to encourage more growth.

So to answer your question, no, you don't NEED to bury the roots.

[mermaidwannabe]

Thank you. That's really what I was getting at. And that makes it really easy to keep these plants. I can set that base anywhere in my tank when I rescape. It sounds like the plant pretty much takes care of itself regardless of where one puts it. Nice!

And as for light and ferts, I've read it really doesn't need a lot of either. So my not using ferts shouldn't be an issue for it. No need to add any chemicals.

I think I'll get another one or two next visit to the LFS ...

-- mermaid

[funkman262]

I don't know about everyone else but my anubias tends to do worse when completely exposed to my T5HO lighting, even when at the bottom of a 24" tall tank. I've had to move them into the shade in order for them to grow healthier looking leaves.

[mermaidwannabe]

That's where having surface floating plants make it nice. They can provide shade.

My light isn't much to sneeze at. It's just a standard, single fluorescent tube and I would say it puts out medium light at best. The tank is a 20-gallon-high, so is deeper than a 20-long would be.

We'll see how this new arrival progresses. Sounds like it doesn't need much in the way of care. It did have one yellowing leaf when I got it, and I clipped that off.

That's really what I want in my living plants -- high tolerance and low-to-no maintenance (plant maintance, that is. I always maintain the tank).

-- mermaid