Cordgrass in Brackish Tank

[Tarsas]

Hi Guys, 

Had an idea for adding Chordgrass to a brackish setup I am getting for my Figure 8 Puffer. I realize it grows quite tall, but that's not really an issue as long as it doesn't seize control of the entire tank. Anyone have any experience with this type of plant? It is salt tolerant and will do fine partially submerged.; 

[Zenzo]

On 8/25/2021 at 10:56 AM, Tarsas said:

Hi Guys, 

Had an idea for adding Chordgrass to a brackish setup I am getting for my Figure 8 Puffer. I realize it grows quite tall, but that's not really an issue as long as it doesn't seize control of the entire tank. Anyone have any experience with this type of plant? It is salt tolerant and will do fine partially submerged.; 

I have not tried it in any of my brackish aquariums, but I would be interested to see how it works for you. One thing to note is that cordgrass is similar to mangroves in that they excrete the salt through their leaves. These will need to get rinsed off of the leaves with water if you see salt crystals forming. The good thing is that brackish water has much less salt than full marine.

If you end up trying it, please give us an update. I would love to find another plant solution for brackish water tanks. 

[Patrick_G]

@Tarsas, what other plants are you planning for your brackish setup? 

[Tarsas]

@Zenzo I certainly will. It’s a plant from where I grew up so it’s very nostalgic to see it. I definitely plan on trying it asap if I can find it tall enough to stick out above the waterline. I may have to grow it out in a pot or bucket at first if I end up with small, short plants. I read it can only be totally submerged for about 12 hours, so the leaves will need to be above the waterline at least partially. Good to know about the salt crystals. 
 

@Patrick_G I read a report that mentioned that Dwarf Sag is found naturally in certain brackish environments, so I figured I’d get that and acclimate it to salinity slowly and see if it makes it. It didn’t mention if it grows submerged or emerged in those environments, but it’s quite hardy so I’m betting it might take. I thought I might try Duckweed since it literally can’t be killed and Java ferns but I’m not holding my breath on that. 

[Zenzo]

On 8/26/2021 at 11:08 AM, Tarsas said:

@Zenzo I certainly will. It’s a plant from where I grew up so it’s very nostalgic to see it. I definitely plan on trying it asap if I can find it tall enough to stick out above the waterline. I may have to grow it out in a pot or bucket at first if I end up with small, short plants. I read it can only be totally submerged for about 12 hours, so the leaves will need to be above the waterline at least partially. Good to know about the salt crystals. 
 

@Patrick_G I read a report that mentioned that Dwarf Sag is found naturally in certain brackish environments, so I figured I’d get that and acclimate it to salinity slowly and see if it makes it. It didn’t mention if it grows submerged or emerged in those environments, but it’s quite hardy so I’m betting it might take. I thought I might try Duckweed since it literally can’t be killed and Java ferns but I’m not holding my breath on that. 

I have tried duckweed. It didn't last. I have also tried Java fern, which also didn't work. So far, I have only had success with mangroves and algae. 😆

The dwarf sag is interesting if it works. 

[Patrick_G]

@Zenzo, do you have a plant light on your brackish tank? 

[Zenzo]

On 8/26/2021 at 12:08 PM, Patrick_G said:

@Zenzo, do you have a plant light on your brackish tank? 

On all of my tanks, I run the first generation Finnex Stingray lights (the ones on the Aquarium Co-Op site). On my Indian mudskipper tank, I also have a cheap clip-style LED above the mangrove plant growing up and out of the tank. You can see it in this photo, way in the back (the light near the ceiling in the back of the shot).

[OnlyGenusCaps]

On 8/25/2021 at 11:56 AM, Tarsas said:

Had an idea for adding Chordgrass to a brackish setup I am getting for my Figure 8 Puffer. I realize it grows quite tall, but that's not really an issue as long as it doesn't seize control of the entire tank.

If by cordgrass you mean plants in the genus Spartina (now Sporobolus, but that's a big confusing group ATM), I'd be cautious about introducing most of them.  Many of the species are quite aggressive, even in expansive salt marsh settings.  Indeed, several are highly invasive.  They tend to spread rapidly by runners, and I could see them very quickly taking over a tank without extensive intervention.  If I had to venture a guess at the most controllable species, I wold say you'd want to target Spartina gracilis.  I think it's a interesting idea!  Please do let us know if you try any of them. 

[Tarsas]

@OnlyGenusCaps Yeah, it also gets pretty tall. I definitely would start with a single plant and experiment and see if it can really be controlled. My choices are somewhat limited because the plant has to be able to grow at least partially submerged at all times and the particular grass I went for will grow well in lower marshlands where water is usually present throughout high and low tide. I suppose it would be prudent to see if it feeds solely from the roots or if it can feed from both. It’s a grass, though, so I’d wager the roots. 

Edited August 27, 2021 by Tarsas

[Biotope Biologist]

On 8/26/2021 at 11:08 AM, Tarsas said:

 

@Patrick_G I read a report that mentioned that Dwarf Sag is found naturally in certain brackish environments, so I figured I’d get that and acclimate it to salinity slowly and see if it makes it. It didn’t mention if it grows submerged or emerged in those environments, but it’s quite hardy so I’m betting it might take. I thought I might try Duckweed since it literally can’t be killed and Java ferns but I’m not holding my breath on that. 

Dwarf sagg is emerged in those environments if you do it. I might attempt it as well. I have heard that some vallisneria are tolerant to mid-brackish. 

 

@Zenzo what macro algaes have you had success with? My target range is 1.005-1.015. I have read that only chaeto algae does well in these environments. 

 

Cordgrass sounds interesting, but as @OnlyGenusCaps pointed out they are quite explosive growers. I wish I could say the same for these mangroves 😋

[Tarsas]

@Biotope Biologist So effectively dwarf sag probably would do too well submerged, I take it? It’s going to only probably be SG 1.008 or so for the puffer. That’s the magic number I’m reading everywhere. 

[OnlyGenusCaps]

On 8/26/2021 at 8:36 PM, Tarsas said:

I suppose it would be prudent to see if it feeds solely from the roots or if it can feed from both. It’s a grass, though, so I’d wager the roots.

I mean you can get foliage feeding fertilizers for lawns, but if you put cordgrass in a tank, I suspect it'd be plenty happy with what its extensive root system can glean. 

I think @Biotope Biologist is onto something with the dawrf sagg.  But, if you are really chasing that emergent grass look though there are other options that might do better in a smaller setting.

[Hobbit]

On 8/26/2021 at 1:16 PM, Zenzo said:

I would love to find another plant solution for brackish water tanks. 

Have you tried some of the plants that grow native (or invasive) in brackish water areas? I had some fun clicking around the Chesapeake Bay Program’s website and found a few that might be candidates for an aquarium:

• Slender Pondweed
• Common Waterweed (a type of Elodea)
• Curly Pondweed
• Eurasian Watermilfoil

Not sure where you would get them though. If someone magically gives me a plant collecting license I could try to find them!