What kind of plants are these?

[campingdude84]

I got these plants, but I don’t know what kind they are.

 

I have them both in low light in my tank. I think they both may be ferns of some kind, but I’m unsure.

 

should their roots be in the substrate, or glued to the stone or driftwood?

 

full light or low light?

[JE47]

The first pic looks like a form of java fern which should be glued or at least secured to a decoration. I will see if @JoeQ can help you

[nabokovfan87]

The first one is a type of fern.  I think in the store it's called El Nino fern. It's looks like Bolbitis heteroclita that may or may not be aquatic.  It's one of those plants I keep buying to try it out because I enjoy the look of it when it does grow.  It's an epiphyte plant and you don't want to bury the rhizome when putting it in the tank. (roots are fine, but not the rhizome).  Normally you would tie it or glue it to the hardscape in some way.

 

Quote

CARE GUIDELINES:

    Temperature:  68° - 80° F (20° - 26° C)
    pH:  6.0 - 7.5
    Lighting:  Low to moderate
    Origin:  Cultivated in US nurseries, but indigenous to Southeast Asia
    Aquarium placement:  Middle to background
    Care:  Easy

The second one looks like hygrophila difformis, also called water wisteria.
 

 

Edited October 25, 2023 by nabokovfan87

[Biotope Biologist]

I agree with @nabokovfan87 but I’d like to expand, because Petsmart sold these el nino ferns (which are also called java ferns to confuse people even more).

 

el nino ferns are very similar to epiphyte ferns in that they need water running through their soil to thrive. I have a maiden hair fern growing out of my tank and people long thought this fern was an impossible house plant. Because of that very specific requirement. If they don’t get it they will melt, if they do get it they need little else and will thrive.

 

My maidenhair is s bit temperamental and melted because it got TOO MUCH sun. 😅 but she is coming back in force.

[campingdude84]

On 10/25/2023 at 10:27 AM, Biotope Biologist said:

I agree with @nabokovfan87 but I’d like to expand, because Petsmart sold these el nino ferns (which are also called java ferns to confuse people even more).

 

el nino ferns are very similar to epiphyte ferns in that they need water running through their soil to thrive. I have a maiden hair fern growing out of my tank and people long thought this fern was an impossible house plant. Because of that very specific requirement. If they don’t get it they will melt, if they do get it they need little else and will thrive.

 

My maidenhair is s bit temperamental and melted because it got TOO MUCH sun. 😅 but she is coming back in force.

I had a difficult time following this response. Can you clarify?

[Biotope Biologist]

El nino ferns can be temperamental if they don’t have water running through their roots. I often steered people away from them for that reason. 
 

It needs to be a stream, like having a powerhead pointed at the ground. I believe they are actually emergent plants that experience near constant flooding events because they grow on the streams edge in the riparian zone in Indonesia. I may have confused the point further, but just know that compared to other java ferns this species is quite temperamental.

[campingdude84]

On 10/25/2023 at 10:37 AM, Biotope Biologist said:

El nino ferns can be temperamental if they don’t have water running through their roots. I often steered people away from them for that reason. 
 

It needs to be a stream, like having a powerhead pointed at the ground. I believe they are actually emergent plants that experience near constant flooding events because they grow on the streams edge in the riparian zone in Indonesia. I may have confused the point further, but just know that compared to other java ferns this species is quite temperamental.

Gotcha. Well, I am going to do the best I can, which is to attach it to the drift wood in the lower light section of the tank so the rhizome is not buried in the sediment.

So, I can let this plant float?

 

[campingdude84]

On 10/25/2023 at 10:40 AM, campingdude84 said:

Gotcha. Well, I am going to do the best I can, which is to attach it to the drift wood in the lower light section of the tank so the rhizome is not buried in the sediment.

So, I can let this plant float?

 

 

On 10/25/2023 at 1:20 AM, nabokovfan87 said:

The first one is a type of fern.  I think in the store it's called El Nino fern. It's looks like Bolbitis heteroclita that may or may not be aquatic.  It's one of those plants I keep buying to try it out because I enjoy the look of it when it does grow.  It's an epiphyte plant and you don't want to bury the rhizome when putting it in the tank. (roots are fine, but not the rhizome).  Normally you would tie it or glue it to the hardscape in some way.

 

The second one looks like hygrophila difformis, also called water wisteria.
 

 

So, I can let this plant float?

[JettsPapa]

You can let just about any aquatic plant float, at least for a while.  Some people keep water wisteria floating, and it will do fine that way, but I plant mine.  I just don't like the way it looks floating.

[nabokovfan87]

On 10/25/2023 at 9:16 AM, campingdude84 said:

So, I can let this plant float?

This one is the water wisteria.  It's planted appropriately.  The other plant you asked about is the el nino fern / bolbitis species that needs to be above the soil (on the hardscape).