Maggie 1,056 Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 (edited) The Bacopa caroliniana plant is for sale on A-C's website, but I don't see a lot of people talking about it like vals, swords, crypts, anubias, etc., which everyone loves to discuss. I like the light green look of this plant and my stem plants do well (if I can manage to keep them planted in the substrate long enough, lol). Does anyone have this plant, and if so, how do you like it? Edited February 22 by Maggie Typo! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
OceanTruth 607 Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 I just ordered two pots of it recently and I’m waiting for it to arrive. I’ve had it before and I like it. It seems pretty hardy and the upper most leaves get a touch of a brown-reddish color as it gets closer to the light. It’s a relatively slow grower for a stem plant. In comparison, pearl weed and ludwigia repens seemed to grow 2-3 time faster in my experience. I have not had this happen before, but it will break the surface of the water and flower if allowed to do so. I bought it for my indoor pond so I’m hoping this is the case for me. I agree with you that you don’t hear it mentioned often. I personally like it. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joyful 0 Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 I have the backpack Carolinia plant in my 40 breeder and I love it , had it about two weeks, it is thriving . Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JettsPapa 436 Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 I have some bacopa that I believe is caroliniana, but I don't even remember where I got it so I can't be sure. It seems pretty hardy, though if not given sufficient light the lower leaves will sometimes all fall off. When that happens I trim it off an inch or so above the substrate, and it will sprout new growth. Then take the portion I removed, cut it off again about the same distance below the lowest remaining leaves. and plant that portion. I throw away the part in the middle that doesn't have leaves. 2 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Will Billy 376 Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 Bacopa is one of my favorite stem plants. They are not fussy at all. They are one of the slower growing stem plants, so they wont get out of control unless you forget to look at your tank for like a month. Easy to plant, easy to propagate, easy to keep healthy, and looks nice to boot. I dont know why people dont talk about this plant more, ive not found anything about it i dont like. 3 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Nana Finopolis 113 Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 (edited) I LOVE this plant. It's grows really well in low-med. light. It will break the surface and grow out of the water and flower. When you handle it or prune it, it smells soooo good. My adult daughter always mentions it when I'm pruning them. She calls them a natural room freshener. Seriously, it's one of my favorites. I put one plant on each side of the tank in the back and they grew together in the middle making the coolest looking arch. Edited February 22 by Nana Finopolis 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Toobit67 50 Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 (edited) I got some Bacopa C. from my LFS when I first started my tank.... It came in a bunch of 5 stalks, and not knowing any better... i planted it that way It looked pretty sad.... lower leaves were melting... and even some of the top leaves were turning brown... So I took it out... separated them... pruned off all the dying leaves, cut down the stalks a bit... and replanted separately... They have been happily growing ever since... (about a month) Edited February 22 by Toobit67 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Toobit67 50 Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 I like Bacopa so much that it is front and center in my tank... 😃 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
quirkylemon103 214 Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 1 hour ago, Toobit67 said: I got some Bacopa C. from my LFS when I first started my tank.... It came in a bunch of 5 stalks, and not knowing any better... i planted it that way what is wrong with planting it that way? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Toobit67 50 Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 I dont know that it is 'wrong' to plant it that way... but mine didnt seem happy... they weren't 5 stems of the same plant all spread out... seemed to be shading each other... I'm no expert by any means... but I know mine seem much better with some separation.. just relaying my experience) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Will Billy 376 Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 I agree with @Toobit67 they do need a bit of elbow room. Mine came like that from my LFS store too. Bunched up they look great at first, but overtime they are competing with each other for light. Once competition becomes involved you have winners and losers. About an inch to an inch and a half and everyone wins. 2 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Koi 249 Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 From just looking at the form of bacopa, I didn't really think I'd like it. But after keeping it for sometime, its become one of my favorite stem plants just cause its so easy to keep happy. Being that it is a slower grower compared to other stems, I find it much more forgiving if I miss a few days of dosing. Other stems I keep tend to stunt, or get holes if I ease up on my maintenance but the the bacopa always looks good and healthy. As others have mentioned I also think this is a very underrated plant and as I think about it I'm not sure why. The leaves and stems are a lot thicker and not as fragile as other stems when trying to move them. I'm more likely to prune/pick leaves on this plant just because it has this somewhat minty fragrance when you break it. And it seems like bacopa will grow to whatever height you allow it to grow (my tank is 30inches tall in this picture) Also, I was able to get this plant red without co2! 2 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Maggie 1,056 Posted February 26 Author Share Posted February 26 Thanks to all who responded with your beautiful pics! I think I'm going to try this plant. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 99 Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 I love mine! I purchased 2x plants from AC... it actually was enough to split into 3 groups. If you get them, I would recommend some lead weights as those things like to surf. I find that BC occupies a very special niche in my tank as many of the background plants I have tend to spread their leaves/fronds outward/laterally and some spots in my tank are too cramped for that. BC fits in those spots nicely since they grow straight up. They are also easy to keep! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jungle Fan 702 Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 Great little plant to keep, super easy, separate the stems plant about 1" to 1.5" apart and it will grow without stealing the light from each other. I've kept it in the past and was always happy with it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PlaneFishGuy 67 Posted March 19 Share Posted March 19 (edited) Will they always stay as a single stem or when you cut them back will they split/fork? Does it handle light dosing of Excel? Edited March 19 by PlaneFishGuy Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Will Billy 376 Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 On 3/19/2021 at 6:09 PM, PlaneFishGuy said: Will they always stay as a single stem or when you cut them back will they split/fork? Does it handle light dosing of Excel? Yes you can propagate them by replanting trimmings. They tend to stay straight vs bushing out even when manually cut, they will bush out just a bit and go right back to climbing towards the surface of your tank. In regards to Excel, if you are trying to spot treat BBA for example, then yes. Excel is the preferred method for these plants vs hydrogen peroxide. I have used H2O2 on many plants and bacopa DOES NOT like it. Excel is the safer way to go. If however you are just trying to dose it for extra carbon i have seen no nutritional benefits to the Excel. Im sure it probably consumes it, but it does not really boost its growth dramatically in anyway that i have noticed. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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