# Emersed Plant Greenhouse Ideas Needed



## Apaa (Jul 21, 2006)

I am resetting my 3 season greenhouse (there's no heat). I'm in Seattle, zone 8a I think I am. The floor space is 4x8 roughly and 6 feet tall. 

I want to better grow emersed aquarium plants during the time that I have from spring to fall. Anyone have any suggestions for how best to set it up for growing my echinodorus, cryptocorynes, and stem plants?

I have mostly I think smaller echinodorus like opacus rataj, and a wide range of crypts from small to tall (parva to ciliatia java and papua), and stem plants. The stem plants I think that just buckets will work with substrate and water. 

The crypts I think will be more tricky, as the swords as well. I am not sure what to grow the crypts and swords in. Plastic totes maybe because they are shorter than 5 gallon buckets that Im using for stem plants. 

Any ideas or thoughts on this would be appreciated.


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## TankAaron (Aug 8, 2014)

I'm sorry I don't know enough to share any ideas, but, if you don't mind, I have a question. What does zone 8a mean?


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## Tugg (Jul 28, 2013)

There are several plant hardiness zones. These zones help gardeners determine appropriate plants.


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## TankAaron (Aug 8, 2014)

Awesome, thank you. That makes me either Apaa's zone mate, or zone neighbor. I live basically where Cali, Nev, and AZ meet. So I think that'd be 8b.


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## Tugg (Jul 28, 2013)

[threadjack]Zip code 86429 is 9b. If you click the pic it links to the USDA site and you can enter your zip code there.[/threadjack]

Appa, once they've transitioned, do they have any special requirements anymore? I haven't done emmersed, but it was my understanding that once the new growth has taken and the leaves have a waxy cuticle, they were pretty much like house plants at that point. Am I missing something?


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## TankAaron (Aug 8, 2014)

Thank you Tugg. /feeling stupid, lol.

I guess we are not even neighbors.

Tugg, how'd you get that zip code? oO That the town next door. It's only like a 10 min drive, about 7 miles. When I put my zip in, it says area 10b. I dont' know why there's s difference. If you don't know the area, you can't even tell it's a different place.


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## Apaa (Jul 21, 2006)

Many plants do have submerged growth and emersed growth. Once a form is taken, either submerged or emersed, the plant has to grow new form of foliage. It doesn't always die back, but it doesn't always acclimate great either.

Cryptocorynes will melt when changing from one to the other usually. Many stem plants become different looking in growth form as well. Echinodorus are usually more colorful when grown underwater but will grow nicely emersed, out of the water too.

Just because they are emersed doesn't meant high and dry though, they still need a relatively high humidity.


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## jetajockey (Nov 11, 2010)

I'm in 7b (fl panhandle) and I grow a ton of plants emersed in my 12x24 greenhouse. During the summer I usually leave the doors open or the sides up to let the heat out. I also run a fan and use a Mistking system that comes on periodically through the day. Now that it's cooled off some, I keep the doors and vents closed, some of the higher humidity needing plants suffer when I have fans going and all the humidity escaping.


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