# Growing plants from dry bulbs?



## parriska

Im struggling finding any info on planting these dry bulbs from Petco. They say to just plant them about 3/4 of the way into the substrate and they should sprout within 30 days. Its been a week and a half and the 4 i put in have gotten much larger and soft because they are submerged, but no sign of growth. I made a DIY CO2 system thats working well. Hoping it would speed growth but so far nothing. Any tricks to get these things growing?


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## parriska

I really need some info here. Would I be better off just buying potted plants or will these bulbs start? anyone have much experience with these?


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## Franzi

I put a red tiger lotus bulb in about two weeks ago. I put it under the substrate with top of the bulb exposed. So far no signs of growth. 

So far I prefer buying actual plants...not bulbs.


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## Powchekny

I've seen those little bulbs for sale in Petco. The few I've seen, at least, looked pretty lifeless and completely dried out.

I guess all you can do is wait, unless you want to try a little destructive testing. You could cut one open and see if the inside is green or white (live), or if it is brown and mushy (dead).

tom


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## mammafishy

Hi there

Just thought I would tell you about my experiences with 7 Aponogeton bulbs that I bought at Walmart and threw in my 10 gallon tank.

On Jan. 14th I threw them in. Little green spikes started to show Jan. 24th on 2 of them. Feb. 1st I would say that the one is growing over 2" a day. Today Feb. 3rd, I would say it is about 13" long with a leaf that came out on top. 

The 2nd one is small but has all kinds of leaves on it. The root systems on both of them are unbelievable. (I just added laterlite to the bottom of this tank and extra light so I am sure the growth of these has been helped by those facts.)

I have read that these bulbs can take up to 2 months or longer to sprout.

I am sure you will have different results with different bulbs but just wanted to point out that it seems like patience is a key factor when dealing with bulbs. 

I am just now getting into live plants I think the best way to go would be live if you want faster results.

Good luck!!


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## mindnova

So far my experinece with bulbs has been bad. Most of the packs of bulbs I see were dried up and moldy at the same time.
My lfs got some bulbs in and after a month he tossed them out. Most bulbs are not even that cheap, so to me the risk is not worth it. If they we cheaper maybe but still you never know what your getting and what the light requirments will be.
I guess there could be some treasures if you get fresh bulbs.


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## Tex Gal

I think it's the luck of the draw. I've gotten about 2 out of 5 grow. It does take a long time for them to sprout. Give it time. You might get a few to sprout. I agree that buying the live plants are the best.


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## Franzi

I checked on my bulb the other night. No roots and it smelled disgusting so I threw it out. Thank you aquariumplants.com for selling me a dud bulb.


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## Tex Gal

Yep, bad smell mean rotten! So sorry!


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## parriska

thanks everyone. I will just throw the rest of the bulbs in the tank and see if i get lucky. Did any of you that got them to grow bury them in substrate or just let them float or sink? I went ahead and bought some live anacharis to start with and its doing great! still would like a bulb to sprout. 
thanks
Kyle


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## tighidden

If there are white spots on the bulb don't buy them because that can be a sign of mold. Also a lot of those bulbs have a guarantee on them. Mine didn't grow within thirty days and I sent them back and got new ones..........which also didn't grow haha.


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