# how to keep aponogeton bulbs



## freshreef (May 14, 2004)

i have a few aponogetons (madagascariensis , crispus and ulvaceus) that ive recieved from a friend. want to keep them in the "dry" form for a long term - what is the best way to do so?


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## Paul Higashikawa (Mar 18, 2004)

Keep it somewhere cool and dry. You don't want the bulbs to rot in too much humidity. Man, what is that term that describes bulb-like roots? Not rhizome, but what one would call scientifically a bulb much like Aponogeton spp. Same term applies to Gladiolus. But yeah, you wanna keep this bulb-like structure(><) in a place that is cool and dry. 


Paul


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## Error (Apr 16, 2004)

SurWrathful said:


> Keep it somewhere cool and dry. You don't want the bulbs to rot in too much humidity. Man, what is that term that describes bulb-like roots? Not rhizome, but what one would call scientifically a bulb much like Aponogeton spp. Same term applies to Gladiolus. But yeah, you wanna keep this bulb-like structure(><) in a place that is cool and dry.
> 
> Paul


Tuber? Technically they are swollen stems.

I always leave my Aponogetons in the aquarium undisturbed. I have lost more bulbs to the proverbial "cool, dry place" than to just leaving them alone. If you simply must remove them, keep them warm and moist. My madagascariensis did very well with this routine, and I had it for about three years.

I wouldn't take them out. Three months later (at the most) and you're back in business.


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## freshreef (May 14, 2004)

the problem is that i want to keep it "alive" outside my tank for a long time and not for a month or two. in the current aquascaping i dont need aponogetons. and its very difficult to get apono. bulbs here in israel - so dont want to loose it.


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## JanS (Apr 14, 2004)

I _think_ I've heard you should dry it, then put it in a sealed jar or Ziplock bag and keep it refridgerated. If I remember right, one of the keys is correctly drying it so you don't have moisture in your container to rot the bulb.


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## nonamethefish (Feb 25, 2004)

The bulbs prolly dry out completely in the wild...if this is an adaptation for surviving when the water dissapears.

I had some A. (crispus?) bulbss in a ten gallon low light tank. They onnly grew to 5 inches tall...probably because of the light levels. When I removed them a few weeks ago, no bulb was present. The shell of the bulb had detached from the plant, which now could have been any aquarium plant. I put them in the 46 gallon bowfront and so far the have produced 1 or so little leaves...hopefully they will come back.


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## SCMurphy (Jan 28, 2004)

Only one species is from an area that dry's out. The rest are from areas that induce a 'rest period' because the water has gotten so high and muddy that leaves are a liability. Having leaves is a waste if the water is so muffy that no light would reach them, and a liability in that the powerful currents that happen in the rainy season would catch the leaves, uproot the plants and send them downstream as part of the flood. 

You can't keep them alive for more than a few months in 'storage'. You will find them much easier to keep if you find a way to keep them planted. Can you set up a holding tank of any kind?


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