# Hemianthus Umbrosum



## ShaneSmith (Feb 15, 2004)

Mine grows really fast and only shows a little potassium defienciency (Which i will fix). But it absolutly will not grow roots? Does this plant just take forever to start forming them or what? Before i could get a shallow root structor but now i get nothing. Is it bad to plan an aquascape that features this plant heavily since it will not aerate the substrate whatsoever?


----------



## gnome (Jan 27, 2004)

When I was able to grow it well a few years ago, it grew very thin, stringy (but healthy) roots. And *until* it rooted properly, it would just sit there and not grow much. But once it did start rooting, it would take off (which was sort of a problem in a 2.5-gallon tank. However, unlike pearlgrass, I could not just trim it back and leave the bottoms rooted because the new growth would be puny and weird-looking. So basically, I'd have to wait until a stem would branch out, uproot the whole thing, snip off the bottoms, separate the branches, and replant. That was the only way I was able to propagate them. 

I think that as long as you *can* grow it, you should keep it. It's a beautiful plant and I wish I had the same luck with it in my 10-gallon as I did in my 2.5-gallon years ago... But it just continued to go south until I finally pulled it all up and chucked 'em. Beautiful, but finicky... 

-Naomi


----------



## ShaneSmith (Feb 15, 2004)

Thanks Naomi. Do you think its extra sensitive to potassium? It seems that way to me if i just dose KNO3 it loses its older leaves about a week before any other plant shows a problem.


----------



## gnome (Jan 27, 2004)

I'm really the worst person to ask about nutrient deficiencies. My plants are *always* deficient in something, and if it doesn't get better on its own, my solution is to chuck 'em. It's a plant-eat-plant world in my tanks :roll: . I've got no tolerance for prima-donna plants that demand-this and demand-that. If it can't get by on what I'm willing to provide, they get banished :twisted: . I guess that's why my aquascapes are pretty pathetic :lol: . 

But I think yellowing of lower leaves is potassium deficiency, and if not, then iron. But you use that Plantex + boron stuff, right? So I would also put my money on K deficiency. Several weeks ago, I asked about a similar problem I was having with the lower leaves of my Hottonia palustris and golden lloydiella (in addition to their having roots coming out of every node). Somebody replied with a pretty good link to a chart that shows specific symptoms and likely causes. I guess you replied that the root thing was common, so I'm putting up with it and snipping them off whenever I go in to trim other plants. If you can find that post, you should try going to that site with the chart. 

Sorry I couldn't be of more help.

-Naomi


----------



## ShaneSmith (Feb 15, 2004)

Thanks


----------

