One of the most common plants of the family of water and red species is vallisneria. Maintenance and care in the aquarium for it is of interest to most people who are not indifferent to the creation of natural corners.
Vallisneria: where did it come from and where does it grow?
Despite the fact that its original habitat was originally a subtropical zone and hot tropics, today the plant is often found even in some bodies of water in the southern regions of Russia. In addition, adapted to the stagnant water of lakes and ponds, it also takes root pretty well in rapid river flows. Bright green leaves give originality to the appearance of Wallysneria.
Vallisneria spiral today is extremely popular among landscape designers. It is actively used to decorate artificial ponds or large huge aquariums. Due to the unpretentiousness of the plant, even beginner lovers of aquarium decor can grow vallisneria.
Description of an underwater plant with spiral leaves
Most plants of this type are extremely finicky: for them it is necessary to select a special soil, provide adequate lighting, maintain only a certain water temperature. Vallisneria spiral, on the contrary, is very unpretentious. Its bushes develop well on the sandy bottom of a dense fraction or among stones that press its roots under water. Of course, the plant needs light first of all for timely and long-term flowering. Therefore, in the natural environment, it blooms only in the summer, and at home, the long-awaited flowers resembling white bells can be achieved even in spring.
A feature of the leaves of Wallysneria is their stiffness.
Similar to narrow green satin ribbons, reaching a length of up to 70 cm, they are so sharp that if you are reckless they can damage your hand.
The value of wallisneria in an aquarium or artificial pond
Oxygen supply is the merit of the plant in the metabolic processes of the aquarium. Taking useful organic substances from the soil, it creates all the conditions for the full existence of living organisms in the water namely vallisneria. Maintenance and care (plant species are numerous, but several of them are in predominant demand), performed in accordance with the requirements of cultivation, will allow the bushes to multiply at an unprecedented pace. In this regard, Wallisneria needs regular thinning of densely growing thickets.
It is imperative to remember that sometimes in shallow ponds or aquariums of insufficient height, the leaves of the plant create an almost impenetrable green veil, which prevents natural light transmission. The solution to this problem is one - reducing the bushes of growing vallisneria.
What can harm underwater bushes?
You can thin out the plantation, but you can not shorten the leaves under any circumstances. The tenacious spiral wallisneria will simply be doomed to perish. After the cut, the leaves will begin to turn yellow, rot and eventually disappear.
The presence of certain minerals in water can adversely affect its growth. For example, the saline solution used to treat aquarium fish negatively affects the condition of the bushes: leaves when it is used become dull and become sluggish. Thus, not only this aquarium plant reacts to table salt .
Vallisneria spiral does not tolerate rust. Such a problem is not uncommon for many owners of decorative aquariums in Russian cities. Using tap water as a filler flowing through the rusting iron pipes, the owners run the risk of destroying all life in the aquarium.
Fish Supplements
The presence of copper salts in water, which are sometimes used in the manufacture of preparations against algae and slugs, also does not benefit Wallisneria. And although manufacturers often refute the likelihood of negative effects of drugs on aquarium vegetation, reviews suggest the opposite. In particular, after adding Bitsillina-5, a medicine for fish, to water, the spiral wallisiania giant die.
Giant wallisneria
This species of underwater plant is no less common among aquarists. The name predetermines the possibility of establishing such a wallisneria only in the spacious high vessels of a home reservoir.
Under normal habitat conditions, the leaves of giant wallisneria can reach two meters in length. This species, like the spiral wallisneria, is unpretentious in maintenance, can withstand for a long time both the lack of the necessary illumination and temperature differences.
Plant propagation
To vegetatively propagate the popular representative of the aquarium flora at home, you should create an optimal environment that is close to natural. As a rule, a mustache grows in Wallysneria, which subsequently form daughter bushes. Young growth can be separated from the mother plant after the formation of several leaves and root buds in daughter sprouts. Cutting the mustache, you can get a separate bush, ready for independent existence.
Growing Wallisneria in the seed way at home is quite difficult. In addition, experts find this impractical, since the plant is dioecious. This means that each individual bush forms male and female flowers.
Human use of Wallisneria
For domestic purposes, vallisneria is not used. However, biologists have repeatedly tried to identify additional benefits of an underwater plant that could be applied to the farm. They were able to test spiral bushes during the treatment of runoff water in urban centers. The moderately warm temperature of the effluent would allow Wallisneria to grow and spread year-round.
In Russia, similar studies were carried out in one of the scientific institutes of the Perm Territory. Then the results of the experiments showed that due to the presence of this representative of the water-red species, the content of harmful salts of nitrogen and phosphorus became several times lower. Moreover, experiments were carried out only in sedimentation tanks with slow water flows.
Features of the care and maintenance of spiral vallisneria
A frequent guest in aquariums is the spiral wallisneria brought from distant foreign countries. The main supplier of underwater plant species are the southern states of North America. Its characteristic difference can be called wider leaves, twisted as if in a tailspin.
An ideal water temperature for this type of plant is considered to be approximately +20 ... + 25 degrees. In a colder reservoir, its condition does not worsen, but there is a clear slowdown in growth. Periodic or partial water changes in the aquarium also have a positive effect on the plant.
To create the most favorable living conditions in the artificial environment of Walesneria, the acidity and hardness of the water should ideally be neutral.
The lack of daylight contributes to the excessive stretching of the leaves, after which they begin to lighten and turn yellow. Indoors, an aquarium with bushes of such a plant should be lit for at least 12 hours.
If the spiral wallisneria does not grow, the problem may be hidden in the ground or in the state of the root system. Rather tender white rooting consists of small veins, it follows that it is convenient for them to grow in well-washed river sand. When creating soil in the aquarium with your own hands, you need to remember its preferred thickness - at least 5 cm. In addition, it is important to recharge underwater soil at least the first time after planting, although if the aquarium has a standard density of planted fish, there is no need for additional fertilizers.
In home care, spiraling does not cause much difficulty. Plant diseases can be caused by a single cause - a low level of quality tap water. When filling the aquarium, this fact must be taken into account, since owners often miss such an important detail and begin to look for problems of plant growth in lighting, water temperature and fish feed.
If you want to grow a real healthy wallisneria, which will become an element of decor not only for an aquarium vessel, but for the whole house, you do not have to buy new soil. When replacing the aquarium, the old soil from the previous vessel will come in handy: at the bottom, a lot of organic substances useful for plants usually accumulate.