i tried to put bamboo in my aquarium and it floats..what do i do to make it not float?

Question

they're not that long they're about 8 inches

how long does it take to get a lot of roots?

Answer 1

I usually put my bamboo inmy outside ponds in the summer. In an aquarium, the leafy portions of the bamboo really should protrude the water's surface. However it will grow beneath the water surface. Light is the issue with bamboo.

The best way to form roots on your bamboo is to stick it in a clear mason jar filled with water and put it in a south east window in your house. Within two months you will have more roots than you know what to do with. However, the tops will continue to grow. You can cut or Prune your bamboo since the roots will absorb light.

Lawn and garden centers sell bamboo "glued" together and into a decorative pot. (Why I have no idea!) these types usually die since they get pot bound and short of breaking the pot and reestablishing them there isn't a lot of room.

If you are looking for a Leafy type plant, bamboo in an aquarium isn't the way to go. If you insist, you will have to keep the bamboo trimmed. To keep it rooted in one spot, you can do a few things:

One using a fish decoration, i.e. a house, a cave with various holes, push your bamboo thru the holes and spread the root system out. You can even wrap the larger roots aroud rocks then place them on the bottom of your tank.

You can go with the glued smaller plants in a flat pot. However, I do not know for sure what type of glue is involved with thi process and I cannot say it wouldn't be toxic to your fish.

If you have an established root system, a flat bowl (kind of like a rodent feeder) covered with aquarium gravel or river rock to anchor.

If you are placing them in a corner of a tank, the clip suction cups with extenders will allow you to hide the plastic clamp yet allow the plant to have some freedom in the tank.

Keep an eye on the root system and any leaves which might turn brown. They need to be removed often as to not contribute to the nitrogen levels in your tank.

Good luck.

Answer 2

Bamboo is not an underwater plant. Thus, it will not survive and will die and the rotting plant will pollute your water and throw the water quality out of its proper parameters. There are far too many people out there in this world who are out there to make a buck with no regard to the health of the aquarium or the fish itself. Just because you see it in those chain pet stores doesn't mean it's a good idea. Never put plants in your aquarium that are not specifically underwater plants. If you aren't sure, go home and do a little research on what safe underwater plants are before buying any. If you want bamboo, use fake ones. Here is a great site for fake bamboo.

Answer 3

I use lucky bamboo for over 1 year, and it has not rotted. I have over 15 6" sticks. Do not fully submerge it. I use a plastic shower caddy with holes and only submerge 3 inches of the stock. The caddy is stuck to back of the aquarium near the holes of the top. None of the leaves are submerged I've also kept a single stock of lucky bamboo that grew 1ft to 5ft in a glass vase with only water for 13 years.

Answer 4

Bamboo is really not a good choice for an aquarium plant. First, it will not grow long term in that environment but also it is generally fairly rough and can easily scratch the fish creating an opportunity for fungus and infections.

MM

Answer 5

I'm assuming that it's dead bamboo. Bamboo is a hollow tube filled with air, right? Air is lighter than water. You need to remove the air, then stick the tube in the rocks.

Answer 6

bamboo bends well, you can always try to weight it some until the roots grow in. Try rocks or even washers that are big enough that the bamboo won't "grow into" them.

Answer 7

Are these the "lucky bamboo" you're talking about? Bad news - these really aren't an aquatic plant and they'll only live about a year or less if you try to keep them in water.

This is actually a common houseplant called Dracena - there are different types of this and you've probably seen them as "ribbon plants" with a whitish edge to the leaf.

If you really want to put this is water, you could try to weight it down with aquarium gravel around the roots, but if you want it to live (I've had one for 35 years), put it in a pot with good potting mix!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracaena_sanderiana
http://faq.thekrib.com/plant-list.html - see under "blacklisted plants"

Answer 8

you would need gravel in the bottom of your tank and you need to stick a good peice of the bamboo in the gravel, eventually the bamboo will start growing roots and it will attatch itself to whatever its around. good luck!

Answer 9

You need to get roots and dig it into the gravel.

Answer 10

Try anchoring it down with some decorative rocks around it.