Hello all, I am setting up a paludarium (Build thread will be up soon) and was looking for what plants I should put on the land side. I have about 6" of height above the plants, lighting will be medium-low range of high, and they will likely have wet roots, as only about 2" of soil will be above water. It's two 3 foot tanks side by side for the appearance of a 6 foot tank (They will actually be conjoined, but I will get to that in the build thread). One side will be a stream tank, the other a swamp tank. Let me know what you think!
Good Native Plants for Land Side of Paludarium
Started by
Guest_Yeahson421_*
, Mar 03 2014 04:06 PM
20 replies to this topic
#2
mattknepley
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Posted 03 March 2014 - 06:58 PM
I'm jealous.
But beyond that, depending on what particular biome you are looking to imitate, you could do some really cool stuff with native carnivorous plants if you were willing to commit to strong light for "summers" and a cooling off period to simulate winter. Just don't give 'em too many nutrients.
But beyond that, depending on what particular biome you are looking to imitate, you could do some really cool stuff with native carnivorous plants if you were willing to commit to strong light for "summers" and a cooling off period to simulate winter. Just don't give 'em too many nutrients.
Matt Knepley
"No thanks, a third of a gopher would merely arouse my appetite..."
"No thanks, a third of a gopher would merely arouse my appetite..."
#3
Guest_Yeahson421_*
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Posted 03 March 2014 - 08:09 PM
I like that idea, assuming they do okay with wet feet. Would there be a good low growing space filler?
#5
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Posted 03 March 2014 - 08:47 PM
I like mosses as well. I plan to attach some both submerged and emersed, both on 3D backfrounds. I am kind of looking for some rooted plants, however, as I'd like to filter the 40-70 gallons of water with mostly plants.
#6
Guest_Erica Lyons_*
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Posted 03 March 2014 - 08:57 PM
Tillandsia come in many colors and would benefit from the high humidity of being in a paludarium. Their common name is 'air plants' because they grow up in the air, not on the ground. It's hard to explain air plants; they don't have roots and they're not mosses. They're not aquatic; they just sort of hang out on humid branches. There are many different types of tillandsia. Those in the southeast US might recognize 'spanish moss' tillandsia. Not really a moss. Not parasitic. Technically a flowering evergreen. Tillandsia.
#7
mattknepley
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Posted 03 March 2014 - 09:25 PM
Some useful links.
http://www.carnivorousplants.org/
http://botany.org/Carnivorous_Plants/
Those sites will give you an idea as to how these plants work. They're fascinating. Maybe you'll find a couple that will work for you. Natives such as the Venus fly traps and sundews are bog plants. If you're looking for biofilters, these aren't what you want, though. Carnivorous plants need poor soils, filtering a heavy load of fish waste through them will probably lead to disappointment. Still, I bet you could find a way to incorporate a couple of them. I'm looking at trying to work them into a small outside pond that houses gambusia and sunfish. Pitcher plants and flytraps do well outside here in SC, and some have had luck with pitcher plants outside as far north as Massachusetts. I have no idea how they'd fare in Minnesnowta.
http://www.carnivorousplants.org/
http://botany.org/Carnivorous_Plants/
Those sites will give you an idea as to how these plants work. They're fascinating. Maybe you'll find a couple that will work for you. Natives such as the Venus fly traps and sundews are bog plants. If you're looking for biofilters, these aren't what you want, though. Carnivorous plants need poor soils, filtering a heavy load of fish waste through them will probably lead to disappointment. Still, I bet you could find a way to incorporate a couple of them. I'm looking at trying to work them into a small outside pond that houses gambusia and sunfish. Pitcher plants and flytraps do well outside here in SC, and some have had luck with pitcher plants outside as far north as Massachusetts. I have no idea how they'd fare in Minnesnowta.
Matt Knepley
"No thanks, a third of a gopher would merely arouse my appetite..."
"No thanks, a third of a gopher would merely arouse my appetite..."
#8
Guest_Subrosa_*
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Posted 04 March 2014 - 01:52 AM
I think Sarracenia Pitcher Plants might work, they're the heaviest root feeders of NA carnivorous plants. There are a bunch of orchid species that love wet feet, if you have room for the height. My Spiranthes cernua is a ground hugging rosette of leaves until it puts up a spike about 2' tall with lots of flowers that smell like a cross between vanilla and coconut. It's considered about the easiest orchid there is, and is actually just an easy plant. The genera Pogonia, Calopogon, Platanthera, Arethusa, and Isotria also might be worth a look. I have several outdoor bog gardens Evan. Starting in a month I'll have all kinds of stuff, much of it unidentified. I bought some potted plants from http://www.pitcherpl...ia-Species.html and the number of extra species that grew out was crazy. Just today I threw away a couple clumps of a nice grassy plant that hitchhiked inside into my paludarium on a clump of sphagnum. By October I'll have enough to eat through next winter if I don't thin it out of my bogs next month.
#9
Guest_Erica Lyons_*
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Posted 04 March 2014 - 12:58 PM
I was doing them a disservice to talk about tillandsias without posting pictures.
There are more than two thousand species of tillandsia. This is ionatha, from Mexico.
http://www.etsy.com/...CFeRi7AodpV4AHQ
Here is a website where you can see the distribution of twenty five different tillandsia species native to North America
http://luirig.alterv...nere=tillandsia
Here's a Florida one, Tillandsia fasciculata:
http://entnemdept.uf...ta/mosbrom2.htm
It's endangered.
There are more than two thousand species of tillandsia. This is ionatha, from Mexico.
http://www.etsy.com/...CFeRi7AodpV4AHQ
Here is a website where you can see the distribution of twenty five different tillandsia species native to North America
http://luirig.alterv...nere=tillandsia
Here's a Florida one, Tillandsia fasciculata:
http://entnemdept.uf...ta/mosbrom2.htm
It's endangered.
#10
Guest_gerald_*
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Posted 04 March 2014 - 01:04 PM
Some additional low ground-cover native plants that might work: Mayaca fluviatilis, Didiplis diandra, Diodia virginiana, Micranthemum umbrosum, Ludwigia palustris, Mitchella repens, Vaccinium crassifolium, Juncus repens, Heteranthera reniformis, Cardamine pensylvanica, ...
#11
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Posted 04 March 2014 - 03:01 PM
Here's a Tillandsia cyanea "Pink Quill", an Ecuadoran species. It's almost 2' across and is just getting ready to bloom. It gets blue flowers very similar to those on the ionantha in Erica's post. I have a pup from last year that should bloom next year if anyone's interested.......
#12
Guest_gerald_*
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Posted 05 March 2014 - 03:53 PM
Lovely bromeliads John and Erica, but let's please get back to the O.P.'s request for suggestions of NATIVE plants that grow in WET soil and will fit in a tank with 6 INCHES of headroom.
#13
Guest_Erica Lyons_*
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Posted 05 March 2014 - 04:22 PM
Dude, tillandsia are native. Also you can tie them to rock faces, which makes them very suitable for terrariums. Every terrarium has vertical walls to adorn. A lot of tillandsia are like four inches tall so there's plenty of room.Lovely bromeliads John and Erica, but let's please get back to the O.P.'s request for suggestions of NATIVE plants that grow in WET soil and will fit in a tank with 6 INCHES of headroom.
Native 'ball moss' (tillandsia) on the trunk of a tree in Florida:
http://hort.ufl.edu/...ball-moss.shtml
And I posted a list of twenty five different tillandsia species native to North America in my post above.
Example of tillandsia on a terrarium's wall:
http://pinecrestgard...01_archive.html
#14
Guest_UncleWillie_*
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Posted 05 March 2014 - 04:46 PM
Native or not, Yeahson is looking for a plant to occupy his wet soil substrate within the tank. Climbers are cool, but I don't think they fit the bill of being able to have "wet feet" growing in soil and providing the extra filtration Yeahson was looking for. Though not exactly native either, peace lilies do well in terrariums. The only natives I've personally grown has been Sagittaria latifolia, and Hypericum mutilum. The Hypericum needed more light than I was able to provide. It grow tall and only put out leaves every so often (rather than short ad dense like you see in the wild). However, I absolutely loved the Sagittaria. It grew well whether the stems were 5 inches under water, or high and dry.
#15
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Posted 05 March 2014 - 04:49 PM
Pipeworts. The flower stalks will probably stick up more like 8"-10", but the plants stay low. I have a bunch, but I can't legally send them out of PA. They're around on AB. I have a small Cyperus , I believe it's flava, collected on Currituck Island. Again the flower stalk will exceed 6", but the leaves stay 4" or less. Also a very interesting little ferny looking thing that turns hunter safety orange in the fall. It only gets 2"-3" high. I don't have the faintest idea what it is, and if it hadn't been fall when I was there I would have never noticed it. It spreads nicely. I also have plenty of Cranberry which is a very beautiful plant, provided you keep it under control.Lovely bromeliads John and Erica, but let's please get back to the O.P.'s request for suggestions of NATIVE plants that grow in WET soil and will fit in a tank with 6 INCHES of headroom.
#16
Guest_Yeahson421_*
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Posted 05 March 2014 - 10:37 PM
Wow,thank you all for the information! There is an incredible abundance here now! Personally, I think I will go with the Saggittaria, maybe a grass of some kind, and definitely ferns. I'm not sure what species would be best, though. Maybe a carnivorous plant sometime in the future, too. Also, the Tillandsia are beautiful, but I'm really looking for something that will throw down roots. The Pipewort is also something I will consider. Thank you all very much!
#17
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Posted 06 March 2014 - 10:44 AM
Maybe it's a Selaginella? I've seen S. rupestris on granite flatrock turn bronzy, but not orange.
S. apoda might be a good spikemoss for wet soil in Yeahson's paludarium.
S. apoda might be a good spikemoss for wet soil in Yeahson's paludarium.
Also a very interesting little ferny looking thing that turns hunter safety orange in the fall. It only gets 2"-3" high. I don't have the faintest idea what it is, and if it hadn't been fall when I was there I would have never noticed it. It spreads nicely. I also have plenty of Cranberry which is a very beautiful plant, provided you keep it under control.
#18
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Posted 06 March 2014 - 11:23 AM
Not a Selaginella, this is definitely a true plant. Ferny perhaps isn't the best way to describe it, in a way it kind of resembles a tiny seedling conifer. It even gets tiny little flowers, but stays micro-miniature. I'll get a pic if/when it wakes up.
#20
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Posted 06 March 2014 - 02:27 PM
Any of the Bacopa species would well, they will cover your land area as a nice mat and will root well giving you the nutrient filtration you are looking for. Another good one is Eleocharis baldwinii, I am not sure if this is native in your area but it stays small (usually 4-6") and will again spread out (via runners or reseeding) and cover your land area. I have should have some of the baldwinii I can send you if you would like.
I would not recommend the Sag. latifolia, will get very tall usually over a foot or more. Also Tillandsia's are not really a good option to put to close to water for a long period of time, most likely the base or crown will rot away.
I would not recommend the Sag. latifolia, will get very tall usually over a foot or more. Also Tillandsia's are not really a good option to put to close to water for a long period of time, most likely the base or crown will rot away.
Edited by uncecufsu, 06 March 2014 - 02:39 PM.
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