# Keeping aquatic plants from local river?



## JosephMarcano (Jun 25, 2011)

Well I went to my local river today, and I noticed tons and tons of this plant that I was sure it was suitable for planted aquariums, I got some and did some research to find it was fanwort. I want to put it in my aquarium but since its from the wild what do I have to do to it before then??? It has a slight fishy smell to it since there was a lot of fish in the river.


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## h2oaggie (Feb 28, 2011)

Just do a 19:1 (water:bleach) dip to get rid of any nasties.


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## JosephMarcano (Jun 25, 2011)

Will that take away the fish smell too??


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## trixella (Jan 24, 2011)

If you do decide to do a bleach dip I'd recommend soaking in dechlorinated water after the bleach dip before you put it into your aquarium. Hydrogen peroxide would be another option to sterilize the plants.


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## narhay (Feb 28, 2007)

Throw it in...fish live with these 'nasties' in the wild...you may find something unique or interesting that comes with the plants. Saltwater keepers do this all the time with wild coral/liverock and stick fish from different parts of the world into the aquarium with these 'nasties'.


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## trackhazard (Aug 24, 2006)

narhay said:


> Throw it in...fish live with these 'nasties' in the wild...you may find something unique or interesting that comes with the plants. Saltwater keepers do this all the time with wild coral/liverock and stick fish from different parts of the world into the aquarium with these 'nasties'.


You may also find stuff you didn't want in your tank like various predatory insect larvae or snails.

A lot of reef guys like live rock but when a hitchiker mantis shrimp starts taking out your fish one by one or you start growing a bristleworm factory, you start seeing the wisdom of starting with base rock.

-Charlie


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## Steve001 (Feb 26, 2011)

JosephMarcano said:


> Well I went to my local river today, and I noticed tons and tons of this plant that I was sure it was suitable for planted aquariums, I got some and did some research to find it was fanwort. I want to put it in my aquarium but since its from the wild what do I have to do to it before then??? It has a slight fishy smell to it since there was a lot of fish in the river.


I've collected plants from the wild frequently and all I do is check and rinse them at the location to remove soil, and too returning any critters back into their natural environment. After I get home I'll do one last check under running water then plant them.


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## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

*Wild Aquatic Plants*

Good morning Joe...

I tried this some time ago and didn't have any luck. Probably, because I couldn't duplicate the conditions. The plants you bring in will likely grow for a few weeks then die.

The idea seems like a good one, but I don't believe the wild plants will do well in your tank.

Just one reporter's opinion.

B


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## MikeP_123 (Aug 31, 2008)

I'm all for bringing the entire eco system home with you! :bounce: If you end up getting cool new predatory insect larve, well you just have to introduce something new to keep their numbers down. Ever since I was a kid I would keep what I called "eco-system tanks"  and believe it or not, even preditory insects serve a purpose! It's a cool little path to take your tank down; you learn a lot and I think it makes the whole process more interesting. 

The downside is that you will encounter things unexpected so expect everything and take each new situation as a puzzle to conquer. And in theory this type of tank can be almost self sustainable. roud:roud:roud:

PS: Think of it this way. The more little critters you have the more live food your fish get to eat :red_mouth are you going to say no to your cute little hungry fish? :icon_wink


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## johnny313 (Apr 15, 2011)

i wouldnt put any wild plant in my tank. spend a few bucks and get a plany you really like to keep! JMO!


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## wkndracer (Mar 14, 2009)

The collection location has a lot to do with what survives transferring into a tank. Being in Texas the temp range will be good and how I've handled the entry included H2O2 in the past but not anymore without first seeing a parasite algae on what I gathered. Rinsed in a bucket or the sink I'll transfer to a second 5g bucket holding 3g of tank water. I treat plants as I do fish for parasites using water column dosing of excel for algae and flubendazole for parasites. Placing a lid on the bucket (blackout) I let it sit for 48hrs then rinse and plant. Another method I use having plenty of tanks is a rinse and plop method using a test tank then transfer in house grown trimmings to other tanks.

Plants from faster moving streams or springs where the water stays much cooler has not shown great results for me when transferred inside.

HTH


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