Bucephalandra, who's got what.

[buck]

my first one (a tissue cultured brownie “ghostâ€) is in the mail as I type and I’m super keen to see how it goes! ill post a pic when it comes, and as it grows.

 

Call me nosy but I’m keen to see what different buce's people have in their collection And how their keeping them if they have special propagation tanks for them. Growth rates of differnt  ones, lighting, co2, ferts  and any other information you wish to divulge. Or just a list and pics for ogling will be fine    

 

I get the feeling there is some kind of secret buce society that is very hush hush about their collection haha

 

But they have been around for a while now and the prices are starting to become more realistic ( for the now common ones) making them more attainable for the lower budget enthusiasts, like myself.  

Edited December 5, 2014 by buck

[Squiggle]

I have a couple but I have no idea what they are, I just think the spots are pretty! Lol

[jayc]

I HAD a couple. They melted in the heat last summer.

 

So that's my tip. 

 

I had them in my amazonian fish tank, cause that's where most of my aquarium plants are. That tank gets CO2, ferts and high lights.

But it's also kept warm. A couple of 30+ days last summer, and the tank reaching 29+ Deg C, had caused them to melt and die off.

 

Keep them in with your shrimps in a 23-24 deg C tank.

[buck]

yeah from what I’ve read they like cool water with good flow, people have them in all kinds of conditions and are having "success" but some are slower growers then others. So I was hoping people could share there exp with quick growers and slow growers and how they improved the growth rates.

 

 I should probably collect the tips and make some kind of information chart on them, based on the skf members experiences with them. That way we all have a quick reference  guide.

 

I guess a price list like we have for shrimp wouldn’t hurt either.

[fishmosy]

I have a few now. Keep them in with my CRS, no CO2, try to keep temp down for the shrimp. pH has been 5.5 - 6.0. Only ever lost one buce, to be honest I still have no idea what happened. Just rotted away from the inside out. Possibly the rhizome was damaged during transport and bacteria got in.

Definitely one tip that I have seen evidence to support is that the buces do alot better growing in soil than on rocks. I think they look better on rocks, so now ai stick them onto small rocks <1cm high so they can drop their roots into the soil.

[jayc]

Rhizomes need to be above the substrate and not buried. Very important. Like Anubias.

They grow faster with medium light. High light can be used but they don't seem to grow any faster with higher levels of light. It just increases the chances of algae growth.

So medium light is the best compromise.

 

Buces love CO2 and will grow faster with CO2. Excel (or equivalent) can be used but it wont be as fast. Note: Both CO2 and Excel isn't recommended 100% in shrimp tanks.

 

Ferts as per all rhizome plants. They take ferts mostly from the water column, and only a little through the roots, if you have the roots in the substrate (note the first tip: rhizome above substrate). So you need sufficient N, P and K as your major fert elements in the water column. Grow them partially in the substrate for fastest growth, so they take ferts from the water as well as from the substrate.

 

Once they start growing larger, you can propogate them by cutting the rhizomes, like anubias, ensuring you have leaves, rhizome and roots on each cutting.

 

They like cooler temps, as mentioned. With flowing water, to "catch" more ferts in the water column.

 

The buces I had are very sensitive to changing water conditions. So transplanting them, or setting them up in a brand new tank will shock them and you could loose a few leaves to melting. So avoid changing from submersed to emersed growth if possible. Med to High CO2 during these changing conditions will help heaps to avoid the melt.

 

So you could say that some, if not most, of these requirements are not shrimp friendly, so a dedicated plant tank to condition and strengthen them before they are introduced into your shrimp tank and their permanent home will be a good idea without stressing out your shrimps just so you can get the buces established.

 

Once they are in a permanent tank, you can reduce CO2 to almost none, zero ferts except for the shrimps and lights can be reduced to low levels - a low tech tank basically. You might find that high CO2 will produce more growth in leaves and stems, but in low lights, the buces produce more flowers.

 

Oh yeah, you can attach them to wood or rock with thread or even superglue. 

And CO2 isn't necessary, only if you want it to grow faster.

Edited December 1, 2014 by jayc

[buck]

Now thats what im talking about! cheers man thats a really solid wright up :)

[countryboy12484]

silver powder, this is the fastest growing buce i own Edited December 1, 2014 by countryboy12484

[countryboy12484]

mirabella

[countryboy12484]

mircanthia, this on is the smallest buce i have seen

[countryboy12484]

brownie yellow

[CNgo2006]

Sanggau 4

[countryboy12484]

icarus bell

[countryboy12484]

samantha ghost Edited December 1, 2014 by countryboy12484

[countryboy12484]

golden bell

[CNgo2006]

Ulysses

[countryboy12484]

red sword

[countryboy12484]

brownie red

[countryboy12484]

palm tree, this is my slowest growing buce

[buck]

Thanks guy, there beautiful! Keep them coming!

[Foxpuppet]

i got my first one today, a trade for some plants i donated a while back for a IAPLC scape.

 

not sure what species it is, ill get a pic up soon.

[CNgo2006]

Heres some past ones i kept

probably everyone knows this one Kedagang

[CNgo2006]

Titan 1

[CNgo2006]

Black centipede

[CNgo2006]

Titan V