basic care for vallisneria

[aywireH]

I've got Vallisneria in my aquarium and I'm mindful of the conditions that can cause it to struggle. Temperatures above 29 degrees C and certain additives like liquid CO2 products can be detrimental.

I'm wondering if adding Catappa leaves would have a negative impact on the plant - has anyone had any experience with this?

[starlord]

I've found Vallisneria does really well in a mix of soil and pool sand, but when I've tried it in just plain sand, it hasn't done nearly as well. It's a bit surprising, considering it's a stream plant, you'd think it'd thrive in sand.

[coltin]

Vallis seems to do its best in water with a pH above 7.0, and it definitely appreciates a bit of GH - we're talking 100ppm or more. That being said, the species of Vallis makes a difference; some of the smaller, more unusual types actually do better in softer water.

Light is also key for Vallis - it really needs it to thrive. If it doesn't get enough, it can start to fall apart.

Most aquatic plants are pretty sensitive to sudden changes in temperature or water chemistry, so it's not just Vallis that can struggle with shifts in GH, KH, or pH.

[whetu]

I recall a mate's tank with a breeding pair of Discus, and Vallisneria Spiflakeus was the only plant thriving in there. The Discus loved it, and they successfully raised a bunch of young. It was a warm, soft-water setup, which seemed to work well for the V. Spiflakeus.

[starlord]

When keeping Vallisneria in a mixed plant setup, I've noticed they don't fare nearly as well. The growth tends to drop off significantly. However, if you give them space to grow and limit the number of other species, they seem to thrive. In my experience, the larger and more prominent the Vallisneria growth, the better it does. Light is indeed crucial - they can handle direct sunlight streaming through a window without issue.

[aywireH]

I've found my Vallisneria does surprisingly well without a substrate, just sitting on top of bogwood or ceramic pots. It's grown up to 120cm in these conditions, which I'm pretty happy with.

I used to do water changes with a bucket, and I'd always have to add the fresh, dechlorinated water on the opposite side of the tank from the Vallis. This was because the higher pH of the fresh water (7.5) compared to the tank water (6.4) would cause it to turn brown and mushy. That experience taught me to avoid making sudden changes to the water. With that in mind, I'm planning to add a small amount of Catappa leaves, hopefully in a spot with minimal current.

[whetu]

I do water changes pretty regularly, but I don't do massive ones, just small ones to keep the water stable.

[starlord]

I've got the plain straight leaf variety of Vallisneria, and it's doing alright in the sand now. Previously, it was in a 7" pot, just as deep, and it formed a solid green column that reached 28" tall. Now I've switched to using Cabomba balansae and I've reduced the Vallisneria to a thin clump, roughly half the height it used to be.

[Lurcher]

Mine grows until it's floating on the surface then turns to mush. I'm thinking maybe I need to trim it back before it reaches the surface, any thoughts on that?

[raylite]

I've noticed Vallis does better on its own, without other plants competing for resources. When I've tried adding other species, Vallis growth slows and it usually ends up struggling.