Growing aquarium plants in outdoor environments

[FinAce]

Just curious if anyone's had success with aquarium plants outside.
I'm currently growing some in a greenhouse, in tubs of water.
Would love to hear any advice - it's my first time trying this.
As I usually grow all my plants in my aquarium.

[kingrise]

I'd say you're on the right track as long as your plants get plenty of sunlight and the tubs are warm enough - either with a heater or if you live in a sunny area.

Do you add any fertilizers to the water?

Your setup in the greenhouse sounds like a great idea, by the way.

[sSjey]

That greenhouse setup won't provide much insulation for the plants, and installing a heater would be impractical. With the current cold north east winds and snow, the plants will likely experience significant temperature drops, especially at night, which isn't ideal for tropical plants. I'm assuming Bristol's weather isn't much different from ours in the north east.

However, during the summer months, they should fare better.

[Giggletons]

Honestly put them outside when it's warm, like during summer, and let them grow as you normally would. Take care of them like sSjey mentioned, then move them back when it gets cold and you need to use a heater again.

[FinAce]

I'd say you're on the right track as long as your plants get plenty of sunlight and the tubs are warm enough - either with a heater or if you live in a sunny area.

Do you add any fertilizers to the water?

Your setup in the greenhouse sounds like a great idea, by the way.

Yeah I add fertiliser, same as I do with my fish tanks, change the water and refill with rain water, trying to keep it as natural as possible, but I guess I'm still adding ferts, so not entirely natural after all.

[FinAce]

That greenhouse setup won't provide much insulation for the plants, and installing a heater would be impractical. With the current cold north east winds and snow, the plants will likely experience significant temperature drops, especially at night, which isn't ideal for tropical plants. I'm assuming Bristol's weather isn't much different from ours in the north east.

However, during the summer months, they should fare better.

So when I put them out, it was nice and warm, same as today, but these last 4 days have been pretty chilly. They seem to be holding up alright, though. The water lettuce is doing okay, which doesn't surprise me since it does well in ponds, so I'm guessing it can handle the cold. The guppy grass is growing, just not as fast as I'd like, probably because of the cold weather. Hopefully, it'll start warming up now - typical English weather, right?

[sSjey]

It's been a real rollercoaster with the weather lately. Two weeks ago, I was out in summer clothes, no problem. Fast forward to this week, and we're talking nighttime temps around zero. The last few mornings, we've even woken up to a dusting of snow - it's not much, but it's still snow. The sun does its job and melts it off quickly, but those nighttime lows are just too harsh for tropical plants. I mean, British weather, what can you say?

[kingrise]

Two weeks ago, it was warm enough for summer clothes, but this past week, nighttime temperatures have plummeted to around zero. We've had a thin layer of snow the last few mornings, which the sun quickly melts once it rises, but those low nighttime temperatures are no good for tropical plants. Your comment about British weather really hits the nail on the head.

[FinAce]

Two weeks ago, summer clothes were the norm, but last week's nighttime temps have been around zero. We've had mornings with a thin layer of snow, which the sun quickly melts, but those low night temps aren't ideal for tropical plants. British weather indeed.

I know it's crazy, hopefully it warms up soon. Fingers crossed these plants grow alright, as my fish tanks can't accommodate all the dwarf water lettuce that was in there.

[sSjey]

I'm having similar issues with my frogbit, it's not doing too great either. I find myself regularly having to get rid of the older plants, they just seem to lose their vitality after a while.