Tissue culture plants query

[GaryE]

I'm about the last person on the planet to have discovered tissue culture plants. I have been doing fantastically establishing Cryptocorynes from them. I'm not a plant person, but I see with better lighting systems that I can have nicer tanks. I can't however, find an overview for what plants are produced this way, especially in the 1 2 Grow series.

I'm 4 hours from my nearest quality fish store, so I can't exactly drop by and run off to do my research. For moderate light, what are some commonly sold tissue culture options other than these wonderful crypts? What would people suggest I look for?

This time next week I'll have a 30 minute chance to drop by a store that carries them, but doesn't list what it has. I like to prepare for possibilities, but I'm new at these.

 

[MattW]

These are all the plants I've had from 1-2 grow cups. For low-moderate light toleration go for ones with green "easy" logos located at the front of the pot. I'd highly recommend Limnophila or Rotala species, H'ra is my favourite (higher lighting needed for red coloration). If you have access to a smartphone with 4G/wifi available when on an outing, Tropica has plant profiles on its website where you can look up basic plant requirements. - https://tropica.com/en/plants/search/?mode=search&sew=&dif=Easy&pgr=1164&ori=&use=

There are some real plant gems that come in 1-2 grow cups hopefully you have access to some

 

[MaloK]

I bought some of their moss, they where supposed to be planted... As a good boy, I dropped the ball in a corner...

It's currently invading the front of the tank... No matter what.

Even I, can grow them...

 

[Naughts]

Anubias don’t need much light at all. Matt has a good range there. Our vilified Pets@Home sell them. You can also get floating plants like salvinia from them.

 

[MattW]

Anubias don’t need much light at all. Matt has a good range there. Our vilified Pets@Home sell them. You can also get floating plants like salvinia from them.

I've found my local P@H selection of plants quite shocking. They do have a tropica fridge with 1-2 grow cups but they seem to stock more medium to hard-category plants rather than easy ones. Proshrimp is my go-to now, can get deals every month or so.

 

[GaryE]

For years, I've grown a lot of Anubias, Bolbitis and Vallisneria. Easy stuff.
I have a tendency to give people fish, and everyone wants to reciprocate, so fish for plants trades started happening. My goal was to clear excess fish, and I thought the plants wouldn't thrive. I discovered that with good LED lights, the things I was getting were generally growing. I used to grow a lot of stem plants, in old set ups, but suddenly, a world is opening up here.
I had lost literally hundreds of Crypyts in my move - a plant line that went back 30 years and had started with a bag of 3. So when I saw Crypt wendtii in a tissue culture, I tried it. That worked, so I started looking for other Crypts, and they worked too.
I'm growing a lot of things I couldn't before, and it's getting interesting. At first, I thought the cups were expensive, but now, I see there are 3 or 4 plants in every one. That changes the game, since they seem to adapt well.

 

[Colin_T]

Most aquarium plants can be bought in tissue culture containers.
Hygrophila ruba/ rubra is a medium sized plant.
Hygrophilla polysperma is a tall plant but you can lay it down on the substrate and weight it down, then it grows up in a wall/ hedge.
Ambulia is a nice plant if you can find it and grows tall. You can treat it like Hygrophila polysperma.
Water Sprite is a floating plant but can also be planted in the substrate where it turns into a lovely light green shrub.
Pygmy chain swords are small and spread by runners. They can be used in the front of an aquarium to make a grassy effect. There's a small species of Sagittaria that does the same thing.

 

[cman2014]

What moss

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Go here to see all the Tropica 1 - 2 Grow plants. Clik on any of them for more info. https://tropica.com/en/plants/1-2-grow/

When I planted my first tank I did not know about Tropica. Not too long after I was using Tropica Ferts. However, the US would not allow their plants into the country. Back then all the plants came in pots (not as clones). American rules required that all live plants entering the country have bare roots and the tropical potted plants were in a rooting medium. So I could not get their plants. I assume their tissue cultured plants are allowed to come in for some reason. They now have an operation based in Canada. Tropica in Vancouver, Canada

 

[Uberhoust]

They now have an operation based in Canada. Tropica in Vancouver, Canada

Well that explains why they are now available in almost all the fish stores on Vancouver Island, except Petsmart but that doesn't matter much.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Well we have a Petco where the pets go
and,
You have a Petsmart where the pets fart.

(Sorry, I could not help myself)

 

[GaryE]

It's interesting. I've spoken to a couple of lfs owners in my general region, and they all say it's less expensive for them to order from Singapore than it is to buy their plants from Tropica in BC. This is a big country on a big continent.

 

[MaloK]

Both methods are really not the same... One requires a swamp in the sun, the other a full blown lab.

Could justify a large difference in price.

 

[GaryE]

Both methods are really not the same... One requires a swamp in the sun, the other a full blown lab.

Could justify a large difference in price.

It's hard to compete with tropical countries when it comes to tropical products. But the fact Tropica is set up on the west coast seems to have less of a positive effect on the Canadian hobby then we would hope.

 

[MaloK]

It's hard to compete with tropical countries when it comes to tropical products. But the fact Tropica is set up on the west coast seems to have less of a positive effect on the Canadian hobby then we would hope.

You mean from the availability point of view ?

While they are really more expensive, They grow very well and the fact that there's no need to disinfect them or QT them in fear of a snail invasion is marvelous.