This is a pic from my emersed setup. ( It's a test and I would like to use those plants for wabi kusa projects) The plants are now for almost 2 weeks inside the plastic container with an humidity of 100% They will be there for another 4 (?) weeks before I start do downgrading the humidity. How long does is takes from 100% humidity (when the emersed plants are covered in plastic) to normal 'roomhumidity' (when I can definitely remove the plastic) What does it takes: 1 week? - 4 weeks? - 8 weeks? For example: 2x a day for 15 minutes fresh air - for 1 week 2x a day for 60 minutes fresh air, for 1 week 2x a day for 2 hours fresh air for 1 week 1x a day for 8 hours fresh air for 1 week - every 3 hour bit of moisting Thanks in advance
Nice collection Menky Indeed I have no idea how long it takes - sorry I mostly use anyway emers growing plants for Wabi Kusas and for my moss gardens... I think without spraying or misting those plants it will not be possible to keep them for a longer time in "normal room humidity". Regards Ev
Menky All that is new to me at a guess your WK would have to live in that high humidity to stop them from drying out also you might have to consider air movement. Keith
Thanks for the responce! I'm aware that I have to spray them at least 2 times a day when the plastic is permanent removed. But I'm conserend that I will do it to fast and that the plants will die. I've searched forums and people say a lots of different things about lowering humidity. Some of them roll up the plastic everyday a bit longer and after 2 weeks they remove the plastic and only have to spray them twice a day. Some of them takes about 6 weeks to remove the plastic from the container. I think I'm a little too anxious to do it to quickly.
Menky That is a big Depends question. It Depends on, the size of the WK, weather conditions, type of plants, and most important your experience. All this does not happen over night it can years to learn all the tricks of the trade. Some could have their WK's in an enclosed growing container and have an automatic misting system that works on the conditions not the clock. Keith
Yes Keith, I agree. So I've made the decision just to start the process... Every day I'll take the plastic of the containers, spray them for the first week 4 a 5 times a day, and only in the night I'll cover them up. We'll see how it will developed (the plants and myself as a WK gardner ) Perhaps I must start a journal to share my experience.
Menky Roy has never mentioned this to the best of my knowledge. Starting a Journal is always the best way. In your case ask what is the best way to start and be prepared to give us plenty of photos this helps to explain what you are doing. If I was starting on of I would write every step in detail first. Have a tank to keep them in with a little water to keep the humidity up. Remember not all plants are suitable for WK's5 Keith
Learning by doing is always a good way Menky just begin! Keith is right, there are no fix recipes possible... Regards Ev
Nice setups. Shows promessing.. Further it all depends on the type of plant.. There is no rule of tumb other look up it's natural habitats. There are many different plants doing all kinds of conditions. There are even terrestrial species you'll never ever get to acclimatize to indoor livingroom climat. With most swamplants this is as impossible. Best you can do is research and search for websites like this from the areas the plants are found in nature. http://www.verspreidingsatlas.nl/ Here you have a database of all native and introduced european plantspecies an where they are all reported in the Netherlands, with coordinations and all given. Almost each country has botaninsts workgroups listing this, maybe not all online but many do. It's next to research indeed a matter of trail and error, make a list plants doing realy well and combine them into one W-K.. What's also an option, try to go very slowly to a few hours, more than that you don't need. The plants don't need to be uncovered when you are a sleep!? What good is that? Or while you're at work.. Rule of thumb, put them away at a save moist place when you're not around them. Another logical rule of thumb is.. Small low plants only They are closest to the moist soil, so they live in the relatively moist part of the evaporating expanding moist bubble it creats. Any plant growing out that invissible bubbly will have a hard time every cm counts.. Glass domes can do as save and can be decorative is well, W-K under a glass cheesy dome. Cylindrical vases you can put a lid on..
The setups are doing nice. Specialy the Rotala rotundifolia is growning extremly fast. Thank you for the link; always comes in handy. But, I only want to work with aquaria plants for the moment. Especially the in-vitro plants because they are still in emersed form. But when I get more experience I will increase the variety of plants. And plants from nature would be a interesting option! You are saying that it's almost impossible to get the aquatic plant 100% emersed? And that the plants always have to spend there time covered beneath plastic? Wow, that is a eye-opener to me. I always thought that, when the aquatic plants are emersed, they can live complete in 'open air'. With moisting them a few times a day of course. That is very important info for me to be more successfull. So I will adjust the growing envirement permanent inside a bowl, dome or vase when I make a real WK and cover them up as much a possible. But I'm aware that it's a long way to go. But I live by the philosophy: 'Nana korobi ya oki' (fall down seven times and get up eight) Thanks for the detailed info. Much appreciated.
I meant to say.. Some can, others can't. But your W-K will be a strong as the weakest link. So it's trail and error and some research to find a complete setup which can take long term lower humidity. Take for example the Nephentes, this is a tropical terrestrial plant living in borneo lowlands and highlands. Non of them can realy grow in a livingroom outside the tropics, it's to sensitive. There are only a few hybrids able to do that, only with great care and difficulty when it comes to european climate. And this are terrestrial plants, don't even realy grow near water. It's just very climate sensitive. Aquarium plants which can grow emersed are swamp plants, some come from moderate climate regions or are hardy enough. Like the Crasula, is a tropical plant introduced to europe and growing everywhere and even considered invasive. This plant you can buy as aqarium plant at many LFS. Parrot feathers also, are from South american origine but already world wide introduced. Even some local european swamp species are available as aquariumplants which could also grow a meter in lenght in your garden like the Lobelia cardinalis.. Some rotala's are quite hardy, like the indica can do realy good in lower humidity.. An open top glass vase high enough will still have more humidity around the plants than a low dish. So the low dish might fail where an open top high cylindrical vase can do.. But most of our aquarium plants wont like low humidity for longer terms. It's up to us to find the comdinations which can. There is no rule of timelaps in numbers. Your weakest plant in there will make that rule.
Yes that's a lot of good and usefull information. I'm making notes and try to use it in my efforts to make a nice emeresed set-up and in the near future a WK On the moment pre-working on my journal that I'll start in a few days.
Hi Menky, Great set up you have.Good plant growth and healthy plants too Congratulation Marcel gave you great advice. I have to keep my W-K covered as its to cold in England even in the summer if they get a draft from a window they wilt. Now I have a tank 90cm x 45 x45 to keep them in I am thinking of getting a smaller tank as a show tank for my best W-K in the front room ??? Depends on the Wife Ho welcome to GBG
Roy buy a nice gift for her and use the tank as box to rap it up with a nice paper, a ribbon and a little love letter.. Since she has no use for the box.. That settled.. It's called political gift.. They usealy work.. Like buying your neighbour a lawnmower for his birthday to mow his front lawn and because the gift makes him feel kinda guilty, he mows your lawn too in one way, as sign of appriciation....
