RE: [Aroid-l] warm pots/water for aquatic aroids

From: "Julius Boos" <ju-bo at msn.com> on 2007.02.13 at 10:36:52(15287) Reply-To : Discussion of aroids Sent : Tuesday, February 13, 2007 3:19 AM To : aroid-l@gizmoworks.com Subject : [Aroid-l] warm pots for aquatic aroids Dear JB, Thanks for this information, it surely will be of help to some aquatic plant growers, though a five gallon pot might be a tad large for most plants needing the warmth. I`m not certain if Enid has written a short article up on what I am about to describe, either for Aroideana or the IAS Newsletter, but if not she should (hint hint, Enid!). My friends Enid and Sam, of Natural Selection Exotics www.NSExotics.com< have developed what I consider the most simple and yet effective method to keep her potted aquatics not only growing during our cold/cool season, but also flowering reproducing freely! Her system consists of a large, square plastic 'concrete mixing trough', abour 4' X 4', or maybe it was 5 'X 5' by 12" deep (any other suitably sized container would do). These are available at any large hardware store. To this she adds an underwater aquarium water heater, and one of those small underwater devices that pumps/circulates water in many marine fish tanks you see at a fish store. She puts water in the container so that it stands about 4"-5" deep, sets the larger 3gal. and 1 gal. potted plants in it (Urospatha and Cyrtosperma sps, etc.), the smaller 4" and 6" pots are put on a suitable base (a brick, etc.), to bring them to the correct height, and then she plugs in the two devices, aiming the flow of now suitably warmed water across the heater and around the pots in the container! When I saw her set-up, it was COLD outside, but the water was WARM, and ALL her aquatics were in fantastic condition, HEALTHY roots had grown out the drain-holes of the pots and into the surrounding water, blooms and developing seed-heads everywhere! The warm water rising also seemd to keep the leaves looking great, and since the container was in a greenhouse, there was no wind to affect them. Well done, Enid! Good Growing to all, Julius +More For those of us who attempt to grow some of the aquatic aroids which are generally very cold sensitive there is some interesting news. There is a heated pot called "Thermoplanter" now available. It's a 5 gallon pot that has an electrical heater in the bottom. It is made specifically for use immersed in water. Made for waterlilies actually. For details check the web, www.thermoplanter.<< _ _______________________________________________ Aroid-l mailing list Aroid-l@gizmoworks.com http://www.gizmoworks.com/mailman/listinfo/aroid-l

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