black mangrove quick question

[tzenda]

i just got some black mangroves and they look very healthy. my question is can i emerse the leaves in water? the distance from the sand bed to the waters surface is more than the distance from root to leaf. will being in the water cause the leaves to rot??

 

[Mike4284m]

I've had some blacks before and just did what you normally do with the reds. Float with the "stem" portion hanging down. The roots will grow pretty well in the water but will eventually need to be in some substrate.

 

[Ladipyg]

I took an old fish breeder with suction cups, puts some sand from my sand bed in it and suctioned it to the tank at the proper level...worked great...I drilled a couple of small pin holes around the perimeter above the sand line to allow for water exchange...its placed in a light current area, water moves, not the sand...grows like crazy close to the MH's. good luck

 

[graveyardworm]

Not to say that the black mangroves wont do well in reef tank, but arent the black mangroves from more brackish water where they arent constantly subjected to NSW salt levels and therefore not really suited to a reef environment?

 

[Mike4284m]

They are found on fringing areas just like red mangroves are. They should do fine with NSW but tend to like a less inundated evironment compared to red mangroves.

As far as nutrient export I doubt they will be much help. More of a novelty but still pretty. I'd be interested to see how they do long term.