Fish Pond - Part 1

Reminiscing my old pictures of my water pond where I keep my goldfish and above all - fastening them with all kinds of aquatic friendly plants which I can get my hands on.

Somehow the beauty of keeping them colorful and interesting can prove to be challenging when they overgrow or becomes leggy. Sometimes they don't do so well in this aquatic setting - as they prove to be more of a trial and error basis plants.

Here are in the collection of the types of pothos and philodendron.

The overall at the beginning when things look bare and empty. The staghorn fern takes the dominant position and the rest are slowly setting in.

Some plants did well in the inital stage like the Dumbcane species but slowly they didn't cut out well in this setting as they slowly started to have root rot - perhaps, it was too humid or wet and didn't get much air movement as they always look limp. 

However, after removing them and placing them more to a sunnier side - they picked up better in that condition. As I mentioned - most of the times, it is more of the trial and error basis. 

I'm guessing - the factor of trying it out and identifying what works best and what don't actually makes a lot of difference in this experimenting gardening.

The proverbial Turtle and the Hare story (here is very much a Doe) was very much challenging to me as each season - I have to constantly change the plants as they don't seem to do well in this condition.

In the beginning, it appears to be OK, but slowly diminish and becomes bare.

It is still work in progress to identify what works and what don't.

The Sun appears to shine brighter here only during the first few month during the Year especially (Jan-March) and the light slowly shifts out to other direction making this place very shaded and wet, which explains why most of the plants can't manage the humidity jump.

Regardless the challenge faced, I somehow find these particular types do so well in this condition, especially pothos, philodendron and sygoniums. These do have beautiful colored varieties that brighten up this place.

I also find that they have root sensitivity that once they had adjusted themselves in these aquatic conditions - they can't switch back to the soil medium like an ordinary plant - often when I do so - they slowly succumb to root rot and wither away. I'm guessing that they had been too long in wet feet that they just don't have the legs to stand back to the ground - figuratively speaking.

I would say, they are kind of ideal to put them in water for a week or two for their roots to grow and stabilize but they are not meant to be there in long term basis - unless, you intend to put your spares here just to add colors - then by all means go ahead, but to put your only collection here can be high at risk.

 

I also found that Satin Pothos do not like wet feet. I had placed a cutting here and it had slowly rotten away and was very disappointed at the outcome of it.  I guess not everything of the "pothos" ariod types like wet feet.

I also tried with this particular type: Dragontail plant and I find that it does fairly well in this condition compared to the ones planted in soil medium - infact they had grown better roots and very much stable to be transplanted back to soil medium.

I didn't want to have too many of these as they can grow big and become a handful & had graciously gifted to many of friends who had loved having them in their garden collection.

Do check out my part 2 on this journey of my fish pond with my challenges facing with aquatic plants, well - they are water tolerant per say.