# Lucky bamboo in aquarium?



## gellii09 (Jun 28, 2014)

So I saw some tanks with lucky bamboos inside and I thought I should buy some for my new tank since it's cheap and my new tank pretty much lack in decoration and live plants. I bought two this morning but then when I researched more about bamboos in tanks & there were mixed opinions about it. In another website, they said that if bamboos were fully submerged in water, it will rot and die which of course, will affect the tank. I'm confused about this because the bamboos in the tanks that i saw were fully submerged. Though, they also said that if the leaves are not submerged, then the bamboo will live.. 

???

Lastly, I want to know what exactly bamboos contribute to the tank so I know if i should put it in the tank otherwise I wouldn't save the trouble. The bamboos I bought were too tall and i was thinking of cutting it to fit but if it will just rot and die while inside the tank I'd rather just not put it.


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

"Lucky Bamboo" is not actually bamboo at all and is a house plant in the species of Dracaena. Yes, if submerged they will eventually rot. Most likely those tanks didn't have the "bamboo" in them for too long so they hadn't had a chance to rot yet. But the best thing you can do is let those leaves out of the water so it can grow. These plants are very slow growing.

I actually have mine in the filter of one of my tanks where I have a few house plants sticking out of including my Philodendron sprout and some Mondo Grass (Kyoto Grass). If you do that you'll have to leave the filter cap off obviously but you can still benefit from the plants since they will suck up a lot of ammonia in the water!

All plants that float or are half emerged from the water generally do a much better job of soaking up the ammonia in the tank which obviously helps the fish out and keeps the water much more stable


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## Vergil (Nov 10, 2013)

lilnaugrim said:


> All plants that float or are half emerged from the water generally do a much better job of soaking up the ammonia in the tank which obviously helps the fish out and keeps the water much more stable



This is certainly interesting. Would it be more beneficial to have more floaters than fully submerged aquatic plants?


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## tankman12 (Nov 13, 2012)

Because the roots will feed off of the water column more than submerged. The submerged will be feeding off of the water 2, but mostly the substrate.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Vergil (Nov 10, 2013)

Oh, thanks for explaining then!


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## Jonthefish (Jun 16, 2014)

I have a part of a lucky bamboo in my tank ( look at my avatar , it's behind the log ) . It came free with my fish and so I decided to keep it but once I got my new tank I kept it anyway even though I want to throw it out but he loves the thing he always " sleeps " under all the roots ! It hasn't seemed to cause a problem for me . I cut it in half and kept the bottom part btw :3


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

Vergil said:


> This is certainly interesting. Would it be more beneficial to have more floaters than fully submerged aquatic plants?


If you are looking to soak up all your ammonia and nitrates, yes! But if you want a pretty tank, floaters aren't always easy to deal with since they will block out the light to the plants down bottom. But that's why you often see breeders using floating plants in their spawn tanks/grow out tanks, it's because they soak up all that ammonia and help the breeder keep his/her fish safer


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

Jonthefish said:


> I have a part of a lucky bamboo in my tank ( look at my avatar , it's behind the log ) . It came free with my fish and so I decided to keep it but once I got my new tank I kept it anyway even though I want to throw it out but he loves the thing he always " sleeps " under all the roots ! It hasn't seemed to cause a problem for me . I cut it in half and kept the bottom part btw :3


All I see is the Anubias...


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## Jonthefish (Jun 16, 2014)

lilnaugrim said:


> All I see is the Anubias...



On the right to the anubias . :-D the little green stick


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

Is it fully submerged? If so, it won't grow properly, as I said it's a houseplant not actually bamboo.


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## tankman12 (Nov 13, 2012)

Also 1 submerged plant that soaks up nutrients is, JAVA MOSS!!!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Jonthefish (Jun 16, 2014)

lilnaugrim said:


> Is it fully submerged? If so, it won't grow properly, as I said it's a houseplant not actually bamboo.


No the leaves are sticking out of the top of the tank ( you can't see it in the pick ) there is a hole at the top of my tank where all the leaves pop out . It's still growing roots and the leaves are still very crisp so there shouldn't be a problem . I don't want to piss him off by taking it out even though it doesn't match the theme of the tank . It's his tank anyway lol .


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

tankman12 said:


> Also 1 submerged plant that soaks up nutrients is, JAVA MOSS!!!
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Actually java Moss is only a moderate grower. If you want something that soaks up nutrients go with Water Wisteria, Water Sprite, Anacharis, Hornwort, or any other fast growing plant.



Jonthefish said:


> No the leaves are sticking out of the top of the tank ( you can't see it in the pick ) there is a hole at the top of my tank where all the leaves pop out . It's still growing roots and the leaves are still very crisp so there shouldn't be a problem . I don't want to piss him off by taking it out even though it doesn't match the theme of the tank . It's his tank anyway lol .


No worries, just couldn't see it is all.


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## tankman12 (Nov 13, 2012)

There is also christmas tree moss. If u got high light, that plant is the biggest weed ever. My wisteria, sprite, and anachris cant keep up with it.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Yeah, I have some lucky bamboo growing out of a vase of water. Haven't put it with my fish, but I've considered it since other people have had good--heh--luck with it. I just know that if you decide you don't want it in your tank, you can grow the stuff in a vase. Make sure you replace the water every few weeks if you do that, and put a bit of fish food in once in a while, and you'll have yourself a happy and decorative plant.

But you can totally put it in your aquarium the same way. The only reason mine isn't is because I'm not sure how to put it in without giving my snail an escape route, lol.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

lilnaugrim said:


> "Lucky Bamboo" is not actually bamboo at all and is a house plant in the species of Dracaena. Yes, if submerged they will eventually rot. Most likely those tanks didn't have the "bamboo" in them for too long so they hadn't had a chance to rot yet. But the best thing you can do is let those leaves out of the water so it can grow. These plants are very slow growing.
> 
> I actually have mine in the filter of one of my tanks where I have a few house plants sticking out of including my Philodendron sprout and some Mondo Grass (Kyoto Grass). If you do that you'll have to leave the filter cap off obviously but you can still benefit from the plants since they will suck up a lot of ammonia in the water!
> 
> All plants that float or are half emerged from the water generally do a much better job of soaking up the ammonia in the tank which obviously helps the fish out and keeps the water much more stable


So, wait, you CAN grow Philodendrons in a tank partially submerged? Ooh. I should do that.

And that's interesting that they're more effective at stabilizing the water. Looks like I need to try fitting the Lucky Bamboo in again.


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

Yup. Any cutting of a Philodendron is generally placed in a glass of water until they root and then they are planted after but you can keep them with just the roots in the water, or in your case of the paludarium you have, you could probably plant the stem in the top of your tank but make sure those leaves stay out of the water!


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## gellii09 (Jun 28, 2014)

Thanks for all the replies! I think I will try putting the bamboos in my tank (with the leaves not under water of course) and if I do see any sign of rotting I'll just quickly remove it


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## logisticsguy (Sep 7, 2012)

Lilnaugrim is correct about the bamboo. I tried it and it looked great but when the roots went bad it nearly wiped out my sorority tank. I would soak it in something that would kill bacteria before putting it in and keep a close eye on it.


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## cindygao0217 (Jul 3, 2014)

I use the regular bamboo it fine for me


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