Was this the right choice?

[droseradude]

Hi,
I have this tank about 1.5 gallons maybe that houses about 8 aldrovanda, 2 u. macrorhiza, and a u. inflata. Anyway 3 of the aldros weren't doing well so I decided they needed more light. So now the tank is outside. The questions I have are:

1. will it overheat?
2. how many hours of sunlight should the tank recieve?
3. Will it be too cold at night?
4. will algae be a major problem?
to get a general idea of the weather, I live in southern california.
Thanks

droseradude

and I do realize that the aldrovanda will need dormancy as well as the u. macrorhiza.

 

[HellzDungeon]

The Problem with your Aldrovanda might not be the light
They need the right micro fauna and flora that inhibit algal growth through filtering and nutrient sequestration.
Also needed by Aldrovanda are Companion plants such as Utricularia, Sparganium, and Sagittaria.
And lastly the water should be like this
Nitrate  0
Nitrite  0
Total Hardness - 25 ppm (GH) very soft
Total Alkalinity - 0  (Low)
pH -  6.2
I got this information from
Here
Best wishes,
Hellz

 

[droseradude]

ah well they grew fine before, perhaps when they had more light. also

they overheated #### #### and so now they're in a bigger container.

 

[droseradude]

and yes I have a huge u. inflata, and also u. macrorhiza in there. There is also some duckweed or something. Anyway the larger container should be cooler

 

[rubrarubra]

Hi Matt (?),
I've been growing all my macrohrizas outdoors, including the one you now have. I put the inflata in an 18 gallon pond. Today I noticed it got quite warm and the inflata is looking kind of pale. I wonder if it normally does this?

Peter

P.S. I love the huge size of u. inlata!

 

[pond boy]

I put my U.inflata in my pond and the old growth paled but the new growth is brightred so I geuss this is normal I think its just it going from low to high lighting.

 

[droseradude]

Peter: This happened to me too, looks sort of brownish, but no worries, that's what it looked like when I got it through the mail (guess that's what it does when you shock it) but it turned green again. (now its brown tho when the water heated up).
Pond boy: I think you're right about the utrics turning pale brown, (after reading that this has hapened to all three of us) it is normal, but maybe movement and temperature also play in if it turns pale or stays bright greeen.

 

[Tamlin Dawnstar]

I had the best results growing aquatic species out doors in opaque containers (dishpans) with some screening from above with both duckweed and also a white garbage bag laid across the surface.  I used broken sun as well, rather than have them in direct sun.  I think the sunscreening is important.  After a few seasons, litter acumulates in the pans decomposing slowly and providing needed CO2.  These plants for sure want a microclimate vs a sterile aquarium.  I flowered U. macrorhiza, U. inflata and U. gibba in this way, but sadly lost the last 2 species to a hard winter.  I still was unable to keep Aldrovanda though for any length of time.

 

[droseradude]

Ah thanks for your input tamlin. It is sunscreened with shadecloth now, and since I live in southern california the weather doesn't get too cold in the winter.

Thanks
-dd