Rosebud161616's 15 gallon custom built nano

[rosebud161616]

Well the mangroves came today. The tracking didn't really help much because it still says that it has left Honolulu and is in transit, but I happened to check the mail this morning because I had a feeling they might be in there. They were packaged much better. He wrapped the pods in a wet wash cloth, then in plastic, and in lots of envelopes for insulation. They look much better. And... he sent 20 more! So the top of my tank is packed full of mangroves at this point!

The weird part is a large portion of them look like this:



I'm not sure if this is a different type of mangrove. Or maybe this is how it grows from the tree? And then it drops out of that bulb like thing and drops to the ground? It almost seems like the roots grow out of the end that is not in the bulb and that the leaves grow from the bulb end. Anyone have experience with mangroves that look like this?

[rosebud161616]

I did some research and you may all find this interesting. The bulb in the picture is actually the seed that the tree grows. Then from the seed grows the pod. As the pod grows, it eventually detaches from the bulb and drops down to float in the water. The end that grows out of the seed first is the root end. That end is actually slightly heavier causing the pod to float in the water vertically. It floats in the water for the next month or so as it grows roots. The roots then get caught in various items in the water and gets stuck. That is where the tree then grows.

After a month or so the stem and leaves begin to form. The mangrove has the abillity to remove salt and expel it through the leaves. The rains wash away the salt (and minerals). This allows the mangroves to grow in any salinity.

The pods themselves can live out of water for up to a month. However once they begin to sprout, even the most minute of salinity changes can cause osmotic shock.

So, it looks like these pods may have been picked from the tree. From what I can find, these pods may or may not develop. I'm not overly concerned because I have more mangroves than I know what to do with at this point. As long as I get 10 pods that begin to root, I will be more than happy!

[Sir Patrick]

Cool info! I never knew any of this about mangroves.

[rosebud161616]

I took some of the longer mangrove out of the overflow and placed them in the tank since I noticed that they seem to do better completely submerged right after shipping. After reading what I did about mangroves, it makes perfect sense why this would be good for them. I stuck them all along the backside where I don't have many corals so that they would be out of the way of hitting any corals. I think I kind of like the look. The fish love to hide among them. Take a look and tell me what you think. Should I keep the mangroves along the backside or fill it in with coral?

[CalmSeasQuest]

I like it Erika - All thats missing are some baby Bangaiis

[Sir Patrick]

Awesome looking mangrove garden! I like it also.

[Heidi]

I like this too! I think it will look pretty super cool once they get some roots the fish will love that!

[pjr]

Well we got a stand built! Our garage is not insulated, so the thought of going out there and building a stand was not high on my list. My husband and I set out to find another way to build the stand. That's when we came across a couple of cheapo end tables at walmart and I thought I could make a stand out two of them.

I flipped one over and then used 1/2"x2" boards to stabilize the legs. The whole thing is pretty sturdy and didn't take us super long to put together. The 1/2"x2" boards leave a 1/4" reveal where I can add some doors down the line.

Here's a shot of the end tables we bought:



We added a bit of shower pan liner to the bottom and I used to spray adhesive to keep it down. We have some stuff sitting on it while the adhesive dries, so ignore the mess....

how is that end table working out. Is this something like from Ikea or similar? I am going to set up a nano at work and I would like to make it look nie. And end table is a cool idea.... if it can support the weight!

[rosebud161616]

I like it Erika - All thats missing are some baby Bangaiis

Or some baby Orange Lined Cardinals?

Awesome looking mangrove garden! I like it also.

Thanks! Sounds like it's a keeper!

I like this too! I think it will look pretty super cool once they get some roots the fish will love that!

Good point! Grow roots, grow!

how is that end table working out. Is this something like from Ikea or similar? I am going to set up a nano at work and I would like to make it look nie. And end table is a cool idea.... if it can support the weight!

It is very similar to what you would get at Ikea. They were more expensive at Walmart, but they were also the exact dimensions of my tank. The Ikea ones were slightly larger. Plus Ikea is about 100 miles away while Walmart is about 10. So, I went the Walmart route.

It doesn't seem to have any trouble with the weight. I think the big part here is the dimensional lumber that I used to sturdy the whole thing up. Without it, it would have just toppled over. I'll have to try to get a close up of the wood with a flash so you can see what I did.

I still plan on adding doors, but just haven't gotten around to it. I was thinking of laminating some plywood with zebra wood veneer. I haven't laminated before but after doing a ton of research, I really want to give it a shot!

[iyachtuxivm]

I like the mangroves like that.