[cactusdoug]

Today I stopped at my LFS.
Wednesday is when they get thier new deliverys, so I stopped by to see if they got anything in I might want.

I've been trying to get them to carry more in the way of plants.

So any ways, as I was looking around the owner came over to me and asked If I had seen the new plants he had got in.

I said I didn't see anything new and he said "check these out."

Hanging on the wall near his plant tank there were these Blister packed plants.

He had several types, Amazon Swords, Mondo Grass (yuck), and a couple others including some pretty nice Java Ferns.

The packaging is pretty cool, its a pot filled with some kind of water holding gel in a little green house tube mounted on a card so it can be hung on a rack or peg board hook.

The price was $3.40 each.

Well I bought 4 of the Java Ferns.

Got them home and planted them in the new 20 gal I'm setting up.

Nice sized plants, and they weren't floating in a algae infested tank.

Have any of you guys seen plants sold like this before?

Heres a pic.

CD

 

[litesky]

Whoa....Unnecessary packaging costs!

 

[Sir_BlackhOle]

Wow....I guess that would work. Havent seen anything like that here in south texas yet though. I would be glad to buy those if it would get my store to carry more variety of plants!

 

[Sir_BlackhOle]

I wonder if you could re-use the packaging to ship your own plants that you are selling/trading?

 

[Cheyd]

The packaging may be unnecessary, but I'd much rather pick one of those up then a plant outta my local Petsmart. And I bet you could turn around and reuse the containers as brine shrimp hatcheries, or some other reasonable use.

 

[Steve Pituch]

Speaking of PetSmart.... I'll bet these packaged plants are algae free.

Steve

 

[Corigan]

Speaking of PetSmart.... I'll bet these packaged plants are algae free.

Oh come on steve, petsmart is great. You can go and get a snail and algae infested plant and the algae eaters and loaches in your tank can have a ball! \/

Matt

 

[Steve Pituch]

You forgot to mention Ick too!

Steve

 

[gnome]

Whoa - that's really cool. AND it's still way cheaper than what I'd have to pay for the same-sized *unpotted* plant. Never seen gel like that, either. What happened to the gel after you removed the plant? And was it difficult to get the plant out without making a big mess, or no? Looks like you could re-use the container just to grow something emersed. Neato.

-Naomi

 

[Corigan]

The gel looks like a form of hydroponic gel.

Matt

 

[Robert Hudson]

I would be curious to know who is putting out those plants. It is interesting. They better sell quick though, they can not have to long of a shelf life

 

[cactusdoug]

The gel came off quite easily, and what remained I washed off under the tap with warm water.

The gel looks like the stuff you can mix with potting soil for putting plants in pots on a patio, except it was straight gel no soil.

Actually they look like they would have a pretty good shelf life, the pot is 1 3/4" Dia x 1 1/2" deep.

I plan on saving the packaging in case I can reuse it.

They were put out by...

Complete Aquatic Systems
PO Box 7809
Torrance, CA 90504

The plants seem to be very healthy and nice sized.

Doug

 

[nonamethefish]

It says 'Tropica' on it. Is that a tropiva java fern then?


The packaging is a bit wasteful I agree, but they are most likely algae free. Perhaps they came from Tissue Culture(though it seems a bit uneccesary for these guys)?

 

[cactusdoug]

Their labeled as Microsorium pteropus "Tropica Fern."

Kinda' goofy, why didn't they just call it Java Fern?

CD

 

[Raul-7]

Whoa, it's packaged right here in Torrance...I better check it out!