Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i was thinking about putting some plants around the edges of my pond but the substrate in that area is absolutly soaking wet.What are some nice plants that wont drown in the waterlogged soil?

Lots of them will do just fine, even in straight water--various species of Pilea, Peperomia, any of the hedera helix ivies, creeping ficus of various sorts, the club mosses like Selaginella sp., many of the small ferns, Pellionia, Fittonia, to name some that will perhaps stay small enough not to overwhelm without too much ripping up and trimming. Avoid putting any of the bromeliads or orchids "pond-side," or anything with a fuzzy leaf, such as any of the family of Gesneriads. They all need good drainage, losts of light, and will rot. My personal favorite is Ficus pumilia 'Quercifolia'--the so called "oak leaf" creeping ficus, which is a tiny, attractive ground hugger and doesn't get out of control, although it will gradually cover a lot of ground and climb water falls, etc., hugging them closely, rather than scraggling all over as its other brother Ficus pumilia varieties sometimes do.

In most cases, after a year or two, one is more concerned with controlling stuff that grows out of control than getting it to grow in the first place, especially around the wet ponds. Avoid all of the easy big stuff such as Pothos and the various Philodendrons and their kin. They are nice for cuttings in a temporary quarantine tank for providing cover, etc,. but tend to grow much too large for a permanent vivarium. Think "small" and to the scale of your set-up, as much as possible.
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Patty
Pahsimeroi, Idaho

4 D. auratus blue
6 D. galactonotus pumpkin orange splash back
7 D. imitator
6 D. leucomelas
6 D. pumilio Bastimentos
4 D. fantasticus
6 P. terribilis mint and organe
4 D. reticulatus
4 D. castaneoticus
2 D. azureus
4 P vittatus
2 P. lugubris

thanks patty,i think i may try your favorite.I googled image searched it and its very attractive.

marshy ferns, not sure of exact name, grasses and arrowhead plants.

Otis07--What grasses do you find work? I just answered Pseudosilence that I know of no true grasses that will do well in a vivarium, so if you know of some, please let us know.
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Patty
Pahsimeroi, Idaho

4 D. auratus blue
6 D. galactonotus pumpkin orange splash back
7 D. imitator
6 D. leucomelas
6 D. pumilio Bastimentos
4 D. fantasticus
6 P. terribilis mint and organe
4 D. reticulatus
4 D. castaneoticus
2 D. azureus
4 P vittatus
2 P. lugubris

Sorry, I think I was unclear when I responded, I've never kept "true" grasses in tanks, just the kinds that grow along the sides of ponds. My neighbor has a pond and they said I could take some, they didn't know what kind it was, but I looked online and it looked a lot like a dwarf horsetail. not 100% sure though. I've seen ones that look like this at Home Depot before, these plants like the substrate to be dense soil/pond "gunk."Don't know what else to call it. Good luck!