"Dunter Powries" wrote in message
...
Most stem plants will send out side roots at leaf nodes particularly, but
not necessarily, if a leaf drops. In natural systems, as sediments
accumulate, the lower leaves rot, roots emerge from their nodes, and the
base of the plant continuously moves upward.

Hmm, I didn't know that. It certainly makes sense. Of course, sediments
don't exactly accumulate in an aquarium (a normal one, anyway). Is there a
way to avoid the phenomenon, or will it happen no matter how the plants are
cared for? I mean besides pruning and replanting.

Stem plants are really best suited for moderately-high to high lighting,
say
3wpg or better. At those levels, with CO2 injection, they are being
pruned,
lopped and replanted so often that side roots don't really have time to
become unsightly.

I'm afraid I don't have the required light intensity yet. I need to put
together a 2-lamp system. At the moment the plants aren't growing fast
enough. And I think that, due to the lack of light, the plants with smaller
leaves tend to lose the lower leaves, possibly even more than they would
naturally due under better conditions. Yep, I definitely need more light.

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply.

Francois