"RedForeman ©®" wrote in message
...
Usually it means that your substrate it too thin and light is penetrating
the top 1" or
so, and when the roots see sun, they grow toward it... That's what I've
heard, and it might be true, but I think it's just normal for roots to
shoot 'out' and in your case, up... you can continue to pour gravel back
over it, use your finger to stick the roots back down, or trim them.

I usually thin the patch a bit or add gravel to cover...

btw, how deep is your substrate?

No, the problem I'm having is with roots way up in the water column. The
roots are growing where the leave nodes are, and are forming a
system/network in the water. Some of the roots actually head down towards
the substrate but it is a long way down! Others just branch out in the water
itself the way roots usually do in the ground - like the roots of the water
lettuce.

My substrate is 2.5 inches 100% Fluorite. The light does penetrate the upper
inch or so I'd say, but that's only because my dwarf hairgrass ground cover
has not spread yet.