View Full Version : Randy McDonald...President McDonald's Aquatic Nursery
ram1aq
04-13-2012, 04:40 PM
Hello everyone! I am a grower of aquatic plants, which includes pond plants and aquarium plants. We dabble in some kalanchoes and bananas also. Since this forum is slightly slanted towards bananas, I would like to say that we really like growing Siam Ruby bananas. Each one comes out a little different, and, for the most part the pups seem identical to the parent. We ordered our first batch (the only batch of 72 plugs) from Ag Starts but was disappointed that about a third of them never had any red in them. I told Ag Starts about this problem and was told to give them some time and they should all get red in them. Well we waited until they matured in a year and still no change. I e-mailed Ag Starts and they said I had waited too long and were pretty nasty about dealing with it in their e-mails. Extremely poor customer relations, so let that be a warning! Don't expect to get what was advertised because you won't. We also ordered what was supposed to be virus free cannas, but one variety definitely was virused and we had to throw them away. Also happened to a friend of mine in the same business I am in and he had to throw his away also. I also grow ice cream, Cuban dwarf, dwarf cavendish, and Novak. Hope I can offer some cool input into future forums and, with that I say goodbye for now.
Richard
04-13-2012, 05:06 PM
Hi there Randy, where are you located?
ram1aq
04-13-2012, 06:11 PM
Hi Richard!
We are located in the heart of the San Fernando Valley.....Reseda, 91335
Richard
04-13-2012, 07:07 PM
Being a fruiting plant zealot, I've always wondered if there are true aquatic plants that produce fruits, or berries, or the like. Do you know of any?
ram1aq
04-14-2012, 12:53 AM
Almost all palms like to be in an aquatic setting and do very well there. There are lots of aquatic plants that are edible but it's the roots, runners, tubercles, and leaves, not berries and fruits that are eaten. Bananas are adaptable to water but you cannot use anything organic as the roots will rot. Best to use a heavy clay soil and since the banana plants don't really grow in the winter, that is the time to take them out of the water. After they finish their dormancy and started growing, you can put them back in the water with the water level a little over the top rim of the pot. This can be done with all terrestrial cannas as well. During the growing season the plants will exude carbohydrates and oxygen out the roots and feed the aerobic microbes which, in turn, give the plants back carbon dioxide needed for photosynthesis. I know this is a little more than what you asked for but it might be helpful for people who read this post.
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