"Craig D" wrote in message$nw3.53604@news20.bellglobal.com...
> I hope this doesn't seem like a silly question but I seem to remember
> someone telling me that they washed their local found water plants in a
> chlorine/water bath in order to get rid of any clinging eggs or larvae
> that may be living hidden from view on the plants.
> Does anyone know what the best ratio for chlorine/water so as not to
> kill the plant itself?
> Any help is greatly appreciated!
> Thanks in advance!
> Craig
> Ontario, Canada
>

From the rec.aquaria.* FAQ:

``How do I disinfect my plants?''
New plants may have unwanted hitchers: snails, algae or disease.
Disinfection can help reduce their transmission into the tank, and can be
used to remove algae growths from established plants. Beware, there is
always a danger of going too far and damaging the plant itself. Some popular
methods:

A ten minute soak in potassium permangenate (pale purple) works well; it is
available in dilute form from Jungle products as "Clear Water". Permangenate
is particularly good for killing bacteria and pathogens.
A 2-day soak in 1 tbsp/gallon of alum (buy it at drug stores) is good for
killing snails and their eggs.
If the plants are kept in a fish-free system for three weeks, parasites like
ich and velvet will die without their fish hosts.
A soak in a 1:19 diluted bleach solution; 2 minutes for stem plants, 3
minutes for tougher plants. Make sure to remove all traces of bleach
afterwards by rinsing with water and dechlorinator. This method can kill
your plants, so use only as a last resort against hell algae.


hth

billy

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