Can I Put Plants In My Tank With Silver Dollars?

[seabear]

Hi guys, I'm new to the forum. I found a lot useful information here, and I have a question.
I have a 45g tank, I have some red parrot fish and silver dollar for more than 10 years and some died recently (due to age I believe). Now I am down to 2 silver dollar, one doesn't eat much at all so it's only 2" big but the other one is about 5"
Now I want to try plants and small fishes, I already got some guppies and zebra danios and I want to get a driftwood and attach plants to it. But I just read that silver dollars eat live plants… Does anyone have silver dollars in a planted aquarium or know what kind of plants I should get that silver dollars would not eat them? Thanks in advance.

 

[three-fingers]

Sorry, sounds like no plants for you . Its worth trying some less-tasteful species like Java fern or Crinum spp. first, you may get lucky if the fish are very well fed and have enough other distractions, but silver dollars will even destroy plastic plants in some cases .

In a 45g things like mosses may go unnoticed on some parts of the bogwood, and they aren't particularly tasty or digestible either .

 

[seabear]

Hi guys, I'm new to the forum. I found a lot useful information here, and I have a question.
I have a 45g tank, I have some red parrot fish and silver dollar for more than 10 years and some died recently (due to age I believe). Now I am down to 2 silver dollar, one doesn't eat much at all so it's only 2" big but the other one is about 5"
Now I want to try plants and small fishes, I already got some guppies and zebra danios and I want to get a driftwood and attach plants to it. But I just read that silver dollars eat live plants… Does anyone have silver dollars in a planted aquarium or know what kind of plants I should get that silver dollars would not eat them? Thanks in advance.

Thanks for your reply Does java fern need to grow in substrates? I only have a thin layer of sand will it grow?

 

[three-fingers]

Oh should have mentioned that, Java fern actually prefers to grow attached to wood and rocks, you simply use a piece of thread of fishing line to tie it on until it's roots take hold .

 

[seabear]

I bought a driftwood couple days ago, still in a bucket of water. Went to the local fish stores but none of them has java fern, looks like I have to buy them online
Thanks for your help

 

[seabear]

I bought 2 java fern, attached to a driftwood, put in the tank and the silver dollar went right straight to them. It chew on it and then spit it out so I guess it didn't like the taste but it kept attacking it. I had to put the java fern in my little tank to safe them

 

[three-fingers]

Sorry to hear that . Like I said, sometimes they even go for plastic plants . At least the fish got some fun out of the plant while it was in .