Low light beginner questions

[jiffy]

Hi, I am considering putting some low light plants into a 10 gallon tank with an african claw frog my friend will be giving me soon. I know next to nothing about growing plants. I was thinking some java fern and java moss would work good.

I was wondering if java moss grows out of control and is a pain to keep because of this. I read it will attatch itself to anything and grow. I dont know how fast java ferns will grow. Also, is trimming (pruning?) these plants difficult? To me it would seem that doing this to any plant would be a pain.

 

[elgecko]

What kind and how many watts will you be using?
Java moss does not grow that fast. All you have to do is pull clumps of it out.
I do not have much knowledge of Java fern. I had some growing in my tank for a short time, but I got discus, and the plant died in the higher temperature.

 

[jiffy]

It has a standard incandescent hood that holds 2 bulbs. I think I could put 2 screw in flourescent daylight bulbs in there. I think that would be 30 watts total (assuming 2 15 watt bulbs).

I dont want to really get into plant keeping yet, so I am looking for hardy low light plants that dont need special substrate. Once I get a better handle on fishkeeping and mabey start another tank I would look to make a nice planted one. This one is jus tto spruce it up some.

 

[modernhamlet]

These are the plants that are the easiest to not screw up:

http/www.aquamaniacs.net/ProvenPerformer...aticPlants.html

Trust me, I've got half of them in my tank and they're doing well, in spite of all my attempts to the contrary!

 

[jiffy]

Modern hamlet, good link, thanks. Also, what do i need to know/worry about snails hitching rides in the plants? Will they just die off in the tank, or will they take over the tank and everything in my house?

 

[modernhamlet]

Modern hamlet, good link, thanks. Also, what do i need to know/worry about snails hitching rides in the plants? Will they just die off in the tank, or will they take over the tank and everything in my house?

If not having snails matters to you:

Snails are usually introduced into the aquarium with live plants or live food. A simple procedure of dipping your plants in a 10 mg/l potassium permanganate solution for 10 to 15 minutes then rinsing them with clean water prior to their introduction to the aquarium will get rid of snails and snail eggs. An alternative method would be to soak the plants for 2 to 3 minutes in a 5% bleach solution for 2 to 3 minutes, then rinse the plants in water with chlorine remover added (the same chlorine remover that you would use in your aquarium).

Source: http/www.drhelm.com/aquarium/snails.html


If, like me, you let them be a part of the tank but want to keep under control:

Put a small saucer with lettuce or a couple of fish food pellets attached. Dim the lights or turn them off. After a few hours the snails will collect on the saucer and you can remove them. This will not eliminate the snails but can keep the population in check.

Source: http/www.drhelm.com/aquarium/snails.html


I would actually suggest cleaning your plants well, to prevent hitchhikers (i.e. pond snails). Then acquire some interesting looking snails to add, like Ramshorns. Pond snails reproduce faster and aren't as interesting. I'm currently using the saucer method to remove pond snails, but throwing the ramshorns I find back into the tank.

 

[jiffy]

Honestly...sails kinda creep my out lol. I would prefer that they are not in my tank. thank you for the suggestions on how to clean the plants. This will be very useful.

Ive also found out that the hood says it can take 2 25 watt bulbs. I should be able to use the screw in fluorescent right? If so this would give me the ability to make 5 watts per gallon if I want to get into higher light plants and more detailed aquascaping.