My Turn For Some Advice

Themuleous

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Right,

It looks like the micro sags in my 20g low light are not growing as fast as I'd like and I can see them being a bit of an algae magnet (you were right George), perhaps I'm just being impatient (tell me if I am and I'll wait and see, it does fit the bill perfectly) as the tank has only been running a just over 3 weeks.

Current tank specs

30x18x12" = 20UKg
Lighting = 3 x 18w freshwater (have 2 starters, so can have timed 1, 2 or 3 tubes on, current is 1 tube 3hrs, 3 tubes for 3hrs, 1 tubes for 3hrs or 18w then 54w then 18w) This is based on the lighting articles I posted on here recently.
Substrate - Eco-complete
Ferts - only AE trace weekly and 1ppm PO4 after a water change.

So just thinking what else I could use for the foreground? My immediate thought was dwarf sags, but last time I used these they got way to tall, can the be 'trained' to grow shorter? All the other plants I have been able to find that stay small need highlight or grow really slowly, glosso would be another choice, but I don't want to go the EI route and have the full 54w all day and do the 50% water changes. I could have a complete crypt foreground, but would lose the foreground/midground/background/graduation?

Here's a pic of the tank before I did a major prune. Can get an up-to-date pic this evening if necessary.

mainfull22207ob7.jpg


Any suggestions :)

Sam

EDIT - thinking about this, I might just be doing a classic 'me' and being far to hopeful for great results instantly, I must teach myself to be far more patient, these things always take time!
 
I can tell you that the idea of growing the water wisteria verticaly is actualy making a great fern-like ground cover in my low light 55 gal. it took a couple of days to get going but by triming the center node of each off shoot and and covering most of the stem with substrate it is actualy making something that would look very nice in your tank (the light green would contrast the dark substrate nicely)

Just an idea
 
That's an excellent idea, might well give that a try and wisteria is a crazy fast grower so would be ideal.

Cheers Iroc

Sam
 
Hi Sam, do you think you have enough light for Marsilea? Some articles I've read indicate it needs high light while others have claimed it does well in less than high light....I have some in my tank and it's starting to creep along the bottom nicely now.

-sondra
 
That's an excellent idea, might well give that a try and wisteria is a crazy fast grower so would be ideal.

Cheers Iroc

Sam

It's the least I could do..........plus with all the advice you have giving me I feel like I shoulda sent you the wisteria and palnted it for you LOLOLOLOLOL
 
Hi Sam, do you think you have enough light for Marsilea? Some articles I've read indicate it needs high light while others have claimed it does well in less than high light....I have some in my tank and it's starting to creep along the bottom nicely now.

Thanks for the idea, Sondra. I have seen Marsilea on the tropica site and I reckon I've got enough light for it. How tall does yours get? I think I'm gonna give the micro sag a few more weeks, at least that way I'll know for sure what kind of plant it is before ripping it out! But think Marsilea could well be the right plant for me. :)

It's the least I could do..........plus with all the advice you have giving me I feel like I shoulda sent you the wisteria and palnted it for you LOLOLOLOLOL

No probs ;)

Thanks you two

Sam
 
Sam,

I bought some Marsilea crenata, which comes as a four leaf clovered plant. However, this must have been its emergent form, because it now grows as a single lobed plant in my tank. It still looks very nice, almost identical to the Marsilea angustifolia that TA uses in the foreground of so many of his smaller tanks.

Dave.
 
Oh right, cheers for the advice, Dave. How big does yours get? Will check out TA's smaller tanks.
 
I would say 2cm max. It`s not unlike a sparser, slightly taller Glosso. It chucks out runners, but is easily kept in check. I`ve never kept Glosso (yet), but I would imagine it is easier maintenance. You just don`t get the same dense carpet effect.

I would offer you mine, but it is too intertwined with my Echinodorus tenellus to contemplate uprooting it.

Cheers, Dave.
 
Thanks for the offer Dave, much appreciated :) 2cm would be perfect. Which tank have you got it in? Whats the light like?
 
It is in my 120l EI tank with 3.4 WPG. Looking at your tank spec, it should thrive in there.

Dave.
 
Right, certainly worth a try. Its not necessarily a high light tank but I ought to be able to configure the lighting to keep it low.

Will order some from AE when I redo my nano.

Thanks for the help Dave :)

Sam
 
Right, certainly worth a try. Its not necessarily a high light tank but I ought to be able to configure the lighting to keep it low.

Will order some from AE when I redo my nano.

Thanks for the help Dave :)

Sam

Patience, patience Sam. You have no patience. You can't expect the same growth in a low-light tank. Things just move more slowly when you're in my neck of the woods. All the ideas mentioned above would work well for you. Echinodorus tenellus is in my 8g as is HM, but for some reason though HM is compact for me, it might not be compact for you. I haven't seen the E. tenellus in my tank yet, since I'm out of town, but I also put it in an algae-free established tank, so that makes a bit of a difference. I have Marsilea quadrifolia in my 20g and it is a nice foreground to midground. Another option would be a moss carpet, but that might be too slow for you. The Wisteria planted as suggested by iroc is a good option, though I always thought you planted the stem horizonally on the substrate. At least that's what I did when I wanted wisteria as a ground cover. Planting it vertically is what we do now. I always thought a ground cover of tiny anubias would look absolutely adorable. You can plant them into the substrate as long as the rhizome isn't touching the gravel line.

llj
 
Thanks for the input Llj :) I will try and have more patience, I promise!

Sam
 
I thought I would post a pic of the wisteria being grown in my 55 gal tank vertialy ( I really wish I could figure out how to get a pic the wasn't so dark of the tank)

Look in the right hand corner..........

55gal31107ln6.jpg
 

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