Nano Tank Plants

[Jeewhizz]

Hi guys and gals...

I've (finally) managed to get m PFK Nano setup. At the moment, All I have in it is the water and black gravel for the substrate (apart from filter, heater etc )...

I have already got marimo moss balls on the way, but was wondering about the other options available plant wise.

The other plants I'd be interested in having are:

Rotala Macaranda
Crypt Nevilli
Pygmy Chain Sword possibly?
Violet Ivy
Althernanthera Reinechii

In the past, I've only ever bought plant collections to plant up tanks. However, with the nano, being as I'll be sat next to it 9+ hours a day, I'd love to get some really special plants.

I'd love to stick some riccia in, but I'm guessing that with no CO2 (and the default 11W light), it won't work very well... Any thoughts?

In terms of fish, I'm planning on an oto or two, and a small shoal of something tiny - maybe cardinal tetras....

Cheers,

Jee

Oh, and can someone recommend a good liquid fertilizer....

Cheers

 

[n3ont3tra]

Hi,
For liquid fertilisers, Seachem is one of the best brands, but it gets expensive after a while. How many gallons is your tank? For my 10g, I'm just getting whatever plants I like and I'll prune them whenever I need to I can't really think of any good plants though, I'm kind of new to plants, and haven't memorized the size and light requirements of 264 plants like some have
Good Luck,
Leah

 

[Jeewhizz]

Hi Leah,

The tank is 24 litres / 5 gallons according to the PFK calculator - so my WPG is around 2... I'll keep an eye out for some seachem!

Thanks,

Jee

 

[n3ont3tra]

When you have smaller tanks you often need more light. For my 10g I'm getting a 45watt bulb, which would be 4.5 wpg, but I think it's less because it's a small tank.

 

[RadaR]

Yeah, the WPG rule goes out the window in small and large tanks.
Ive bought another 11W light for my pfk nano. Thought id see how it looked so i filled up the tank with water, through in some plants and it's bright enough for most things.

 

[George Farmer]

You'll have great difficulty with Rotala macrandra with the supplied light and no CO2. The same applies to submersed riccia.

Violet Ivy is a common term for Hemigraphis colorata, and is not suitable for underwater life.

I'd personally avoid Alternanthera sp. as the broad leaves would soon drown the small space, It also requires plenty of light. Smaller, finer leaves are better for a small tank IMHO.

You mention "special plants". Start with buying quality potted plants from Tropica. Aqua Essentials sell them, and will order in any hey don't have in stock.

Here's a list of plants suitable for nanos i.e. they won't grow too large. Go to the Tropica website - http/www.tropica.com and search for each species to see the profile. With your supplied lighting go for low-medium light, easy-medium demands.

Anubias barteri var. nana
Anubias barteri var. nana 'Petite'
Bacopa australis
Bacopa monnieri
Ceratophyllum demersum
Cladophora aegagropila
Cryptocoryne beckettii ''petchii''
Cryptocoryne parva
Diplidis diandra
Echinodorus angustifolius
Echinodorus parviflorus 'Tropica'
Echinodorus quadricostatus var. ''magdalenensis''
Echinodorus tenellus
Eleocharis acicularis
Eleocharis ''parvula''
Glossostigma elatinoides
Hemianthus callitrichoides ''Cuba''
Hemianthus micranthemoides
Hydrocotyle sibthorpioides (maritima)
Hygrophila corymbosa ''Compact''
Lilaeopsis brasiliensis
Lilaeopsis mauritiana
Lilaeopsis novae-zelandiae
Littorella uniflora
Lobelia cardinalis
Ludwigia arcuata
Lysimachia nummularia 'Aurea'
Marsilea hirsuta
Micranthemum umbrosum
Microsorum pteropus ''Narrow''
Microsorum pteropus 'Windeløv'
Monosolenium tenerum
Mayaca sellowiana
Pogostemon helferi
Ranunculus limosella
Riccia fluitans
Riccia sp. ''Dwarf''
Rotala rotundifolia
Rotala sp. ''Green''
Rotala sp. ''Nanjenshan''
Rotala wallichii
Utricularia graminifolia
Vallisneria nana
Vesicularia sp. ''Christmas''
Vesicularia dubyana

As for fertilisers, I use Tropica AquaCare Plant Nutrition. It's the best fertiliser I've used yet.

It sounds like I'm shamelessly plugging Tropica products. See the results for yourself in my nano journal.

 

[Jeewhizz]

Thanks George,

A friend has given me some plants he had excess from some cuttings he was taking, so I am going to stick with those for now. He did tell me what they were, but i've forgotten, so I will post a picture when it's all up and running!

Cheers,

Jee

 

[Jeewhizz]

Pics of the tank:

Comments?

 

[n3ont3tra]

Hey, another person with a big rock! *hi-five*

 

[three-fingers]

I'm afraid that most (all except the back left one...even that one might be non-aquatic) of those plants are not aquatic and will die polluting the water .

 

[Jeewhizz]

Do you know what types of plant they are ?

Jee = sad!

 

[three-fingers]

I dont, but post a pic in the plants and planted thanks section and you will get id's for the plants .

Oh, and 'Violet Ivy' is also non-aquatic, so don't get any .