Planting My Tank

[James B]

hi all.
what should i buy to fully plant my 2 1/2 ft by 1 ft by 1 1/2 ft tank. i already have one flourescant bulb running atm but am a bit new to all this so any advice is welcome.

 

[saboy]

Lighting, at least 2wpg, so about 30 watts would be good for your tank, you will then also need co2 injection, more about this below

here is link to a special planted bulbs that would be best to use
http/www.aquatics-online.co.uk/Z046153.asp

you would ideally want

1 x Arcadia Original Tropical Lamp
1 x Arcadia Freshwater Lamp

oh and reflectors as well

You may need to modify you tank hood to take 2 bulbs.


Nutrient Substrate

http/www.aquatics-online.co.uk/Z477189.asp

TetraPlant Complete Substrate would be good, its cheaper than eco complete


Co2

you get two types, pressurized cylinder, more expensive

and yeast based , much cheaper, works by fermentation and produces co2

http/www.aquatics-online.co.uk/Z079198.asp

 

[George Farmer]

Welcome to TFF James!

The pinned threads at the top of this forum are a good place to start.

With one tube you will be limited to low light tolerant plants. This is fine if you want a low cost and low maintenance tank - commonly referred to as low-tech. If you wish to grow more demanding plants and have better growth then you'll need to add more light and consider CO2-injection and regular fertilisation - this is higher-tech.

Assuming you wish to stick with low-tech - Instead of planting with the usual low-light plants i.e. Anubias, Java fern, moss and some crypts I would plant heavily with some easy stem plants i.e. Hygrophila polysperma. This will grow in pretty much anything and is ideal for new tanks as it helps prevents algae that is very common in unestablished setups.

Try reading through the pinned threads to gain some underpinning knowledge. If there's anything you don't understand then ask on the forum. There's some well-experienced, friendly members on here.

 

[Underwurlde]

I have been researching this too as I have a low tech set up (a CO2 setup up costs over £125 for God's Sake).

Hardy plants that have been recommended to me are:
Java fern (Microsorum pteropus)
Java Moss (Vesicularia dubyana)
Amazon sword (Echinodorus bleheri)
Dwarf Anubias (Anubias barteri var. nana)
Tropical Hornwort or Coontail (Ceratophyllum submersum / Ceratophyllum demersum).
Carolina Fanwort (Cabomba caroliniana)
Water Wisteria (Hygrophilia difformis)
Red Leaf Repens (Ludwigia Repens)
Cryptocoryne wendtii
Dwarf Hyrophilia (Hygrophila polysperma)
Thai Onion Plant (Crinum thaianum)
Dwarf Sagittaria (Sagittaria subulata)

Beware that some of those plants grow far too quickly

At the moment I have in my tank:
Red Rubin Sword Plant / Rubin Medium (Echinodorus ‘Rubin’)
(note: not on the list & apparently 'will not last long in a low tech tank' - ho-hum, me & my impuses.
Green Cabomba (Cabomba caroliniana)
Amazon Sword (Echinodorus amazonicus)

Simple things I have learnt
I added some Laterite substate to my tank. Some one recommended it and after I put it down, someone dished it & suggested I get something else (at a cost of FIFTY QUID just for my small 15gal tank). I stuck with the Laterite but it was messy to put down to say the least!

Most plants come in a pot in some wierd green artificial mossy stuff. Remove the plants from the pots & (of you can) split them up (if you want) and try to remove as much as the green stuff to leave just the plant.

Once the plants are out of the pot, tie those that can come apart together with some thick cotton at the base of the plant. (The Cabomba were literally just cuttings, no roots, nothing).

I then just simply stuffed them into the gravel / Laterite substrate and then just added another layer of gravel.

To avoid introducing a new algae type to a planted tank with new plants, a simple bleach dip will work. The solution should be 1 part bleach in 19 parts water and dip the new plant in it for 1 to 2 minutes. The plant should be immediately rinsed the plant in running water to remove the bleach solution. After rinsing under running water the plant should be immersed in de-chlorinated water, which should neutralize any remaining bleach.
This will kill the alga spore but might, temporarily, slow down the growth of a healthy plant.
Note; If the plant is in poor condition it may die from this treatment.

My Future Planty Type Ambitions
To carpet some of the floor of the tank with Dwarf Sagittaria - kind of looks like bright green grass.
I have a lump of wood soaking outside (Mopani) onto which I hope to graft Dwarf Anubias and some Java Moss (using a hair-net apparently).

Oh and I might try a carpet of Riccia and hopefully get it to 'pearl' - but I don't think this is for a low tech tank.

Hope this helps (and more importantly is CORRECT,

Andy

PS
Having plants in the tank will also help to keep algae down as the plants will absorb the nutrients.

 

[George Farmer]

a CO2 setup up costs over £125

CO2 injection doesn't have to be expensive. There are some good yeast-based systems or DIY for the ultimate in low-cost.

The latest Practical Fishkeeping magazine (released on the 9th Aug) has a good article on budget CO2 systems apparently.

 

[Themuleous]

I'll second George's recommendation to read the pinned threads, if you're anything like me they'll take a few reads to get your head round them but will provide lots of very good advice.

Sam

PS and welcome to the forum