Wanted To Start A Planted Tank...

[Steve H.]

Would generic potting soil work too?

It would as long as you know its not fortified with fertilizer.
I don't think the pH of the soil is all that important if it is chemical free.

 

[Sly13Cat]

I think I'll use Flourish instead of Flourish Excel because I've read of the experiences and the ingredient is used as a Viricide, Fungicide and it can even burn your skin to the touch

. Scared me out of it. So I'll just get Flourish. I think it's cheaper anyways.

 

[KISSfn]

Excel never burned my skin.

 

[Sly13Cat]

This seems to me that the final result will be the "Walstad" tank. So when it reaches the point when the grass has grown and such, will I still need the filter?

 

[Steve H.]

This seems to me that the final result will be the "Walstad" tank. So when it reaches the point when the grass has grown and such, will I still need the filter?

You won't need a filter if you heavily plant, and have a powerhead or something else for flow.

I kept my filter for flow reasons...

 

[Sly13Cat]

By the way here are my soil choices at the moment:​

​

Circle H Farms Natural Black Earth (Very Generic Can't Find The Brand Online):​

-High in Organic Matter​

​

Circle H Farms Top Soil:​

-Screened -Compost Enriched​

​

Alltreat Farms All Purpose Potting Soil:​

-A Blend of "Rich Organic Material": Peat Sedge, Compost and Horticultural Grade Peat Moss​

​

Bonus:​

Miracle Gro Organic Choice Bone Meal​

 

[Sly13Cat]

I should keep my filter for flow as well.

By the way here are my soil choices at the moment:​

​

Circle H Farms Natural Black Earth (Very Generic Can't Find The Brand Online):​

-High in Organic Matter​

​

Circle H Farms Top Soil:​

-Screened -Compost Enriched​

​

Alltreat Farms All Purpose Potting Soil:​

-A Blend of "Rich Organic Material": Peat Sedge, Compost and Horticultural Grade Peat Moss​

​

Bonus:​

Miracle Gro Organic Choice Bone Meal​

 

[Sly13Cat]

I need a answer right now because whichever of these is good (or the best), I'm gonna leave out to dry until tomorrow and I need to know which one of these is good to use so I can get started. So basically I plan on leaving it out to dry overnight and adding it to the aquarium tomorrow so which one(s) can I use and which is the best? Also can I add the bone meal to make it better? The reason I need the info now is because I'm buying the grass tomorrow.

Thank You,
Sly13Cat

 

[OldMan47]

Liquid carbon sources work fine for some plants and not at all for others. If you happen to have plants that can abso0rb the liquid carbon sources, the excel is great, if not it is almost useless. It is not that excel is or is not good, it all revolves around the specific plants that you are growing. I would suggest that you go to the planted section with your questions where there are experienced plant people who can actually help you sort out your plants.

 

[m_attt]

Ive grown a few lawns now, and just started another in my nano.


Excel/easy carbo works fine but need to up the dose. I wouldnt use gravel you want something fine so the runners can spread out easily and it will be more dense. I've grown it before in inert sand and it took a few months to carpet. Now i use ADA amazonia powder type and in two weeks the growth has been mega runners everywhere.

you want to plant it in bunches about 2/3 mm thick (yes it takes ages to seperate) and plant in the pattern of a number 5 on the dice.

oh and you need very good flow around you tank at substrate level to keep it healthy, to clean it just use a gravel vac and waft it through the grass.

heres my old tank, inert sand with easy carbo, so it can be done low tec

 

[Sly13Cat]

That kind of lawn is exactly what I want

. So I plan on buying some Miracle Gro Organic Choice soil or the Scotts brand as they have both been proven and I'll just go for the cheaper one. So what is suggested as a substrate? Sand? I could buy sand from the local home depot for really cheap for a literal ton. Also, I need about a inch of sand right? How would I get substrate level flow?

 

[Sly13Cat]

Well I plan on buying Miracle Gro Organic Choice Potting Soil as it has been proven to work. I want to buy KING Play Sand as I've heard many people use it but my question is will KING Play Sand do well with the potting soil for the planted tank. I plan on having a carpet of Dwarf Hairgrass (As you already know) and 1 Red Ludwigia in the middle (I already have the Red Ludwigia and my Betta has taken so well to it I'm not going to remove it).


Don't forget to vote on the poll!

 

[ZoddyZod]

Topic from tropical discussion moved here and merged with identical topic.