When Using Planting Substrate

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markandhisfish

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when using planting substrate if the front/ middle section of the tank isnt going to be planted ( just the rear and sides) do i still need to cover the entire base of the tank with planting substrate or just the areas im going to plant. ( trying to save on cost as my tanks footprint is 4ft by 2 ft )
 
brilliant thats what i thought but im pretty much clueless when it comes to plants so thought id check :rolleyes:
 
Just get yourself a few bags of natural clay cat litter, you could do the whole tank for under a tenner. The clay absorbs nutrients and releases them to the plant slowly over time.
 
hmmm interesting but not too sure id trust it to be honest
 
yeah also used cat litter
 
but would it be suitable for my needs as i wont be using co2 and ideally wont be dosing with ferts if i can get away with it?
 
right i think i will give it a go . what exact brand did you use please so i get the right 1 . if youre not aloud to say in here could you pm it to me please. im a bit cautious of not getting 1 thats got any chemicals etc in , especially as im gonna be spending a tidy sum on discus .
 
brilliant stuff. cheers truck youve saved me a fortune. had to check the exact brand tho last thing i want to do is poison my fish!!

grrrr no matches on p@h site il have to go down to my local p@h and take a look
 
yeah te stuff i got was p@h and said on back 100% clay
 
i think ive found 1 and its gonna be muuuuuch cheper . happy days!
 
Hey Mark,

Depending on the "look" that you're going for you can just use plant substrate (or kitti litter ;) ) for the areas your are going to plant and then use the sand/gravel of your choice on the none planted areas and use a strip of cardboard to divide the two. Like this in a demo done by Oliver Knott at TGM (photos by Stu Worral off of UKAPS)

This way you're able to create the look you want to achive without wasting substrate.

Truck don't you have to cap the clay litter with a good helping of sand/gravel substrate? Depending how you want your scape to look, contrasting substrate colouring, it might not be suitable.
 

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