Starting a planted tank....

riddle4sphinx

riddle4sphinx

AC Members
Jul 19, 2006
268
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16
Illinois
Hey everyone,
Ok so I have a 10g tank with male fancy guppies and ottos, and a 5g tank with one female betta. If I wanted to switch them over to planted tanks, what are the exact steps I would need to do? I've never had real plants in them before and really just need someone to explain step by step what plants to get/what to do with them. Thanks!
 
It depends on the plant species you choose. While you can easily grow say, an anubias in a tank that gets hardly any light at all and with no substrate, you would have little luck growing blyxa japonica without somewhat strong light and a nutrient rich substrate. Thus the question isn't easy to answer without information like your budget and what sort of plans you have.
 
ok well it wouldnt be until this summer.... budget isnt really a problem because i'll be working again full time (although i guess the less money i need to spend on this the better). I would be willing to change my substrate to whatever I need. I currently have gravel on the bottom of each tank. I really like the way sand looks, but i dont know if thats compatible with plants. I guess I would just like some suggestions for the easiest plants to grow for a beginner with plants.... and then i need to know about lighting, and nutrients in the substrate, and all that stuff. Thanks!
 
Some of the easiest plants to grow are java moss, java fern, anubias, anacharis...most of the low light plants. You don't need a special substrate for them and they can grow with most stock lights (you want to aim for between 1-2 wpg). The moss, ferns, and anubias do best anchored to something (like driftwood, rocks, etc). Hope this helps. I would recommend you check out the planted tank forum and see what it is that appeals to your personal aesthetic.
 
If you are looking for a good single plant, I would suggest tiger lotus. They grow in just about anything, and if it is the only plant there, you don't have to worry about it shading out the other plants.
 
ok this is going to sound like an incredibly stupid question.... but gravel substrate will replace dirt in a sense for the plants? All I have to do is anchor them into my gravel or onto something and they will grow? I've heard people clip dead leaves when they do water changes, but thats it? Just put em in the tank and they'll live with the right light?
 
pretty much, it helps to have good substrate but plant tabs should be sufficient. try looking at plantgeek.com. they have a really good database of aquatic plants and can organize them by light levels or appropriate aquascaping placement.

also, I agree with yoemen on the tiger lotus. I got some as bulbs from Wal Mart along with some apongeton bulbs. they went nuts in my tank. I would get noticeable growth pretty much every day. I eventually got rid of all but the one red one I got because they were seriously crowding my tank. crowding won't be an issue with low light and it's an issue easily resolved by weekly trimming.
 
I think a tiger lotus in a 10 or a 2.5 with a betta would be stunning.
 
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