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I have a 55 gallon aquarium with 15 cichlids, 2 plecos, and a blue crayfish. I have fine white gravel and a uga filter with 2 penguin 550 powerheads on either side with the carbon inserts in the middle.
Ok now that u are more familiar with my tank i need to know what i need in order to successfully keep live plant in my aquarium. I heard that u cant use a uga filter with live plants and want to know if there is any way around getting rid of it? I also need to know if i need any kind of special lights or bulbs for my tank. Basically what steps do i need to take in order to keep live plants looking healthy.
Your input is greatly apreciated...tyvm

Sure you have enough room in there for plants?

To answer some of your questions...

UGF's and plants go fine, no need to remove it. If you have a thick layer of gravel it works out fine.

Lights used for plant growing are of the fluorescent type, not incandescent since this renders heat that may alter your water temperature. For better results look into compact fluorescent bulbs, they render higher wattage in smaller tubes than normal fluoros. You might want to aim for at least 110 Watts for your 55 gallon, this will give you 2 Watts per gallon, a good value to start with plants with low to mid light-requirements.

The type of bulb specific for plants you can get it at your LFS or hardware store. LFS bulbs usually are more expensive but have higher Kelvin(K) rating which will help you if your tank is deep and don't have a lot of watts. Store bought ones you will have to look for those that use the word SUN or DAYLIGHT in their models, you can use any in the 6700-10000K rating.

You will need to dose fertilizers to your plants if you really want to see them take off... In general ferts are divided into two groups: Macros(Nitrogen, Potassium and Phosphorus) and Micros(Trace elements and minerals). Im sure you can check out what they have available at your LFS and/or your favorite online fish store.

Choosing the plants you will grow is also important and it should fit the amount of light that your tank has(i.e. plant's light requirements, low,mid,high,or very high), the species and or theme of the tank, and your plant-keeping skill level.

Here are some links to sites that will fill in all the gaps, some of these links were provided by other FP members and I found them very helpful. Also look around the planted aquarium or technical tinckering forum, there's been a lot of very informative threads lately on lights, substrates and plant types.


http://www.azgardens.com/

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/plant_substrates.php


Might want to assess your tank situation pertaining your population, from my short knowledge some cichlids are very active in turning over substrate so it may cause the uprooting of your plants, thus making it somewhat difficult to keep them healthy.

This info is very general, so I hope it at least helps you get an idea of the basics and in finding more elaborate and technical answers to your questions. Also Im sure someone more experienced may drop a line or two in response to your post and/or elaborating or correcting my statements.

J.