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Hi there all.I'm just wondering if there's anything I need to do special for the plants. I heard to take the pot off anf the wooly stuff. OK I get that. But I also read somewhere to remove the filter carbon and double up the floss. Is there any merit to this? Or was it just faulty info. thanks

ps, One of the fish in the tank (the centerpiece, a mormyrid) is intolerant of metals so the ferts which contain iron(almost all of them) are out. are there any plants which will do well A. w/o the ferts?
B. in a low light environment
C. because they are idiot proof (lol)
thanks

Last edited by divertran at 01-Feb-2005 09:15

Last edited by divertran at 06-Feb-2005 21:08

Removing the carbon filter is usually recommended when growing plants so it doesn't absorb trace elements essential to the plants (iron, etc, etc). It's probably better to keep it in your case, with your sensitive fish.

As for fertilisers, if you are looking (and getting) fool proof, low light plants, you can forget about them. They are mostly important for fast growing, high lights plants when grown with CO2 fertilisation.

The anubias species require low lights and are hardy and very popular and quite nice. Java Fern is anothe option, as is java moss. Both can be attached to rocks or wood to grow on them. Most crypts (or maybe all?) are also good plants with low light requirement.

Thanks, the plants I'm thinking about when I get my new tank will be anacharis, wendtii crypt, chilinesis broadleaf sagittarius, narrow leafed tall subulata, anubius barteri and some corkscrew vallinseria. all of these should thrive in a low light environment, according to what I found on http://www.azgardens.com. Its a plant site that sells plants and gives info on them..

You can find good information about individual plants at http://www.tropica.com. I always check what they have to say before I decide if I'm getting a plant or not. Their information is very accurate and helpful.

divertran, the one that you've listed that I've had experince with is the crypt, I remember being listed as a moderate light (2wpg) plant and takes a bit of attention to keep it from melting when first placed in the tank.

I second java ferns, not only rather idiot proof but also wont be eaten by most fish. Make sure you tie it to a rock or piece of driftwood though, and dont' try and plant it.

^_^



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Also, in my experience, Vallisneria of any type does not do well in low light. I had to move mine from my 25 (.5wpg) to my 90 which has 1.5wpg, and it still is not growing much at all. However, the one in my 10g at 4.5wpg, is growing and spreading like a weed. My bet is this plant does best in High light conditions. For your low lighting needs a few plants that would do ok are: Java Fern, Java Moss, most Anubias (though they do prefer more light), Banana Plant, Onion Plant, Wisteria, Pennywort, Duckweed, Hornwort, Anachris. All the other ones I got recommended, including crypts, ambulia, and rotala, all died off in low light conditions. I wouldnt recommend wasting money on harder moderate light plants unless you can provide a minimum of 1.5-2.0 watts per gallon of light. To determine your watts per gallon take your bulb wattage (say 20w for most 25g tanks) and divide by the gallons. My tank 20w/25g= .8 watts per gallon. Take into account my tank is tall: 20 inches, brings it down to about .4-.5 watts per gallon that find their way to the bottom. All I can grow successfully in that tank is Java Fern and Wisteria.
Also, if your moymyrid fish are sensitive to ferts, perhaps a root fertilizer tab may be the option for you. These get buried in the gravel deep and probably dont leech many if any minerals into the water.
Plus, check your local water, there may be more iron in it than you suspect.
Most plants that are leaf/water root feeders dont need ferts anyway, theres usually enough nutrients from the food you feed your fish. And root feeders like anubias, vallisneria, crypts etc, wont really flourish under a liquid fert, root tabs all the way. So that may be a consideration. Just take care to not disturb the tabs under the gravel when you do a gravel vac and Im sure you will be OK.
Bury them right to the glass under your gravel if you can.
Also, make sure you have deep enough gravel for plants. Estimates range from 1.5- as much as 5 inches deep for proper plant growth.
Or you could put in a plant substrate like ecocomplete, and never have to worry about ferts period.
Good luck!


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Thanks all, I'll remember what ya'll said and do more research b4 I plant. thanks. Since I'll be doing the new tank from the start I'm hoping to do it right, get the best plants and habitat I can and avoid any pitfalls. thanks again

Last edited by divertran at 02-Feb-2005 00:21