Help In Planting My Aquarium

im wanting to plant my 10 gallon. iv read up on techniques and what not but i still think i could use some help. right now it just has java moss which is attached to a peice of bogwood. what id like to do is add 2 or 3 java fern (or java lance fern) plants to the bogwood, some duckweed (or something similar) to the surface to difuse the light, and plant a little field of val spirals on one half to create a water forest kinda feel - the other side would leave an open area for swimming. since i have fine white sand in there i think the vals are going to need fertilizer. iv read that you can make little clay balls and roll them in fertilizer and then bury those around the tank where you plant to plant stuff that will need it. will this work? i need an overveiw of what to do to make this work, e.i. fertilizers and how to use them as well as will i need a CO2 injector?

just use an off the shelf fert, it will do for what you need.

for co2, the nutrafin kit is good but again you dont need it although it will help

you dont have to dose root tabs but you can get ones that are already made up, I have had good results with API root tabs.

aaronnorth said:

for co2, the nutrafin kit is good but again you dont need it although it will help

you dont have to dose root tabs but you can get ones that are already made up, I have had good results with API root tabs.

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API root tabs. ok ill try and find some. with the co2, could i use a DIY set up or would that be to unstable - as i have read they can be. also if i should use a DYI how should i make one for such a small tank?

The most important thing is light when it comes to growing plants... If you don't have enough lights. Ferts and Co2 are almost useless.

You need more light then that standard hoodlight. For a ten gallon a 30w fluorescent would be good.

Diffuse light? You lights are low already why do you want duckweed to block it off even more.

Try to use the Articles that are pinned to this thread. On the top

OR

[URL="http/www.rexgrigg.com/"]http/www.rexgrigg.com/[/URL] here is a good site to start off with.

As for tying moss to the wood

[URL="http/www.aquamoss.net/Articles/MossLog.htm"]http/www.aquamoss.net/Articles/MossLog.htm[/URL]

wow. i just read through those sites.... a lot to read but really good info non-the-less. i wanted duckweed cause i thought i might want some fish that prefer subdued lighting, and i thought it would make the fish feel more secure which would result in healthier fish. i plan to build my own hood now. ill probably go find the exact light (s) i need and then design the hood around that starting with what kind of attachable socket i can put the bulb in. ill probably want 2 lights. one for daytime and plant growth and a second just for viewing nocturnal fish; maybe a red bulb, idk.

would a 40 watt bulb be too much this size tank? i only ask because id like to put a moss wall along the back alog with a bunch of other plants and it just seems like a lot of plants = a lot of light.

I use 2 13 watt CF bulbs in my 10 gallon and find that is really enough light for most of the plants I am growing. There is several floating plants to choose from besides duckweed depending if you like to longer roots hanging down or not. Frogbit, red rooted floaters, salvina and water lettuce are all pretty easy to get.

40w is to much for the plants you listed, they are low light and a 24w would be more than sufficient.

you just get a standard size 2l bottle now matter how big the tank is, just use 1 teaspoon of ueast and if its too much then add less yeast, 2 botles would be better as you can keep it more stable, bigger tanks need more bottles.

i agree with the above...but i still thing that 24W is alot of light for java fern and vallis....i grow vallis with a 15W bulb root tabs..and a standard liquid fertilizer...and its already overgrowing.....

just a thought if you wanted duckweed..im a asuming you want to get some kind of gourami? as they like subdued lighting..if you are i highly recommend honey gouramies..i bought some the other day and they are funny littl things..they also bring alot of colour to the tank.


anyway i let my mind loose then..its your tank lol

ok, i'll stick with 30 watts, that way ill have the option of growning highlight plants too. im definately gona look into those other floating plantes you mentioned. and i was considering getting a buterfly fish... which is why i would need floating plants to diffuse the light but right now im thinking im going to use it to rear young senegal bichirs till theyr big enough to be moved into a larger tank. id like surface plants to provide cover just for visual purposes now (unless i do get the butterfly). i like the idea of an extremely well planted young bichir tank, them being predators and all, it would be like having monsters in my own little swamp. its very "The Monster from the Black Lagoon" feeling or i could just put my male betta in there.... now that would be scary lol thanks for all the help guys i really appreciate it. ill start a planted journal here in the next few weeks as i get this up and started. im gona build the hood first since light is the most important part.

i went to my lfs today to look at light fixtures. they are out of the one i need. evidently its a 16", which souds about right since im building my own hood and it needs to fit inside it. i need to know how to pic out the right bulb(s) iv done some reaserch and so far i think i need to be looking for a light that is between 5000k and 10000k, and has a wattage of about 24 to 30 (i know thats high for java fern but imight want something that needs high light- and if i get floating plants ill want something with enough light to reach past them and still take care of the underwater plants). is there anything else i need to look for or is that all that is important? i know some lights are advertised for plants and some for coral, but does that really matter that much?

Starfishpower said:

i know some lights are advertised for plants and some for coral, but does that really matter that much?

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The ones advertised for Corals are marine and much bluer than those used on tropical tanks so steer clear of those.

I've got some arcadia freshwater ones which I'm very pleased with, but generally it's all about personal taste and what colour you want your light to be, the warmer (more yellow) you want then the lower Kelvin you want, the whiter/bluer you want then the higher kelvin. Natural sunlight falls around 5000-7500K and many plant specific bulbs emulate this by being about 5000-5500K. If you're looking to put in more than one tube then you can mix and match bulbs, maybe get one daylight and one plant specific.

Basically so long as it's for freshwater the plants will be able to use it, after that it's a bit like getting special tyres on a car, sure they make a lot of difference to the driving enthusiast, but you can still drive perfectly adequately on normal ones.

Oh and don't forget to get reflectors, the cheapest way to improve your lighting.

Starfishpower said:

ok, i'll stick with 30 watts, that way ill have the option of growning highlight plants too. im definately gona look into those other floating plantes you mentioned. and i was considering getting a buterfly fish... which is why i would need floating plants to diffuse the light but right now im thinking im going to use it to rear young senegal bichirs till theyr big enough to be moved into a larger tank. id like surface plants to provide cover just for visual purposes now (unless i do get the butterfly). i like the idea of an extremely well planted young bichir tank, them being predators and all, it would be like having monsters in my own little swamp. its very "The Monster from the Black Lagoon" feeling or i could just put my male betta in there.... now that would be scary lol thanks for all the help guys i really appreciate it. ill start a planted journal here in the next few weeks as i get this up and started. im gona build the hood first since light is the most important part.

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ive always wanted a butterfly fish ...remember you cant keep any fish much smaller than the butterfly fish in there tho

marine are in the blue part of the spectrum and will grow algae!

Egmel said:

If you're looking to put in more than one tube then you can mix and match bulbs, maybe get one daylight and one plant specific.

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that sounds interesting. i might do that, that way i can be extra sure... if one bulb doesnt have a certain brightness or wavelength then hopefully the other one will. ok stupid question time!! if i buy a 15 watt bulb, and then add to it a second 15 watt bulb will that total 30 watts being output ( that being equal to one 30 watt bulb)? the ONLY reason im questioning that at all is because i know light is tricky, its the whole Einstien speed of light thing is what i keep thinking about (light travels at a certain speed no matter what, example: if you are holding a flashlight, the light emiteded from it is traveling at the griven speed of light, i dont remember what it is, if you strap the flashlight to a car - like say your headlight - and the car is moving the light coming out will still travel at its given speed, not at light speed plus the speed of the car. see, light is tricky, which is why im asking silly questions about wattage .) likewise, what about Kelivins? same question. if i get 2 bulbs instead of one shuld i get them at about 2500 - 3000 k so they will add up to an amount which closely matches regualar daylight, 5000 -6000?



Ya iv been wanting a butterfly fish for a while too. this little 10 gallon, once i get it set up like i want, is gona be dedicated to raising young senegal bichirs. i want 2. i think they will get along with a butterfly fish. its supposed to have a whole predetory theme.