Best plants for Endlers and shrimp

[cmhassinger]

So I just got a new tank for Christmas which I’m super excited about it’s 5 gallons and I want to add live plants and driftwood. I have 2 Endlers, 1 Oto and 2 shrimp. What are the best plants to add? Also with planted plants how do you clean the gravel or do I need special substrate? maybe that's a silly question but I worry not being able to remove or move around the plants I go vacuum.

And Merry Christmas everyone!

 

[Jordan_Deus]

So I just got a new tank for Christmas which I’m super excited about it’s 5 gallons and I want to add live plants and driftwood. I have 2 Endlers, 1 Oto and 2 shrimp. What are the best plants to add? Also with planted plants how do you clean the gravel or do I need special substrate? maybe that's a silly question but I worry not being able to remove or move around the plants I go vacuum.

And Merry Christmas everyone!

Happy Holidays!

The simple answer is any aquatic plant will do fine for these fish and inverts.
It really depends on what you plan on doing with this tank, high tech or low tech? Do you plan on breeding these fish?

In my experince some really easy low light low fertilizers plants are: Anubias, Java ferns, Bolbitis, Java and Christmas moss (great for fish breeding too). Some stem plants like Bacopa caroliniana, Alternanthera reineckii are great for adding some red. Almost all the Cryptocryne species are fantastic, these are great hardy plants, they just need a deep substrate (2 inch plus is good) and root fertilization.

A special substrate is a good idea if you intend on growing many root feeders like crypts, swords, and the like. These planted tank substrates can give amazing boosts to your plant growth. They are also usually rather pricey. You can also manage without, but some plants like the crypts will definitely need root tabs. Quarts sand, or play sand are good inert options. At the moment all my tanks use one of these substrates and root tabs as well as water column fertilizer.

There is no real need to gravel vac a well planted tank. The plant roots keep the substrate aerated. You can gently hover over plant carpets or around the plants to collect any debris.

 

[cmhassinger]

Happy Holidays!

The simple answer is any aquatic plant will do fine for these fish and inverts.
It really depends on what you plan on doing with this tank, high tech or low tech? Do you plan on breeding these fish?

In my experince some really easy low light low fertilizers plants are: Anubias, Java ferns, Bolbitis, Java and Christmas moss (great for fish breeding too). Some stem plants like Bacopa caroliniana, Alternanthera reineckii are great for adding some red. Almost all the Cryptocryne species are fantastic, these are great hardy plants, they just need a deep substrate (2 inch plus is good) and root fertilization.

A special substrate is a good idea if you intend on growing many root feeders like crypts, swords, and the like. These planted tank substrates can give amazing boosts to your plant growth. They are also usually rather pricey. You can also manage without, but some plants like the crypts will definitely need root tabs. Quarts sand, or play sand are good inert options. At the moment all my tanks use one of these substrates and root tabs as well as water column fertilizer.

There is no real need to gravel vac a well planted tank. The plant roots keep the substrate aerated. You can gently hover over plant carpets or around the plants to collect any debris.

Thank you for the information! With my current small tank (3.5 gallons) I recently had small white worms. That’s why I was worried about not fully getting into the gravel. Do you know if they will form in that special substrate with the plants? Or do plants help keep them out?