Good Substrate

[radioman]

Right now I have a gravel substrate. I know plants can grow in this but what can I mix with it to make it grow better. My lfs has flourite. What are some other options to mix into gravel? Right now I have pea gravel wich can cool the root and let to much water pass through is there any substrate that I can have so that I wont have to remove this gravel?

Also can I put flourite under my pea gravel and be alright, I am trying to have a carpet of HC so any advice is appreciated.
Should the flourite be used in moderation like a fertilizer or is it actually a substrate that when the plant breaks through the barrier it will suddenly grow fast.

 

[nry]

H.C. will do really badly in pea gravel even with something decent underneath - it has a very fine root structure which simply cannot hold well in large sized substrates. You 'might' manage to grow glossostigma which is similar but a bit bigger but even this will need a fair bit of attention to keep it rooting in the gravel.

Whatever you do may need the entire tank stripped down to add the new stuff so the option is there to go for sand or similar at the same time and ditch the gravel - a better long term option if you are looking at plants like H.C.