Which Plants..

[Squid]

ok planting people.. suggestions please..

Just purchased a Juwel Rio 180.. so 180 litres of space to play with.. Im a newbie, and looking for an easily to maintain setup.. I would like to have real plants rather than the plastic stuff, but do not want the extra work of CO2 yet (only just learnt about cycling, so calm down eh!!!)

so.. can anybody recommend which plants, and approximate ammounts that would make the tank look nice, with taller stuff at the back and smaller at the front etc., and easy to maintain.

I would love a tank that looks like Jimbooo's but i need to get my fish fingers before my green fingers....

Cheers
Squid

 

[jimbooo]

ha ha, cheers squid.

nows the time to set it up correctly if you want a tank like mine. it's a hell of a job to do it at a later stage. pm me if you want to go the whole way and i'll hold your hand so to speak.

here's a pic of my tank soon after set up.

to turn that into the pic in my sig all you need to add is

- 2 more lighting tubes
- 2 hagen nutrafin units
- 1 big box of laterite

then learn how to look after the plants. (much easier than you think)

pleeese say you want my help, i could do with a new project to get stuck into.

 

[Bloo]

then learn how to look after the plants. (much easier than you think)

you make it sound deceptively easy..... I'll say no more

 

[jimbooo]

once the hardwear is correct you just plop them in and they grow . all you need to do is feed them. the problems arise when their is a fault in the set up

ie:

not enough light
not enough co2
not enough nutrients in the substrate

blah blah..

get the hardwear sorted FIRST and it's a doddle.

i have skipped over the algae bit though but you'll have to deal with that in any tank so irrelevant to the decision making process.

go on i dare ya, go silly with it. it's great fun and more than rewarding.

 

[Squid]

pleeese say you want my help, i could do with a new project to get stuck into.

Appreciate the offer.. but i really am a lazy bugger, and i dont want the fish to suffer because i didnt spend the time gardening.. also on a bit of a budget at the moment, and the extra lighting will cost a bit extra alone i expect. for now i need to use the existing lighting.. which i know is not that great, but for the moment i will just need to add the reflectors which IMO make a difference.

So if you have anny recommendations for hardy greens, that would be great..

Once again.. thanks for the offer..

Squid

 

[modernhamlet]

ha ha, cheers squid.

nows the time to set it up correctly if you want a tank like mine. it's a hell of a job to do it at a later stage. pm me if you want to go the whole way and i'll hold your hand so to speak.

pleeese say you want my help, i could do with a new project to get stuck into.

"Join me and together we will rule the planted tank as father and son!"

 

[Squid]

lol.....

i think its my "use the force attitude to gardening that is the problem"..

 

[jimbooo]

wimp sorry only joking

see if you can get hold of some Bogwood from the LFS, it makes a great feature for the rest to build on.

easy plants to start you off

Java Fern
Java Moss
Anubias (any kind you find in the LFS)

all the above can be attached to the wood using cotton thread and require only low lighting


Edit: sorry took ages to post that reply.

"Join me and together we will rule the planted tank as father and son!"

LOL

 

[Squid]

Thanks Jimboo.. does the anubias grow tall enough to for a kind of curtain at the back of the tank?

 

[Griz]

For a tall easy to grow plant, consider Amazon Sword. They will require fertilizer tabs to do well but are otherwise pretty hardy IME. I've been growing some for over a year now with only 0.6 WPG and they are doing nicely.

 

[modernhamlet]

Another good background plant is Hygrophila Polysperma, a very easy, fast growing stem plant.

Here's a list of other good low-light plants to consider:

Cryptocoryne wendtii
Dwarf Anubias - Anubias barteri var. nana
Dwarf Sagittaria - Sagittaria subulata
Java Fern - Microsorium pteropus
Java Moss - Vesicularia dubyana
Thai Onion Plant - Crinum thianaum
Tropical Hornwort - Ceratophyllum submersum

 

[Squid]

Thanks to all of you.. this is exactly what I was after...

 

[jimbooo]

Thanks Jimboo.. does the anubias grow tall enough to for a kind of curtain at the back of the tank?

no, anubias is a slow growing small plant

vallis will form a curtain and isn't too demanding
(the thin reed like plant behind the lilly)

 

[Squid]

Any excuse to make me jealous with more gratuitous shots of your tank.. just kidding..

thanks again

 

[jimbooo]

lol, sorry i dont mean to flaunt my tank it's just i remember when i was starting out. everyone very helpfully gave me lists of plant names but i had no idea what they looked like. i tend to post pics wherever possable to illustrate my point. hope they helped