Plant question...

[e burna]

I have just set up my tank w/in the last week. Today got 3 zebra danios and 3 sissor tail tetras. I also got some plants. "Ludwegia red" to be exact, although they are not red at all, but green. My question is about the plants. Are these decent fish tank plants? Should they live for awhile? Did I make a smart choice? They were in groups, I bought 3 groups. They were bundled at the bottom w/a rubber band. I took the rubber band off and kind of pushed them down into the gravel. Is this correct? Thanks for reading.

[rubysoho]

yep, those are nice plants, but you will want to make sure you have enough lighting for them. Do you know your watts per gallon? This kind of plant will have hints of red depending on your water chemistry. It is good to spread the individual stems apart so the roots won't be fighting eachother. Other good (easy) plants are amazon swords, anubias, banana plants, java ferns, and anachris. Hope that helped!

[cinnyandsimon]

that sounds like a good choice , live plants will make your cycling proces take longer but they should be okay .were they rooted or just clippings , if they were rooted they should be okay , but if they were clippings it'll be harder for them to establish tier root system , so the chance of losing them goes up , but for the most part they survive as long as your fish produce enough waste for the plants to convert to food. because the red ludwegia will get a red hue to it as it ages , you may want to consider an iron suppliment for aquarium plants , as there is no large source of iron in a aquarium and your plant will need it . but sounds like so far everything you've done is right . good choice going with live plants , i commend you , you're fish will love it , just make sure you don't get plant eating fish like buenes aires tetras they'll strip your plant in hours .

[e burna]

that sounds like a good choice , live plants will make your cycling proces take longer but they should be okay .were they rooted or just clippings , if they were rooted they should be okay , but if they were clippings it'll be harder for them to establish tier root system , so the chance of losing them goes up , but for the most part they survive as long as your fish produce enough waste for the plants to convert to food. because the red ludwegia will get a red hue to it as it ages , you may want to consider an iron suppliment for aquarium plants , as there is no large source of iron in a aquarium and your plant will need it . but sounds like so far everything you've done is right . good choice going with live plants , i commend you , you're fish will love it , just make sure you don't get plant eating fish like buenes aires tetras they'll strip your plant in hours .


Thanks for the help. I purchased a jar of charcoal I believe, would this help the plants? Also, if so, do I just put the charcoal in the water, or do I put it in w/the filter? The plants look like they are able to root, I hope they're not just clippings. I kept them together, but again, took off the rubber bands. The lighting system I have in my tank is the florescent tube that came w/the "deluxe starter kit" from Wal-Mart for a 29 gallon tank. How long can I expect the plants to live?

[cinnyandsimon]

even if they are clippings they are still good , they just have a better chance of acclimating to your tanks if they have their own roots . charcoal won't really help that much , generally you only need charcoal or activated carbon to remove medication from the water . and actually it's a newer theory in the fish keeping world , that using activated carbon and or charcoal , may cause hole in the head in fish . so i've stoppped using it altogether . and to answer your last question , you plant may live indefinately if you take care of it , and make sure it gets enough food , plants are just like pets , they just don't move as much . good luck E Burna , and my personal admiration to you for being a learner , good for you .

[rubysoho]

charcoal won't affect your plants, it will just remove bad stuff from the water, and becomes unaffective after a short while. It is really good to use after medicating your tank because it will remove medicines. The stock lighting may not be enough for the red ludwigia, mine survived but wasn't as nice as it could of been. However, I've heard walmart sets have a little better lighting now, so I could be wrong. If you turn off the tank lights, you should find the wattage on the lights some where. Generally you want 2 watts per gallon, so 60 watts would be nice for a 29 gallon. With anything over 2.5 watts per gallon, a "do it yourself" CO2 system will help keep algae in check.

[e burna]

With anything over 2.5 watts per gallon, a "do it yourself" CO2 system will help keep algae in check.

Please explain, (sorry, I'm learning) a "do it yourself " CO2 system? What is that?

[rubysoho]

haha okay, trust me, I was/am still learning about it all too.

When the watts/gallon is over 2.5 (like 70 watts of light over a 29 gallon tank), you will end up getting algae blooms. To prevent this, you can make a CO2 injector which will inhibit the algae from growing. To make one for your 29 gallon tank, take a one liter bottle, drill a hole in the cap that is smaller than airline tubing that you can find in the fish section at walmart or in any local fish store. You then fill it with 1/4 teaspoon of yeast, 2 cups of sugar, and two cups of water.

Tighten the cap really well and run the airline up into your tank. To prevent water from siphoning back down, you can use an air stone, which will also help the CO2 absorb into the water (place it almost to the bottom of the tank).

aquariumadvice.com has a lot of people in the freshwater plant section that can help you out more than I can. It is a great site (shameless plug, I know :) )

[e burna]

haha okay, trust me, I was/am still learning about it all too.

When the watts/gallon is over 2.5 (like 70 watts of light over a 29 gallon tank), you will end up getting algae blooms. To prevent this, you can make a CO2 injector which will inhibit the algae from growing. To make one for your 29 gallon tank, take a one liter bottle, drill a hole in the cap that is smaller than airline tubing that you can find in the fish section at walmart or in any local fish store. You then fill it with 1/4 teaspoon of yeast, 2 cups of sugar, and two cups of water.

Tighten the cap really well and run the airline up into your tank. To prevent water from siphoning back down, you can use an air stone, which will also help the CO2 absorb into the water (place it almost to the bottom of the tank).

aquariumadvice.com has a lot of people in the freshwater plant section that can help you out more than I can. It is a great site (shameless plug, I know :) )

How often are you supposed to do that?

[rubysoho]

you'll need to refill it every two weeks, but I wouldn't suggest using CO2 if you don't have over 2.5 watts/gallon.