The Planted Tank Forum banner

20G tank and learning about live plants

27K views 124 replies 28 participants last post by  Saxtonhill 
#1 · (Edited)
(edit on January 19, 2014....Hi everyone...this is a rather long rambling thread of my first real attempts at trying to grow live plants. I made a lot of mistakes and grew a lot of algae in this first year...and have been having some fun too. If you are a beginner coming to this thread, I don't have much helpful advise as I am still very much a beginner myself. This Planted Tank forum has a lot of advanced folks...so read and study and don;t be afraid to make mistakes, ask questions and most of all, have fun and take your time and don't give up! Best Regards, Cathy). :)





Hi...I'm re-learning about live plants and I'm open to suggestions! :icon_smil Below are some photos of my meager attempts...not finished putting in plants...need something low tech and smallish to go in the left foreground. And something longer to go in the right background behind rocks to hide the heater...

It's not as good as most of the beautiful scapes on this forum...but please critique away...I'm here to learn! :)

In preparation for doing a low tech aquascape in a new 60 gallon, I'm trying to learn about the process first...especially how to maintain and keep the live plants as I have had such disasters in the past. I've kept fish with plastic plants and rocks for years...time to re-try live plants!

I thought I would start with a smaller tank and take the small steps there by adding plats. I researched on this forum for easy low light plants. Four weeks ago, I added Java fern, anubias barteri and the smaller anbias nana and also a clump of anarchais. Yesterday, I tried tying some Java fern with black cotton thread onto a small flat stone. The Java moss doesn't look to happy to me...kind of flat looking...will it 'puff up' in a few days?

Here is my beginner's attempt and organizing some data...not sure if I am using the correct terms yet...

20 gallon tank (older cycled tank converted to tropicsls 4 weeks ago)
temperature 79 degrees
Seachem tabs
Excell
substrate is natural gravel...some smaller some larger (I didn;t know about soil and Eco-complete until a few weeks ago...the 60G will have substrate specifically for plants)
rocks...river stone, slate, peacock rock (??? that's what the LFS called it... )

Equipment...
Lighting...T8 15w NO Daylight 8000k (it came with the canopy) white reflector
Marina heater
Topfin 20 (the old filter...kept it cycling to keep the bio-bacteria...)

Fish:
Aenius cory cats
otos
black neon tetras

I am going top purchase an API water testing kit in the next few days...embarressed to admit this :redface: :hihi: ...probably should have purchased this first!






below are some eggs that my aenius cory cats laid on an anubia leaf. (Sorry about the poor quality of the photo...I don't have a good camera right now)





Thanks for looking and for your patience!!!!

Cathy
 
See less See more
2
#29 ·
Need to look into getting some sort of neautral (like 20% gray) background on the tank. The wall behind it is painted a bright spring green which doesn't show up the plants well...

I'm using root tabs and a touch of laterite...
 
#33 · (Edited)
shloken38, I would love to see the Pelia...do you have photos on a thread?



Baby Betta in the Java moss in the 20 gallon tank





What the 20 gallon looks like now.....the Java fern re-growth is continuing at the back of the tank (love Java ferns :) )

I think it looks a bit sad right now...but things are starting to grow...like the moss and the nana anubias and java fern...had a discopuragement when a shipment containing three coffeeofolia anubias came in late January ...they were shipped in pots and arrived with rotted rhyzomes...only had 3 anubias survive of 6...the nanas at left are doing great and the so is the little Frazeri...
Decided to try a crypt and there is a little wendtii at front left

 
#34 ·
I don't have a thread going, but here is a crappy pick:

Plant Green Water Organism Terrestrial plant


Plant Terrestrial plant Organism Water Grass


The second is a bad angle, but you can see some Frazeri tied on there as well. I also have a Windelov java fern tied on the other side. The Pelia is in several spots. I need to get in there and do some cosmetic touch ups.

Coffeefolia is my favorite anubia. Just love the shape and texture. Here it is tied to another piece (left side of wood):

Plant Terrestrial plant Organism Aquatic plant Marine biology
 
#35 ·
That's a really pretty tank--very lush and such a variety of leaf shapes I looked up the Pelia and the text says it is a living fossil---that is fascinating!

You've certainly made a creative use of it on the driftwood...looks like it has a kind of 'puffy' habit to the growth. Really like how you've got the coffeefolia and frazeri anubias also tucked into the driftwood
 
#37 · (Edited)
20 gallon is looking rather better this week. Things are starting to grow slowly but surely. The anunia nans are sending out nice roots. The little crypt I rescued last week looks like it is settling in. It seems to be a wendtii ?) of some kind...this is a new type of plant for me...sure would like to get another one to put beside it in this tank. Very pretty habit and leaves :) I am using root tabs and this really seemed to help this little crypt last week

 
#38 · (Edited)
Not a great photo, but this shows the nice roots on the anubia nanas in the 20 gallon





The anacharis are really sending out some growth...the betta really likes the anacharis





Some Riccia growing in a jar by the windowsill

 
#42 ·
I'm pretty new to live plants also...this forum has just been great with info :) Been having a lot of fun with the 3 aquariums over the past 4 1/2 months

MamaFish I used a little bit of super glue. I read somewhere on this forum that some super glue brands have some additives that aren't good for fish...I can't find the link...but search around...I used Loctite...I'm hoping that was the right brand...

Paintcraze...there's a great list of low light plants at the top of the Low Tech Forum section. I purposely chose plants that were good for beginners. I've been pretty lucky so far (knock on wood that the luck continues). :smile:
 
#45 ·
Black neons in the 30 gallon.






the angel fish is betting bigger...it's body is about the size of a golf ball now...(sorry about the dirty filter intake tube...will get that taken care of this weekend when I do the weekly water change)






not the best photo...but here are some blurred aeneus cory cats poking around the anubia nana petite plants and small stones...


 
#46 · (Edited)
whooops---some hair algae starting up in the 30 gallon...otherwise things are going well. Will do some water changes and testing...something's out of balance...maybe feeding the fish a bit too much... :icon_redf :)


\


the crypts are coming along and becoming more dense in the 30 gallon

 
#48 · (Edited)
Lots of algae in here...it's green algae and the gold fish seem to like eating some of it...saving money to get the goldfish a tank over 100 gallons...but for now 40g will have to do...I've got 2 HOB filters and an airstone going on this one and no water problems...just algae...though the java ferns seem to be doing better here than in the tropical tanks...

have had the 2 larger comets almost 8 years...the others were rescues from tanks at work and a couple (the 2 fan tails) were in a friend's fish bowl...they're happy and active but would like a larger tank


 
#49 ·
This is whatthe 30 gallon looks like now. I was hoping that the Java fern would grow and cover up the heater at right. Any plant suggestions for me for this area on the right? This is a low tech setup with no c02, a T8 15w flourescent bulb with 2 CFL bulbs in reflectors at the sides.

 
#50 · (Edited)
Here's the 10 gallon betta tank. Need some suggestions here too for some nice floating plants...the anacharis is Ok for present. Where can I get some frogbit? Also have some of that brownish thin algae on the sides of the aquarium. This is a fairly new set up.


 
#51 · (Edited)
Had relatives over to the house this weekend to visit my Mom for Mother's Day. I decided to do some furniture re-arranging and that included moving the 40 gallon goldfish tank to an upstairs bedroom. It was heavy (less water and gravel) and took three people to move it up the stairs. Here it is re-set up and free of most algae. (always liked a bit of the green algae...) Just standard gravel and rocks in here. 2 HOB filters and an airstone.

I am thinking about either more large rocks with java ferns....but liked the photo from DogFish's set up of Asian art themed ceramic pots of anubias in his orenda tank. Maybe there is a way to to a pot-like set up with rocks...will have to think on this...





The java ferns have really done very well in this tank. They've always been near the airstone. When I went to transplant them, they had a nice root system and were attached to the rocks.

The background on this tank is a printed photo on plastic of rocks and some kind of plant...

 
#52 ·
added a snail to the 10 gallon. Very interesting and fun to watch! It is eating up the algae and also likes pellets. Reading up on what to feed it for care of the shell etc...

Added 2 black mystery snails to the 60 gallon and they're fun to watch also. They seem to be more nocturnal than this blue snail.




 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top