[Aerodynamic]

Hi everyone >_< i am a planted tank noobie, my first tank became an algae emporium but I am gonna try to do it right this time D:< I wanted to go for a HC carpet but I am stuck between Activ-Flora and ada aquasoil. I had a budget of 150 (bought a finnex planted + light and a truaqua 7g tank >.< ) but it looks like that's gonna go out the window xD. So I guess I was really just wanting to know if anyone has had some success of growing HC in Activ-Flora? the grannuals just look rather large to me wasent sure if baby tears would have a hard time grabbing hold? I do plan on doing a DSM :O!

Also, if i make a little tree in my tank would the dark spot of it hanging of HC kill the growth? (might just fill the space under the tree with rocks or something idk o3o)

 

[chunkychun]

I rec ada aquasoil. However the main thing is to grow Hc you need co2 otherwise dry start

 

[Aerodynamic]

I rec ada aquasoil. However the main thing is to grow Hc you need co2 otherwise dry start

i have a fluval co2 system ready to go :O! just looking for the less costly option. Not alot of fish stores out where i live >.< and the ada soil was gonna be like 16$ for shipping just 1 3L bag...

 

[NanoDave]

ActivFlora is actually a fraction of the size of ada aquasoil is and is FAR easier to plant in and keep things down. With ActivFlora you will have to root tab after 6 or so months every so often but by then HC will be carpeted so it will be stable. With aquasoil you prob won't have to tab but you'll have to deal with plants coming uprooted at the beginning and after a few years you'll have to replace the whole thing as the soil becomes mud; making water changes a nightmare I've heard. I personally went with ActivFlora to grow my carpeting plants as I hate replanting and would never want to deal with tearing down a tank bc the substrate is broken down.

Here's a pic of a bowl of a plant very similar to HC that i'm experimenting with. I've been letting it grow taller recently to get ideas for a scape I'm planning.

Day 1

Week 2

Week 3

Today:

It's getting a "hair cut" tomorrow.:tongue:.

Just do your research on each product (especially long term) your thinking about as they all have pro's and cons. Hope that helps

 

[chunkychun]

aerodynamic less costly option would be something like miracle grow organic potting soil or worm castings topped with play/pool sand. activ flora and eco complete and flourite sounds all the same to me and are inert so you will need root tabs. i'm not sold on them as any better than other inert products and would choose them only if you like the way they look. ada aqua soil is expensive and i feel worth it but so is actiflora,flourite, eco complete(my opinion not as worth it). i feel your pain regards to cost/shipping so I use flourite b/c it is at my local petstore.

Nanodave nice tank but i think you have Hemianthus micranthemoides there not HC. Hemianthus micranthemoides or pearl weed is a great plant that is easier to grow than HC (hemianthus callitrichoides). although the OP did mention baby tear but i assume she meant dwarf baby tear but I assumed....

 

[NanoDave]

chunkychun: Thanks for the plant ID. I knew it wasn't HC so I made sure I said it was "similar". It plants and carpets much like HC but like you said is easier to grow and grows faster lot faster. Its a lot easier to plant in a sandy substrate like activflora than round aquasoil or stratum substrates thats for sure. I can't wait for the day when they make a product like aquasoil that doesn't breakdown after some years and isn't so tough to plant in. I'll stick to sand and root tabs till then though.