[shtpostingaquarist]

Hi everyone! This is my first post ever on this forum after being a long-time lurker.
I'm having a hard time getting a consensus on this question and figure this is the best place to ask.

I’m establishing my first planted aquarium (29 gal) and it’s not crazy heavily planted but there’s pretty much plants rooted in almost all the surface area of the aquarium. They’re still establishing so theyre pretty susceptible to being uprooted.
I’ve been wanting to stock my tank with sterbai corys (since I want to keep the tank at 80 degrees for future rams) but I was told by my LFS that corys are terrible for planted tanks since they uproot everything and make a mess. I’m pretty skeptical about outside advice but he seems knowledgeable, what has your experience been?
Has anyone ever kept sterbai corys, or any other cory, in planted tanks with success or did it become an uprooted mess? I have aquasoil btw, in case that makes a difference. Is there another species of Cory that can work for my tank (keeping temperature in mind)?
I really love corys and want to have a school but if they won’t be happy with my tank and make a mess then I’d rather stock another fish. If this is a case, suggestions for bottom-dwelling fish for planted tanks are welcome

Picture of my tank attached in case that helps. The dwarf sag in the front and open area on the left is slowly making a comeback after some severe melt and my s repens is in the process of rooting itself (it floats away if I even breath in its direction)

 

[minorhero]

Bigger plants with more extensive root systems stand a good chance of success, but smaller carpeting plants (in your tank it looks like dwarf sag?) are going to be much more susceptible to being uprooted from any full size cory. I'm keeping a group of pygmy corys in my 75 gallon tank because they were supposed to be less likely to uproot plants. Even with that said the littorella uniflora I have in the front occasionally gets uprooted (not all at once but 1 plant every 2 or 3 days). I'm hopeful that once the littorella uniflora gets a bit more established even this will stop but we will see.

 

[Socratic monologue]

I've had a group of a dozen sterbai in my 75g for 12 years (they're getting pretty elderly...) and have noticed no uprooting of plants by the fish. I don't grow any fancy little stuff, though -- easy stem plants, vals and swords and anubias and that sort of thing.

I used to use red flint gravel, and switched to Flourite when I got a new tank, and I do notice that the plants put out roots and stay planted much less well in Flourite, but that's independent of the fish, which are the exact same fish from the gravel tank.

 

[Frtynoob]

Dirted tank with gravel and sand path. Corys will just bury the sand path with gravel and I have to clean it every 2 days lol. Corys can uproot but chances are little

 

[Le duke]

I’m also running vals, swords and anubias. 18 cory cats, zero uprooted plants.

That said, I used to try to grow dwarf hair grass; that’s a no-go. Way too fragile for them.


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