[chrisnif]

Besides the obvious anubias, what plants can I put with my Mbuna.

Info about my setup that will likely be helpful.

I have a 75 gallon tank with a 3 foot T8 running on a 65W PC ballast (2x-ish ODNO at higher frequency) in a coralife PC fixture that I gutted and have retrofitted without removing the reflectors. I have the ability to use two of these tubes (overlapping about 2 feet in the middle), but the algae from one is a good balance for feeding my plecos and to a point the Mbuna - there is a balance at the moment. I have a sand/limestone substrate, and I have osmocote+ capsules at my disposal as well.

One I was thinking would work mainly due to the fact that you just about can't kill it, and I don't want to hear about it being a weed, dangerous, la la la, I don't ship it, transport it, or any of that hoopla and if and when I don't want it anymore it's getting dried out and buried - I have hygro polysperma (and I love it BTW). It seems a bit delicate and like a tasty mbuna snack though.

Suggestions?

 

[shrimpNewbie]

Some swords can survive mbunas, my brother keeps an african tank with heaving swords in the tank, he of course weighs them down as most any plant besides the kind that stick to rocks and wood will easily be uprooted, I love swords and it is the way i'm going in my large cichlid community, just remember any plants you put in there WEIGH them down with fishing line and a lead weigh that is drinking water safe

 

[KevinC]

You don't mention mbuna species - mine are admittedly more forgiving of plants (yellow labs and demasonii), so here's what I am able to get away with:

Java fern and moss
Swords
Red tiger lotus (surprisingly)
Crypt wendtii
Red ludwigia

I also have vallisneria - it puts out plantlets but stays small, so I'm not sure if that is fish related or something else.

Kevin

 

[Axelrodi202]

If you have a good current then Bolbitis could work.

 

[chrisnif]

I have a small sprig of bolbitis (about 8" rhizome 6-8 leaves) I'll try that for sure. The tank is a reef ready and Im running 600 gph with one corner overflow.

 

[punchy]

I've had success with willow hygro with my mbuna

 

[chrisnif]

Well, I'm rescaping my planted tank, so I decided I'll try a few plants from the rescape. I'll have a 6" amazon sword, bolbitis, lace leaf java fern, sunset hygro, what I think is bacopa, and some bronze crypts. Nothing I won't have extra of, especially the crypts and hygro...

 

[shrimpNewbie]

ferns do well, personally I like high current in planted tanks and all but one of my tanks look like rivers, a java or bolbitis would thrive in higher current once established even with some of the bigger cichlids

 

[chrisnif]

my planted tank is fairly high current. I have a 56 gallon (30x18 footprint) and I've got an XP3, emperor 280 and a Korallia nano 400, so I'm moving something just shy of 1000 gallons an hour.

 

[shrimpNewbie]

=] I like high flow, not sure why just makes it prettier to me, your plants will thank you for the flow depending on species, ferns love it