New Aquascape - Planting questions

[kellyboy47]

Morning,
Am about to aquascape my 60l tank...Have bought some cracking Dragon Stone and some really nice plants from Aquaessentials but have a couple of questions that might seem obvious to most but not to an old fella like me. My substrate is Tetra Complete topped with black limpopo fine sand

Do you have to remove the rockwool from the plants before planting ?
Do I have to tie weights around the plants ?
When planting do I have to plant through the sand into the Tetra Complete or purely into the sand ?

Thanks in anticipation
Trev

 

[stemag]

im a newbie myself but i know you remove the rockwool i have not used any weights on me plants and i have planted into the sand so the roots are covered
every thing seems fine hope this helps some one with more experiance may right a bit more with a better explanation

 

[Steve Smith]

This guide has some of the information you are looking for

Pruning - A general guide to plant maintenance | UK Aquatic Plant Society

 

[Ady34]

Do you have to remove the rockwool from the plants before planting ? Do I have to tie weights around the plants ? When planting do I have to plant through the sand into the Tetra Complete or purely into the sand ?

Hi,
yep, remove rockwool (except for small shallow rooted plants such as Hemianthus callitrichoides in which case you can cut the plant into portions and leave the rockwool on to aid planting), and trim roots to approx 2cm.....if theyre that long to start with.
No need to weight, just seperate plantlets and plant at a 45 degree angle into your sand to help them stay put if needs be...they will grow straight.
Plant to a depth that covers roots, that may or may not be deeper than your sand cap....your plants will send down roots to reach your tetra complete so no need to worry about getting them there from the off.
Cheerio,
Ady.

 

[kellyboy47]

Thanks Ady, Steve and Stemag for all your help and advice