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Point in the right direction?

gravil

Seedling
Joined
15 Jun 2009
Messages
6
Hi All,
I am "very" new to the world of planted aquariums. I have had a mixture of plastic and real plants but with no idea how to maintain the real ones. I have a Trigon 350 and was wondering if anyone had any pictures of this type of tank already planted so I could "borrow" some ideas.

If not, some guidence would'nt go a miss. I only have gravel in the bottom of my tank.

Hope you can help.

Thanks
 
which kind of setup did you want to go for? low tech(ferns, anubias mosses) or high tech(in which you can grow nearly any plant)

i prefer high tech as it gives you more options on your scapes but does cost more as you will need high lighting co2 and with all planted tanks fertilizers
 
If you're new to the planted hobby, the best thing to do first is get the hang on growing and caring for aquatic plants before you consider aquascaping. ;)

This can be an expensive hobby but if you spend the money to begin with then it will pay off (and there are some deals to be had out there).

I think the first thing to do is get an external filter that has at least 10 times turnover of your tanks volume (so around 3500lph). You could use two filters to achieve this.

Get a nutritious substrate - ADAAquasoil is the best but you could bulk it out with cheaper alternatives.

Go for a low-tech tank to begin with, low light and low maintenance plants go get the hang of things, and try a wide variety of plants. Begin with Crypts, Ferns and Anubias with some stems because they're the easiest. This is more forgiving and doesn't cost as much, so if you get it a bit wrong first go around it won't matter so much.

Look in other threads for fertiliser and such advice. ;) Hope that helps a bit, sorry I don't have any images of tanks but look in the inspiration thread in 'General Discussion' forum for that.
 
Hi gravil and welcome to UKAPS!

As suggested you need to figure out what type of planted tank you wish to have.

Budget and spare time is a large consideration, especially if you take the 'higher-tech' path.

If you want to simply add a few plants and keep things relatively simple then you can do so with little outlay and extra time maintaining.

Planting with easy species such as Hygrophilas, Vallis, Crypts, Java fern and Anubias is a good start and you probably won't need to upgrade your lighting or filtration. Ferns and Anubias attach to decor and are almost maintenance-free. Crypts are also low maintenance. Vallis may need thinning out occasionally and Hygrophilas is simpy pruned back.

If you want to keep your existing gravel to can make it more plant-friendly by adding root tabs or capsules such as Tropica Capsules or similar.

Plant densely as this helps to prevent algae - aim to cover around 75% of the substrate if you can. Adding fertilisers are necessary but CO2 injection is optional.

It's a massive subject so have a look at some of the articles on the UKAPS homepage to get some more ideas on growing techniques. Take a look at the pinned threads in the Aquascaping sub-forum for layout ideas.

I hope that helps.
 
Hi guys, Im in a very similar situation to gravil, so I hope you dont mind me hi-jacking the thread.

I would like a planted tank with some kind of plant growth covering the substrate - like a carpet effect (a la picture on the www.ukaps.org homepage) - which plant would you recommend for a beginner?

Secondly what are the tall stem plants with like a lilly shaped top? I think they look good 0 but dont know the name.
Also a long tall grass would be good - any recommendations here?

Finally what kind of plant would be good for a mid-level? something which looks good and grows to about 4 inches high.

Ger
 
George Farmer said:
Hi gravil and welcome to UKAPS!

As suggested you need to figure out what type of planted tank you wish to have.

Budget and spare time is a large consideration, especially if you take the 'higher-tech' path.

If you want to simply add a few plants and keep things relatively simple then you can do so with little outlay and extra time maintaining.

Planting with easy species such as Hygrophilas, Vallis, Crypts, Java fern and Anubias is a good start and you probably won't need to upgrade your lighting or filtration. Ferns and Anubias attach to decor and are almost maintenance-free. Crypts are also low maintenance. Vallis may need thinning out occasionally and Hygrophilas is simpy pruned back.

If you want to keep your existing gravel to can make it more plant-friendly by adding root tabs or capsules such as Tropica Capsules or similar.

Plant densely as this helps to prevent algae - aim to cover around 75% of the substrate if you can. Adding fertilisers are necessary but CO2 injection is optional.

It's a massive subject so have a look at some of the articles on the UKAPS homepage to get some more ideas on growing techniques. Take a look at the pinned threads in the Aquascaping sub-forum for layout ideas.

I hope that helps.


Thanks George,
That's the kind of information that I was looking for. Also reading other threads, I think I will start on growing techniques first in a 'low tech' tank using the suggested plants. Looking at the galleries is awesome :wideyed: , there are some really talented people on this site which gives me a lot of inspration and motivation.

gerlewis: No problem, the more the merrier :D
 
Hi again,
Just got this list of plants from an online supplier, would this be suitable as a 'fisrt attempt' for growing plants in a low tech tank (Trigon 350)?

48 inch TROPICAL PLANT COLLECTION
(115 plants)
5 x Echinodorus Tennellus
5 x Hygrophilia Polysperma
5 x Red Ludwigia
5 x Ambulia Aquatica
5 x Bacopa Monniera
5 x Red Ivy
5 x Diplis Diandra
5 x Vallis Torta
5 x Elodea Densa
5 x Hairgrass
5 x Bacopa Caroliniana
5 x Pygmy Chain Sword
5 x Cabomba aquatica
5 x Vallis Corkscrew sml
5 x Crypt Lucens
5 x Water Wisteria
5 x Crypt Ciliata
5 x Creeping Jenny
5 x Crypt Wendtii
5 x Sea Grass
5 x Needle Leaf Ludwigia
3 x Nymphea Stellata
1 x Crinum Thaianum
1 x 5cm clump Java Moss
5 x Red Ambulia


Thanks
 
samc said:
personally id have bigger groups of less different varietys of plants so for example half your list but double the amounts of each plant as it can make a tank look un-organised

Thanks,
This comes as a all in one package, which of the plants should I focus on first. Maybe I'll buy from a LFS to get the right numbers. What would be a great help is if someone could advise on some good fore,mid and background plants to get me started :?
 
I agree having that many varieties will look a bit cluttered (like have three different 3 piece suites in your front room at the same time :lol: )

Getting a starters bumper pack is a good idea though. Especially as filling a tank with Individual plants will work out more costly. Maybe look for a pack for a smaller tank, and then order two of them. If you post another list up I am sure someone here will help you divvy it up into fore\mid\background.
 
a1Matt said:
I agree having that many varieties will look a bit cluttered (like have three different 3 piece suites in your front room at the same time :lol: )

Getting a starters bumper pack is a good idea though. Especially as filling a tank with Individual plants will work out more costly. Maybe look for a pack for a smaller tank, and then order two of them. If you post another list up I am sure someone here will help you divvy it up into fore\mid\background.

That makes sense, didn't think of that :oops: . I'll find another list a post it on this thread..
Thanks a1Matt
 
Just found these listson Java Plants website

24 inch TROPICAL PLANT COLLECTION
(60 plants)
5 x Echinodorus Tennellus
5 x Hygrophilia Polysperma
5 x Red Ludwigia
5 x Ambulia Aquatica
5 x Bacopa Monniera
5 x Red Ivy
5 x Diplis Diandra
5 x Vallis Torta
5 x Elodea Densa
5 x Hairgrass
5 x Bacopa Caroliniana
5 x Sagittaria Subulata

or

30 inch TROPICAL PLANT COLLECTION
(75 plants)

5 x Echinodorus Tennellus
5 x Hygrophilia Polysperma
5 x Red Ludwigia
5 x Ambulia Aquatica
5 x Bacopa Monniera
5 x Red Ivy
5 x Diplis Diandra
5 x Vallis Torta
5 x Elodea Densa
5 x Hairgrass
5 x Bacopa Caroliniana
5 x Pygmy Chain Sword
5 x Cabomba Aquatica
5 x Vallis Corkscrew sml
5 x Sagittaria Subulta

Would someone help by advising on fore,mid, background plants in these list. I will probably buy 2 or 3 packs to get a good number of each plant.

Thanks
 
30 inch TROPICAL PLANT COLLECTION
(75 plants)

foreground
5 x Echinodorus Tennellus
5 x Hairgrass
5 x Pygmy Chain Sword
5 x Sagittaria Subulta (and then if you keep it alive for more than a few months it will slowly get taller and taller and eventually be a background!)

mid or background (your choice - depending on whether you trim them down or let them keep growing).
5 x Hygrophilia Polysperma
5 x Red Ludwigia
5 x Bacopa Monniera
5 x Diplis Diandra
5 x Elodea Densa
5 x Bacopa Caroliniana
5 x Cabomba Aquatica

background
5 x Vallis Torta

I don't know!
5 x Ambulia Aquatica
5 x Red Ivy
5 x Vallis Corkscrew sml (sounds like forgeound though)

I had a quick look at java plants and see they also do fore\mid\back bumper packs. They might not be as competitively priced though. You can also check out the individual species and cross reference to see if I have got things right!

The packs you have shown are still quite a lot of species, and most of them are stems as well. But! you do not get many of each species.
So if it was me (which it isn't, so feel free to ignore what I say and I take no offence ;) ) I would opt for something like 3 or 4 18" starter packs, plus one of the mid sized assorted crypt packs. Would give you a nice combo of stems and crypts and enough of each species so that you can create a little grouping of each.
 
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