HELP? I have a 125 gallon tank with texas holey rock, and small fish like guppies , neon and cardinal tetras. I really want to do a heavily planted tank, but Im in the military and being gone for up to 12 months at a time and someone " babysitting" my tank I need something low maintenance. Can anyone help?

If you have lights on a timer, you can easily neglect anubias nana and java moss that long. Neither one takes very well to planting the rhizome so they must be planted very high in the substrate. The usual practice is to tie them to something with fishing line and then let them reach roots down to the substrate on their own. I also have good success using anacharis as a floating plant. As long as someone is feeding the fish and doing occasional water changes, these plants will thrive on neglect. None of them need much light so be careful you don't cause an algae problem with too much light or lights on too long.

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Fishless cycling

Java ferns are also a good one. Any of your mosses will do, you can tie any of these plants to the rock and would end up looking like a mountain side.

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SUCCESS IS MEASURED BY YEARS, NOT MONTHS!!!
220 Tank build
http://www.aquariumforum.com/f15/sta...late-3253.html

Thanks, and good luck on the 220 Susankat. Thats what Im hoping for soon as I hit the states again, but hard to do from Afghanistan.LOL. Any way my plan is to use texas holey rock. What do you think?

One thing you will need to find out is how much texas holy rock will change your ph. And what you decide to keep in there fish wise. Most holy rock is used for cichlid tanks that require harder water.

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SUCCESS IS MEASURED BY YEARS, NOT MONTHS!!!
220 Tank build
http://www.aquariumforum.com/f15/sta...late-3253.html

Im mostly keeping guppies, neon and cardinal tetras. Pretty easy to maintain so Im going that route for now.

You must take into account that a rise in pH due wings rocks can be very damaging to the neon and cardinal TETRAS.

In the case of plants that need less attention are anubias nana and java moss, should not be a very intense light, nor more than 10 hours daily because if you have a very intense light and more than 10 hours a day anubias Nanny and the java moss is filled with algae.

Some crypt wendtii's would work. As would Ceratopteris Thalictroides. This can grow rather large and bushy. My barbs and danios love swimming through it.

These plants are also slow growing and easy maintenance :

- Microsorum pteropus .

- Echinodorus ozelot .

- Cryptocoryne beckettii, crispatula , cordata . . . .

Crypts, Java Fern, Java Moss, Anubias, Swords, A. Crispis all are low maintenance (and low light) plants.

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1x350L Goldfish, 1x 286L Planted, 1x190L Cherry shrimp, 1x140L Feeders, 1x130L Planted, 1x119L Peppermint BN breeding colony

Hey sorry everybody for not responding, but been out for a couple days. Thanks for the great ideas and Ill start this project soon as possible.