Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going?

justcrash · 07-02-2010, 03:06 PM

I read on here people use them to help with the ecosystem of the tank and I like that idea. What do you guys suggest? I am currently trying to work out 2 teaspoons of salt (22 gallon tanks), will that hurt the plants?

archer772 · 07-02-2010, 03:24 PM

We would need to know the size of tank, filtration, lighting and what fish do you have. I am wondering why you are adding salt to your tank.

longtail4711 · 07-02-2010, 04:11 PM

Salt in general is not good for plants unless you are getting plants that are brackish water.

Live plants otherwise are not exactly difficult to get started but it can be expensive and time consuming. You will need to spend to have an appropriate light for growing the plants, plant food, and substrate, and then invest in plants.

mk4gti · 07-02-2010, 04:29 PM

Make sure you know what plants your buying before you buy them. Many pet stores will sell plants and say that they are aquatic when infact they are not, they will live in your tank for a short time them rot and die.

justcrash · 07-02-2010, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by archer772

We would need to know the size of tank, filtration, lighting and what fish do you have. I am wondering why you are adding salt to your tank.

I have a 22 gallon tall hex tank, the filter is an aqua clear 50. The lighting is whatever came with the tank and as for fish, I have 6 danios, 1 glo-fish, 1 oranda, a cory cat, a whip tail cat and a snail.

justcrash · 07-02-2010, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by longtail4711

Salt in general is not good for plants unless you are getting plants that are brackish water.

Live plants otherwise are not exactly difficult to get started but it can be expensive and time consuming. You will need to spend to have an appropriate light for growing the plants, plant food, and substrate, and then invest in plants.

Hmmm doesn't sound too bad. Why is it time consuming? I thought I read where the plants live off the wastes of teh fish, not true?

archer772 · 07-02-2010, 04:38 PM

Well if you are going to just put in things like Anacharis, Hornwort, Water Sprite and maybe some Penny Wort then minimal lighting will be needed and they should do just fine without ferts. I am still wondering about the salt and what fish you have???

archer772 · 07-02-2010, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justcrash

I have a 22 gallon tall hex tank, the filter is an aqua clear 50. The lighting is whatever came with the tank and as for fish, I have 6 danios, 1 glo-fish, 1 oranda, a cory cat, a whip tail cat and a snail.

Sorry I missed this post. I think the Oranda might cause problems with plants and not sure the light will support much. I might try some Penny Wort or Water Sprite but the rest probably wont last long.

justcrash · 07-02-2010, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by archer772

Sorry I missed this post. I think the Oranda might cause problems with plants and not sure the light will support much. I might try some Penny Wort or Water Sprite but the rest probably wont last long.

Penny Wort or Sprite... got it, I will look in to it. Would a different light be better for the plants? Why would the oranda have an issue with the plants?

As for the salt, long story here:

Hello all (maybe you guys can help me?)!

Short story: I bought a green spotted puffer that wasn't right for my community tank. :(

Too bad, he was pretty.

susankat · 07-02-2010, 05:16 PM

As with most goldfish it will eat plants and just about any kind of plant. Salt isn't needed so I would quit dosing any salt to the tank. Most catfish don't like salt anyway.

longtail4711 · 07-02-2010, 05:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justcrash

Hmmm doesn't sound too bad. Why is it time consuming? I thought I read where the plants live off the wastes of teh fish, not true?

Oh no, that part is absolutely true!

I'm just saying from my experience. I just converted a 10 gal tank into a planted tank, and it's taken a lot of time for me to research and learn about what substrate I needed, what plants I want, how to pick out a light, what fertilizer do I need, whether or not I need Co2 injection, then going out and buying all this stuff (which was kind of all over town).

It took me 2-3 hours to wash all the substrate, and then I had to plant, refill the tank, and so on.

It's been very time consuming, but it's also been very fun.

justcrash · 07-02-2010, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by susankat

As with most goldfish it will eat plants and just about any kind of plant. Salt isn't needed so I would quit dosing any salt to the tank. Most catfish don't like salt anyway.

Yeah the salt was a one time thing, I shalln't be doing that again.

Are the plants bad for the gold fish, I take it?

justcrash · 07-02-2010, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by longtail4711

Oh no, that part is absolutely true!

I'm just saying from my experience. I just converted a 10 gal tank into a planted tank, and it's taken a lot of time for me to research and learn about what substrate I needed, what plants I want, how to pick out a light, what fertilizer do I need, whether or not I need Co2 injection, then going out and buying all this stuff (which was kind of all over town).

It took me 2-3 hours to wash all the substrate, and then I had to plant, refill the tank, and so on.

It's been very time consuming, but it's also been very fun.

Hmmm so maybe when I start my tropical freshwater tank as you suggested, I will start it with plants?

susankat · 07-02-2010, 07:35 PM

Plants aren't bad for goldfish, but they won't last long in the tank with a goldfish as they will eat them, and it can end up being an expensive meal, depending on the plants you put in there.

archer772 · 07-02-2010, 07:52 PM

I really think that Sword and Vals might be the best chance but I dont know if they would have enough light without upgrading, I know goldies love plants

squirrelcrusher · 07-03-2010, 12:48 AM

Off Topic - Archer, why are you opposed to putting aquarium salt in freshwater tanks? I've read from several different sites and talking to people in stores (not big box stores, I don't trust them) that a small amount of salt is benifitial for fresh water aquariums. I use it in all my tanks and haven't had any issues with it.

On Topic - Live plants can be fairly simple and cheap to grow (the floating moss balls Petco sells) to ridicoulously expensive and time consuming. You have to figure out how you want to do it. If you change your light bulb out to a bulb for growing plants you might be able to just put in a moss ball and have it grow. Or maybe some floating plants like frogbit. They seem to grow pretty fast in my tank so they might be able to stay alive even with your fish eating them.

NursePlaty · 07-03-2010, 01:49 AM

Aquarium salt hurt plants and inverts, and I only use it to treat rather than for therapeutic uses. If the fish are fine without it.. then I dont use it. I dont get fancy with my tank. If I had salt in my tank and ich appeared, I would either have to add more salt or decrease salt to interrupt the osmosis pressure to pop the ich cysts.

Stock lights are not usually the right color spectrum anyway. You will need a fixture that can hold 5000K - 10,000K color spectrum bulbs and more watts. Ive noticed when I first grew water sprite, they just grew and died and grew and died because not enough light were hitting them, and new plants just spawned from the dead leaves, it was a never ending cycle. They never reached more than 3 inches.

Try Java fern or Anubias Nana. These plants are immune to goldfish.

justcrash · 07-03-2010, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NursePlaty

Aquarium salt hurt plants and inverts, and I only use it to treat rather than for therapeutic uses. If the fish are fine without it.. then I dont use it. I dont get fancy with my tank. If I had salt in my tank and ich appeared, I would either have to add more salt or decrease salt to interrupt the osmosis pressure to pop the ich cysts.

Stock lights are not usually the right color spectrum anyway. You will need a fixture that can hold 5000K - 10,000K color spectrum bulbs and more watts. Ive noticed when I first grew water sprite, they just grew and died and grew and died because not enough light were hitting them, and new plants just spawned from the dead leaves, it was a never ending cycle. They never reached more than 3 inches.

Try Java fern or Anubias Nana. These plants are immune to goldfish.

Can I buy those bulbs for the lid I already have, do you know? And if I DO get a different light, what plants would you guys suggest then?

NursePlaty · 07-03-2010, 12:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justcrash

Can I buy those bulbs for the lid I already have, do you know? And if I DO get a different light, what plants would you guys suggest then?

It would be difficult to get bulbs that fit, but you can try to look.

Plants you can grow would depend on the certain amount of watts you have. The more watts, the more variety you can grow.

07-02-2010, 03:06 PM	#1 (permalink)
justcrash Join Date: Jun 2010 Posts: 35 Name: Darian S. Kovach Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 0 Times Said "Thanks" 22 Times Was Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going? I read on here people use them to help with the ecosystem of the tank and I like that idea. What do you guys suggest? I am currently trying to work out 2 teaspoons of salt (22 gallon tanks), will that hurt the plants?

07-02-2010, 03:24 PM	#2 (permalink)
archer772 archer772's Photo Gallery Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 943 Name: Scott Location: Michigan My location Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 273 Times Said "Thanks" 15 Times Was Thanked 261 Times in 250 Posts	Re: Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going? We would need to know the size of tank, filtration, lighting and what fish do you have. I am wondering why you are adding salt to your tank.

07-02-2010, 04:11 PM	#3 (permalink)
longtail4711 longtail4711's Photo Gallery Join Date: Jun 2010 Posts: 128 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 16 Times Said "Thanks" 13 Times Was Thanked 32 Times in 29 Posts	Re: Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going? Salt in general is not good for plants unless you are getting plants that are brackish water. Live plants otherwise are not exactly difficult to get started but it can be expensive and time consuming. You will need to spend to have an appropriate light for growing the plants, plant food, and substrate, and then invest in plants.

07-02-2010, 04:29 PM	#4 (permalink)
mk4gti mk4gti's Photo Gallery Join Date: Jun 2010 Posts: 686 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 119 Times Said "Thanks" 24 Times Was Thanked 114 Times in 106 Posts	Re: Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going? Make sure you know what plants your buying before you buy them. Many pet stores will sell plants and say that they are aquatic when infact they are not, they will live in your tank for a short time them rot and die.

07-02-2010, 04:38 PM	#7 (permalink)
archer772 archer772's Photo Gallery Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 943 Name: Scott Location: Michigan My location Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 273 Times Said "Thanks" 15 Times Was Thanked 261 Times in 250 Posts	Re: Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going? Well if you are going to just put in things like Anacharis, Hornwort, Water Sprite and maybe some Penny Wort then minimal lighting will be needed and they should do just fine without ferts. I am still wondering about the salt and what fish you have???

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07-02-2010, 05:16 PM	#10 (permalink)
susankat Pleco n bn breeder n BOSS susankat's Photo Gallery Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 4,819 Name: Susan Location: Tulsa, Ok Feedback: 7 / 100% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 1,815 Times Said "Thanks" 1,017 Times Was Thanked 1,601 Times in 1,371 Posts	Re: Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going? As with most goldfish it will eat plants and just about any kind of plant. Salt isn't needed so I would quit dosing any salt to the tank. Most catfish don't like salt anyway. __________________ SUCCESS IS MEASURED BY YEARS, NOT MONTHS!!! 220 Tank build http://www.aquariumforum.com/f15/sta...late-3253.html

07-02-2010, 07:35 PM	#14 (permalink)
susankat Pleco n bn breeder n BOSS susankat's Photo Gallery Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 4,819 Name: Susan Location: Tulsa, Ok Feedback: 7 / 100% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 1,815 Times Said "Thanks" 1,017 Times Was Thanked 1,601 Times in 1,371 Posts	Re: Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going? Plants aren't bad for goldfish, but they won't last long in the tank with a goldfish as they will eat them, and it can end up being an expensive meal, depending on the plants you put in there. __________________ SUCCESS IS MEASURED BY YEARS, NOT MONTHS!!! 220 Tank build http://www.aquariumforum.com/f15/sta...late-3253.html

07-02-2010, 07:52 PM	#15 (permalink)
archer772 archer772's Photo Gallery Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 943 Name: Scott Location: Michigan My location Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 273 Times Said "Thanks" 15 Times Was Thanked 261 Times in 250 Posts	Re: Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going? I really think that Sword and Vals might be the best chance but I dont know if they would have enough light without upgrading, I know goldies love plants

07-03-2010, 12:48 AM	#16 (permalink)
squirrelcrusher Aqua Addict squirrelcrusher's Photo Gallery Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 289 Location: Kennewick, Wa My location Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 1 Times Said "Thanks" 5 Times Was Thanked 28 Times in 27 Posts	Re: Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going? Off Topic - Archer, why are you opposed to putting aquarium salt in freshwater tanks? I've read from several different sites and talking to people in stores (not big box stores, I don't trust them) that a small amount of salt is benifitial for fresh water aquariums. I use it in all my tanks and haven't had any issues with it. On Topic - Live plants can be fairly simple and cheap to grow (the floating moss balls Petco sells) to ridicoulously expensive and time consuming. You have to figure out how you want to do it. If you change your light bulb out to a bulb for growing plants you might be able to just put in a moss ball and have it grow. Or maybe some floating plants like frogbit. They seem to grow pretty fast in my tank so they might be able to stay alive even with your fish eating them. __________________ I just pretend I know what I'm doing

07-03-2010, 01:49 AM	#17 (permalink)
NursePlaty Queen Platy NursePlaty's Photo Gallery Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 931 Name: Annie Pham Location: Dallas Ft Worth, Texas Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Welcome to Aquarium Forum" 266 Times Said "Thanks" 41 Times Was Thanked 183 Times in 177 Posts	Re: Are freshwater plants easy to get up and going? Aquarium salt hurt plants and inverts, and I only use it to treat rather than for therapeutic uses. If the fish are fine without it.. then I dont use it. I dont get fancy with my tank. If I had salt in my tank and ich appeared, I would either have to add more salt or decrease salt to interrupt the osmosis pressure to pop the ich cysts. Stock lights are not usually the right color spectrum anyway. You will need a fixture that can hold 5000K - 10,000K color spectrum bulbs and more watts. Ive noticed when I first grew water sprite, they just grew and died and grew and died because not enough light were hitting them, and new plants just spawned from the dead leaves, it was a never ending cycle. They never reached more than 3 inches. Try Java fern or Anubias Nana. These plants are immune to goldfish. __________________ 55gallon Light - 6500K CFL, 23wattsx5 5hr/day Substrate - Red Mexican Clay, Sphagnum Peat moss, Eco-Complete Misc- Pressurized CO2, EI Dose KNO3, KH2PO4, CSM-B Plants -Limnophila Aromatica, Stargrass, Dwarf Hair Grass, Christmas Moss, Baby Tears (HM), Dwarf Baby Tears(HC), Rotala Rotundifolia, Ludwigia Glandulosa, Riccia Fluitans

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