I don't think anyone around me carries those shrimp. I live in cedar rapids Iowa so... My options are really limited.
You can always order shrimp online and have them mailed to you. Check out the
Classifieds forum - there's usually someone selling shrimp. Rachel at
Invertebrates by Msjinkzd also usually has them in stock (even if not listed, it's worth emailing her to ask).*
And I have no experience with plants, how would I go about that?
The
Planted Tank forum is a reasonable place to do some reading. There's stickies with some links to articles about starting out. Don't get freaked out by the discussion of CO2 and high intensity lighting and DIY fertilizers - you can start simple with easy, low light, low maintenance plants and go from there. If you're going do to shrimp, they love things like Java Moss, which is an easy low-maintenance, low-light plant. (They love plants in general.)
Plants can also be purchased online and shipped if you don't have any local suppliers. Again, I'd look in the classifieds and in the plant forums. Sometimes if you post and ask nicely, someone will send you some trimmings for minimal cost (i.e., the cost of shipping).
A 3.5 gallon would make a really nice planted shrimp tank. There's a forum on invertebrates (e.g., shrimp) where you can learn more.
*I have no commercial ties or interest in this enterprise. Just have received good stock in the past.
so I'm looking for suggestions on aquascape / stock.
