Easiest Plants to Grow?

[pitt420dude]

What the easiest plants to grow? I have a gravel substrate and actinius lighitng. I would love just one or two hardy plants that I woulnt have to fertilize or mess with, but would just grow strong naturally on its own. Does driftwood help plants grow?

 

[severum mama]

If you want some really easy plants, go with java fern and anubias. I have a super crappy light strip on both my planted tanks, and I keep java ferns, anubias nana, and anubias barteri with no problems. You can attach java ferns to driftwood by clipping the roots and tying the plant to the wood, and in a few weeks the plants will attach to the wood and you can cut the string off.

 

[An t-iasg]

Moving to Planted Tank forum.

Java moss, java fern, anubias, and cryptocorynes will work well in a low-light tank. I have these plants with 1.5 WPG of light. You could tie the java fern to the driftwood like severum mama suggested. I had some tied to a rock.

I think actinic lighting is just for reef tanks. I think this light is too strong for FW plants. Malkore will know for sure since he has planted tanks and a SW tank.

 

[malkore]

actinic lighting isn't good for plants. It doesn't provide a full spectrum. need to swap out the bulb.

 

[pitt420dude]

so can i just use the actinius lighting? Is it necessary for the java fern or other hardy plants to grow to have light, there is some indirect sunlight shining in the tank.

 

[kagentx]

adding to what malkore said, actinic bulbs promotes algae growth and plants do not benefit from them. Just spent $12 on a daylight bulb of 6700 K.

 

[BASSNMAN]

I have had good luck with water wysteria. I need to trim it weekly.

 

[mitche8359]

Here's some plants I wrote down when I started with plants.

Low Light
java moss
java fern
(Microsorium pteropus)
Anubias barteri
Elodea densa (Anacharis)
Cabomba caroliniana
(Cabomba)
Riccia Fluitan
Echinodorus tenellus (Pygmy Chain Sword)

 

[malkore]

No, as I already said, you need to change out at least 1 actinic bulb for a plant type bulb (anything from 5000-10000K...I recommend something around 6700K).

Contrary to some rumors, actinic light doesn't necessarily promote algae.
However algae is an opportunistic organism. if you have a nutrient imbalance, and extra actinic lighting, your algae bloom is going to occur much faster.

 

[swanandmokashi]

Get aponogeton/tiger lily lotus from wal-mart. I have 0.5 Watts/Gallon 8O 8O and they do quite well in there

 

[pitt420dude]

Thanks but I think I am buying the GE 9325 that Rex Grigg recommended in his article about planted tanks. I am wondering about my substrate though, I am not even really sure what it is but it is a fairly coarse gravel. How do i tell if it is coated or uncoated? IS it necessary to rip up my tank to install different substrate or mix in additional flourite (i read seachems is the best?)???