Here we go!

[sstafford]

Got my first planted tank up and running. I have a 10g tank that used to just be the home of three goldfish. After about a week of reading articles I finally took the plunge (thanks for the advice everyone). Heres whats going on:

Dwarf onion
Scarlet Temple
Fril
Anubias
three goldfish

The goldfish are temporary. I wanted to switch to a planted tank but didn't have the heart to get rid of them. So I'm waiting to get a large bowl
from a friend, or maybe a small tank.

Some notes:
- I have some rocks that I found. From what Ive read they're safe. I want to put these in before the plants start getting too situated, but Im still working on the design.
- The onion isn't really what I was looking for. I wanted something more like a tall Sagittaria. Also, has anyone used Scarlet Temple before? Does it turn out nice?
- I'm a college student, so I'm working with a tight budget. Plants don't cost much but equipment does, so I'm trying to find plants that don't need C02 or warm water, but fit together nice. (..for now)

I'm open to suggestions, and love experimenting if theres any ideas someone has been wanting to try. Let me know what you think.

[Purrbox]

The Frill is a High Light Plant, so if you're running standard light on the aquarium it won't have enough light.

The Scarlet Temple Plant is actually Alternanthera reineckii. That should make it easier to find information on it. This plant also needs a lot of light.

The Anubias is an excellant choice for most any aquarium and is often ignored by plant eating fish since it's rather tough.

[JustOneMore20]

3 Goldfish are actually going to need around a 40g tank. They are messy fish and need alot of space since most of them grow atleast 6"......and can get up to 12". Give the Goldies to someone who has a pond or a large empty tank. They will die in a bowl or a small tank.

I'm assuming you have stock lighting. I agree with Purrbox, the Frill and Alternanthera need alot of light and likely won't thrive in your setup.

Java fern, Anubias, and Anacharis are good choices for low light tanks.

[sstafford]

I upgraded my lighting to a 20W Eclipse Fluorescent Lamp, so I'm right on the 2W/g level. Still not enough you think?
The main reason I got these plants is because they were available at my LFS. How is buying plants online? Do they normally turn out just as well as ones bought at a store?
I would be willing to give my goldfish away if i find someone with a bigger setup nearby. But I may just have to set them free in the Hudson River once I cant occupy them. Tragic.

[sstafford]

The first two pictures were taken before I switched the light source. You can almost see a difference in the third picture.

[spilzer]

Please don't let your fish free in the wild. As tempting as it may be (and I've been tempted regarding a certain pesky chinese algae eater no one seems to want), this is how invasive species can get a proveribal foot (fin?) in the door and take over local ecologies.

If you can't find a friend to take them for you consider asking your LFS if they would be willing to take them (possibly even for store credit).

[pitt420dude]

Yeah I'm sure your LFS will take em.

I had a guy at my LFS tell me that Hygrophila was illegal to sell anymore b/c it is a NNIS (Non-native invasive species). They can cause huge problems. Google zebra mussels for a similar story.

Strangely, the next week I picked up some Hygrophila at the same store.

[Purrbox]

Originally Posted by sstafford

I upgraded my lighting to a 20W Eclipse Fluorescent Lamp, so I'm right on the 2W/g level. Still not enough you think?

Unfortunately these smaller aquariums need more light that you would expect to hit the various lighting levels. You're probably somewhere around low to medium low light with that fixture.

I highly recommend keeping an eye on the barter trade section now that it's starting warm up. Lots of members will share their trimmings for the cost of shipping or shipping plus an nominal amount for the plants. This is an inexpensive way to get a nice assortment of plants. These are generally in larger quantities and better quality than what you'll find at the LFS. Not to mention often being plants that you simply can't get at your LFS.

[An t-iasg]

Originally Posted by spilzer

Please don't let your fish free in the wild. As tempting as it may be (and I've been tempted regarding a certain pesky chinese algae eater no one seems to want), this is how invasive species can get a proveribal foot (fin?) in the door and take over local ecologies.

If you can't find a friend to take them for you consider asking your LFS if they would be willing to take them (possibly even for store credit).

I agree. Please don't release aquarium fish into the wild. I'm sure you can get an lfs (local fish store) to take the fish back for you. It doesn't matter if you didn't buy them there; most stores have some policies for taking back fish. At the very least, they will take the fish off your hands, and if you're lucky, you'll get some store credit. Try an "independent" store first before you try the chain stores (Petsmart, etc.)

[sstafford]

I won't release them. I couldn't bring myself to do that. Getting store credit is a good idea though.
Ill start looking around in the b/t section for different plants to use that will work with my light (Thanks Purrbox). Maybe there will be someone that is looking for goldfish.