how is this done/grown??

[HopefulHobbiest]

How do people get the really small grass/plants to cover the entire bottom of their tank??

i think it looks soooo cool but i can't figure it out

i have a pic attached that i found on google that may help you understand what i'm talking about... its the really bright and short grass in the front...

 

[aqua_chem]

CO2, strong light, and good fertilization technique, largely in that order.

 

[HopefulHobbiest]

and the carpet grass will just grow on its own? i don't know a lot about plants but i don't see how that works..

 

[Rivercats]

It appears to be dwarf hair grass. You get some and split it into small portions and plant it in a a checker board pattern so it fills in better. Plant the little portions about an inch or so apart from each other. Then you have to keep it trimmed short and neat once it grows in. IMO it is alot of work.

 

[HopefulHobbiest]

so you wouldn't recommend trying the carpet grass idea???

 

[Rivercats]

Hey if that's what you like and want go for it. My tank is so deep I couldn't do it if I wanted to. If you don't mind alittle extra maintenance then there is no reason not to try it. If you end up not liking it you can always change it but if you don't try you'll always wonder if you should have done it.

 

[HopefulHobbiest]

Thats a good point... maybe I'll try it in the 40g im setting up.. I think my 55 would be too deep to maintain as well as the 125 im getting... I'll give it a shot though

 

[aqua_chem]

I'm not sure what depth has to do with anything really. Deeper tanks just need stronger lights, but it's entirely possible to grow a nice, lush carpet in a 55g tank with just a 2xT5HO fixture. Most people simply don't want to shell out the money for a complete setup (easily $300+) to get these results. There is also a lot of maintenance and effort that goes into high tech planted setups. That being said, DHG (eleocharis parvula) is of the easier species to make carpet.

 

[HopefulHobbiest]

Thats not bad considering I was looking at T5 lights for the 40g and was planing on heavy planting so this all kinda fits into the plan...

 

[Rivercats]

I'm talking about having a deep/tall tank and trying to do maintenance on short plants as far as trimming them. I have 24" aquascaping tools and it's still hard to do since the tank is tall, the stand makes it taller than me, so I have to stand on a step stool using extra long tools for trimming. So depth is important in that respect.

 

[HopefulHobbiest]

wow that's gotta be a pain....

 

[Rivercats]

wow that's gotta be a pain....

It sucks to be short sometimes!

 

[HopefulHobbiest]

lol i can only imagine

 

[aqua_chem]

Touche. I can see where that would be prohibitive.

 

[Rivercats]

Yeah touche... in this house hubby at 6'5", daughers 5"8" and up, son 6'3 and they all loved reminding me of how short I was at a whole 5'3". So yep, being short around here sucks! But then it always got me out of doing any jobs that needed tall people to do them, the one plus!

 

[Aqualady40]

Yeah touche... in this house hubby at 6'5", daughers 5"8" and up, son 6'3 and they all loved reminding me of how short I was at a whole 5'3". So yep, being short around here sucks! But then it always got me out of doing any jobs that needed tall people to do them, the one plus!

Don't feel bad, I am a whoping 5'1 and my baby daughter is 4'11

 

[HopefulHobbiest]

hahahaha thats pretty awesome...

 

[jetajockey]

I feel short every time I have to get a stepladder to work in the 120, and still my armpits get wet when I am fiddling with the substrate.

For a less demanding carpet type plant, I suggest marsilea minuta.

 

[Rivercats]

I feel short every time I have to get a stepladder to work in the 120, and still my armpits get wet when I am fiddling with the substrate.

For a less demanding carpet type plant, I suggest marsilea minuta.

Yeah well I can't even reach the substrate! I'm very careful about what gets put where so I can tend to it but big tanks definitely have thier disadvantage with thier size sometimes.

Dwarf baby tears is also a good carpet plant and it doesn't need any trimming.

 

[HopefulHobbiest]

Dwarf baby tears is also a good carpet plant and it doesn't need any trimming.

well i may go with that then... i can find both on Liveaquaria.com