setting up a new planted tank, advice needed

[Scottm]

I am getting a 29 gallon and I am going to plant micro sword in the foreground and alot of annubias nana at the peripheries, I was going to use some driftwood to plant some java moss on but I want something to add height to the display. I have thought about amazon sword but I want some suggestions. and just for fun what would you stock it with? I was looking into about 5 cories probably julies and a large school of some kind of tetra but if you have a good thought I might change my mind.

 

[TomK2]

Potted crypts can get some height to them. Looks like you and I are attempting our planted tanks about the same time!

 

[Jchillin]

If you are new to planted tanks, take a look at the sticky's at the beginning of this forum.

As far as fish selection...I like the idea of the cory's. I have 4 julii's in my tank. A school of colorful tetras? Rummynoses are pretty cool. You can still fit a dwarf pleco in there like a bristlenose.

 

[Scottm]

I have some good experience with planted tanks. I had a very successful 10 gallon that was loads of fun. I got rid of everything/sold it when I had to move though. I have a 10 gal nanno marine tank but I want something else to play with so I'm thinking this would be good. I just want this new tank to be different from my last setup so thats why I'm here otherwise I'll just end up with the same plants in a bigger tank. cool but I want something new.

 

[Psybuster]

i'm having adequate success for a 3 1/2 week old planted tank. My advice is to GET CO2 ASAP, otherwise you'll have such a bad algae problem like i did. A good filter helps as well. If you are planting plants that need good nutrients, get flourite (my mistake that I never got it to begin with) and then layer gravel on top. Just a few things from what I've experienced so far. I have some amazon swords, some grass, java moss, and other plants in with some small 3" Koi. So far everything has been working out good.

 

[gheitman]

Something that has been talked about yet is how much light is on the 29 gallon tank. Swords generally require at least medium light which isn't supplied by the standard 20W fixture you find on tanks that size. If all you have is 20W then the Anubias should do fine and you can also look at Java fern, Java moss and African fern. You don't need CO2 at this level of light. Here is a link where you can search for plants based on the amount of light they require.

http://www.plantgeek.net/plantguide_cat.php?category=1

I hope this helps.

 

[Scottm]

no I have my own fixtures on the tank at around 1.5 watts per gallon. I understand anything much more then that and co2 injection is almost required for the plants to keep up and prevent algae. I am also planning on using a low light fertilizer (flourish) to boost my growth a little and insure the right amounts of trace elements that might not be there. I'm not that new to this I just wanted some advice on some tall plants I might not have thought of, I had java ferns in my last tank and really wasn't that happy with them, the grew alright but were kind of boring as far as looks. thanks for the link.

 

[gfink]

Check out this thread:
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?p=474064#474064

and http://www.plantgeek.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=32193#32193

 

[hashbaz]

I don't know if an amazon sword is what you want. I have a 29 with 1.5wpg and here is my experience. The leaves start oval shaped but in low-light the leaves will change to long and skinny. My amazon sword is almost too big for the 29. My only complaint about it is that it is too big to effectively "landscape" - It doesn't fit in the back of the aquarium.

 

[TomK2]

ScotM,
I am startimg my first 10 gal, 15 watt, no CO2 planted tank tomorrow! Any advice you can give my from your successful 10 gal tank experience would be appreciated!

 

[travis simonson]

If you're looking for taller plants you should check out Cryptocorynes, namely C. spiralis and C. retrospiralis. They have long, thin, wavy leaves and grow well in low-light tanks. Amazon swords will quickly outgrow a 10G tank. If you want any starters let me know and I will send you some

 

[Scottm]

yeah I would love some starters, I was aprehensive of the size of amazon swords which is why I was looking for advice.(BTW your tank is the reason I want to do another planted tank.) Tomk2, the best advice I can give you is go slow and be consistant. It takes a long time for plants to react to what you are doing unless it is bad so as long as your plants are doing ok then you should keep doing what you are doing. I highly recomend using flourish once every 3 weeks or so it really helped balance out gaps in my nutrients and helped my plants grow and stay a lush green. Doing this I even got my annubias to flower in a lowlight tank. small tanks can be very beautiful but you have to be patient.

 

[TomK2]

Thanks. All I could find at the LFS today was some anubias, a potted crypt, and some anachris. Tank is too cloudy for pics. But they are in and the Plantslayer stalks again!

 

[crazycat]

i had a 29g and grew onion plants (crinum thiaanum) which grew really really long (about 3 feet) very beautiful leaves about 1/2" wide. the leaves would float at the top of the tank and undulate in the current--quite lovely. i'm not 100% sure you have enough light for them, but if you do, i recommend them as a good backdrop, tall, dramatic plant. the same goes for jungle vals or contortionist vals which also grow very long and float at the top of the tank. again, not 100% sure of their light requirements...i think medium which may not work with your setup.

hth