starting an under water garden.....

[onah]

hey guys so i guess its time to see about what i would need, i am constructing a ballast to hold 2-3 blubs, and it will be a 10g, prob going to leave my betta in there, and maybe get a small school of something later. my question is will the bulbs and the betta be enough? i know they feed off the feces. will he produce enough to go around?i want to put alot(plants) into it, i am currently trying to buy everything i can from people here on the site. any donations ? well either way, few other questions, how will i clean the tank gravel? do i need to?i want to get a bed of something along the floor, i think i like the way java moss is looking and everything i read says it grows fast so.
is that a good idea? will i regret it?how much pruning is acctually involved in?

[7Enigma]

You need to visit the planted forum, the mods will probably move this to that part of the site.

In a heavily planted tank as you want to have a single betta will not produce enough ammonia to feed the plants, especially at light levels that you most likely will have when you upgrade the tank lights. A school of some small fish (that are compatible with the betta) will help to increase the bioload. My fully stocked planted tank only recently began to require nitrAte dosing which is what your fish would supply in the ammonia form.

Gravel vacuuming is still done in planted tanks, though to a lesser degree. I normally find that the majority of fish waste gets trapped in the root areas of my plants and every once in a while will vacuum them out. Many people don't do any substrate cleaning at all in a heavily planted tank.

Your other questions relate directly to the amount of light these ballasts you are making produce. If normal output (NO) lights, they produce 10watts per foot of light. On small tanks such as 10gallons and less the amount of watts/gallon required is higher than on larger tanks.

You really need to read the main sticky in the planted forum as this will answer many of your questions (and make you have a lot more! ). Things like CO2, fertilizer dosing, and pruning are all discussed. We are also very friendly to new members to the planted tank as we can give you a LOT of advice on what not to do.

So in short, the light level in a planted tank is the most important for determining maximum plant growth, but is also the area where the beginner gets most into trouble. It's a fine line between having the proper nutrients for the specific light level leading to incredible growth, and growing a tank full of algae!

[onah]

please move to correct forum.....

[Devilishturtles]

Moved.

[Jchillin]

7Enigma has hit several nails on the head. Once you get your lighting straightened out, you can then discuss a variety of foreground plants for the tank.