I goofed

[jabo]

I wanted plants but being new I went ahead and put several in my tank with gravel. They seemed to be doing okay, added extra lights and ferts. But now I read that plants do not do well in gravel so is there any way I can add other stuff to it without harming fish. In other words I read that there is a clay product I can use but I am sure it would really cloud the tank. Its a 55gal with several tetra's.

 

[neilanh]

What type of plants? You can definately grow plants in gravel, just not as well as in a better substrate.

 

[jabo]

Well I wish I could tell you what kind but I just go to Petsmart and buy what looks pretty. I also wish I were smart enough to post the pictures but again I'm not. I am 69 years old and just not computer savvy.
But thanks for the info. I guess I will leave them alone and hope for the best. Do you know how often I should add fertlizer?

 

[neilanh]

Can you tell me a little more about your setup? How much lighting, do you do weekly water changes? If you just have standard lighting, you probably won't need to worry with fertilizers or any of the extra stuff for a low-light setup.

The only thing I'd caution you about buy plants from petsmart is that they tend to sell plants for aquariums that are non-aquatic, meaning eventually they'll die and rot in your tank.

 

[jabo]

http://i436.photobucket.com/albums/qq90/jeraldh/004.jpg

I do regular water changes and the lighting I just ordered from Big AL's.
Tank has been set up for some time now and I check water every few days. I hope you can see the picture I am trying to show in photobucket.

 

[bs6749]

Were the plants in tanks when you purchased them or were they in the plastic containers on the shelves? The first step in getting you help is identifying what type of plants you have and then making recommendations to you based on the what they are.

 

[bs6749]

Okay, you have swords and a jungle val. The swords should be fine in the gravel in my opinion and the val would most liekly do better in a sandier substrate since it reproduces by runners. How much light do you have over the tank? You are going to want to AVOID dosing Flourish Excel because it is known to melt away vals. I would stop doing water changes since the nitrates would do nothing but help your plants to grow. How long has the tank been setup?

 

[jabo]

They were in tanks. here is what my tank looks like.
http://i436.photobucket.com/albums/qq90/jeraldh/004.jpg

 

[jabo]

Tank has been set up and going for about a year, I had chiclid's but they fought too much so I gave them to fish store about a month ago and started planting. Thats when I went with Beta's as they seem to not bother plants and are more peaceful.
1 bristle nose
1 dwarf gourami red fire
2 red wag platy
3 black skirt tetra
3 red minor serpae tetra
14 cardinal tetra