New to plants- need some growth & maintenance tips

[cgcaver]

I just went to petco about 5 days ago and bought some live plants for my tank. This is my first experience ever with live plants. They were all potted, and weren't labeled, but as best as I can tell I got 2x Brazillian Swords, 1x Hair Grass (dwarf), 2x Crinum thaianum (water onion), and 1x Cardamine lyrata

First off, does anyone know a good site that could help me make sure of what type of plants I got?

Secondly, are there any additives that would be very beneficial to treat my water with to ensure healthy plants, and to promote growth? I would love to know if there is a "catch all" product you guys use (or a few). I'm into as little work as possible What all is vital for me to have in my cabinet?
_________________
~ Gabe

Black Tiger Oscar - currently 4"
Pictus Catfish - currently 4"
55gal w/ AC500
Hooray for sand and live plants!

 

[Mr Burns]

Welcome to Newbieville - population: YOU!

Seriously though, welcome to the planted aquaria!

This might help with IDing the plants - http://www.plantgeek.net/plantguide_all_gallery.php

1. If the plants you call Brazillian Swords are Spathiphyllum tasson, they are NON-AQUATIC plants. In short time they'll beging to break down and foul up the water. Why the big chain stores sell aquarium plants that aren't actually aquarium plants is beyond me...I suppose there's a market for them though. Mondo grass...pfft!

2. How many watts of lighting is on the tank (55gal, correct?) I'm going to assume it's stock lighting and say Cardamine and Eleocharis (hairgrass) won't last long. Lighting dictates a lot, so we need to know this.

3. My "catch all" consists of a basic dechlorinator, potassium nitrate, mono potassium phosphate, potassium sulfate, Plantex CSM+boron, and Seachem Excel. See where I'm going with this? A "catch all" product does not exists. A combo of Seachem Flourish and Flourish Excel is a tried and true way to start out, but if you don't have enough lighting power the photosynthetic process, you're just going to end up with an algae mess (aka 'massively frustrated.) What you should have in the cabinet depends on what you want to do. Generally speaking, a low light tank will require less "stuff" than a high light tank.

4. As little work as possible??? Oy.

Check out http://www.rexgrigg.com/pg1.htm for a really good crash course. There is a lot to know about planted tanks, much like keeping a reef tank. Starting reading and ask questions (but do searches first because pretty much any newbie question has already been asked.)

 

[Mr Burns]

....I just read the other thread about your lighting. AHS (Aquarium Hobby Supply) can't be beat if you don't mind a little assembly. All the lights on all my aquariums have AHS lights - even the non-planted ones!

 

[BrianNY]

Welcome to AA Gabe If you're planning more than 2wpg on your lighting, you're going to need CO2. Basically, I wouldn't call this low maintenance. Growing plants at high light levels is quite a challenge and requires alot maintenance. I'm not trying to discourage you, just set you on the right path.

There are plenty of great looking plants which do well without alot of high tech equipment. Look back at some of the threads here on low light tanks for some ideas.