adding plants before cycling

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Yes, it's important to add plants during or before the cycling process!!
 
Well this is a double edged sword of sorts. Yes, the plants can contain some beneficial bacteria on them - that will help seed your cycle. On the other hand, if you are doing a fishless cycle with ammonia - some plants can die off with the high ammonia levels you experience during a fishless cycle.

You could try looking into what they call a silent cycle. If you google it you can find tons of info on it. I still recommend fishless cycling with ammonia though.
 
i added some low light plants (java fern, wendtii, and anubias) in the middle of my cycle. i used pure ammonia to start my cycle and keep it going. the plants did great, and i believe they actually sped up my cycle. i say add them now, and just be careful about how much you leave your lights on. i guess if you leave them on too long you can have algae problems. i left them on 10-12 hours a day with no algae at all. good luck! :)
 
meegosh, thats what i was thinking as well

mommytron, thnx for the advice =] i was thinking adding some Wisteria and micro swords, think those would work?
 
i planted as i was initially filling my tank.. lots of stem plants are good for the cycle even if you don't plan to keep them, i know some people just float the extras. i had a bunch of water sprite, wisteria, anacharis, stuff like that, and they exploded with growth during the cycle at 2wpg. i ended up adding fish during my 5th week. its nice too because your plants are about filled in and coloring up at the time you begin to stock.
 
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