Caring for plants?

[Jesselav1233]

My tank is heavily planted and everything seems to be staying healthy but I want it to stay that way is their anything I can add like nutrients to the water for them I have discus catfish and tetras in the tank thanks for any advice

 

[Coursair]

My tank is heavily planted and everything seems to be staying healthy but I want it to stay that way is their anything I can add like nutrients to the water for them I have discus catfish and tetras in the tank thanks for any advice

What lights ?
Substrate ?
Ferts ?
CO2 ?
Root Tabs ?
What kinds of plants ?

How long have you had your plants ?

 

[mohican]

I would say if their healthy and happy, don't change anything. Making drastic changes could cause them to go the other way.

 

[Jesselav1233]

I would say if their healthy and happy, don't change anything. Making drastic changes could cause them to go the other way.

So plants can do well without all that stuff like ferts and co2 and all that other stuff? I've had my plants about a month and a half now none are dying or anything I just thought maybe they wouldn't last forever with out all that other stuff

 

[jetajockey]

If it's a low light setup they can do just fine without much intervention because they aren't utilizing their nutrients very quickly. The short answer: yes.


Nothing wrong with "if it ain't broke don't fix it"

 

[BBradbury]

Caring for Your Tank Plants

My tank is heavily planted and everything seems to be staying healthy but I want it to stay that way is their anything I can add like nutrients to the water for them I have discus catfish and tetras in the tank thanks for any advice

Hello J...

The key to healthy plants is first to have fish that won't eat them. After that, all you need to have is a lot of fish and change half the tank water every week or so to maintain the bulk nutrients. Then, dose the trace elements regularly. Those come from a commercial source in liquids, dry, granules or tablets. Just dose according to the instructions.

Hopefully, you've matched the plants to the right lighting and you're done.

B

 

[Jesselav1233]

Okay thanks guys I have discus and neons and sterbai catfish none of them eat the plants that I've seen so far and I do 50% water changes twice a week I guess I'll just stick to that and get the trace elements tabs to add to the water. One more question it definitely won't hurt any of the fish right?

 

[jetajockey]

Personally, on a low light setup I might not even bother dosing ferts unless you see an issue. (I don't know what your setup is)

Tap water systems often have a good bit of micronutrients in them and along with the fish load and feedings they provide a good bit of macronutrients as well. Depending on how densely planted the tank is and the level of lighting, you may get by fine without dosing a thing.

But yeah, dosing ferts isn't going to hurt anything, just follow the directions.

 

[BBradbury]

Aquatic Plant Care

Okay thanks guys I have discus and neons and sterbai catfish none of them eat the plants that I've seen so far and I do 50% water changes twice a week I guess I'll just stick to that and get the trace elements tabs to add to the water. One more question it definitely won't hurt any of the fish right?

Hello again J...

As long as the ferts are recommended for aquarium use, then your fish will be fine. Your aggressive water change routine is admirable. If you perform this routine religiously, you can eliminate over filtering your tank and won't need to test your tank chemistry. The water won't be in the tank long enough for pollutants to build up before the next large change.

Good for you!

B

 

[Jesselav1233]

Hello again J...

As long as the ferts are recommended for aquarium use, then your fish will be fine. Your aggressive water change routine is admirable. If you perform this routine religiously, you can eliminate over filtering your tank and won't need to test your tank chemistry. The water won't be in the tank long enough for pollutants to build up before the next large change.

Good for you!

B

Thanks I have the perfect set up so it's easy I just drain with a siphon and clean 1/3 of the substrate during each water change and my house's drain is about 5 feet from my tanks so dumping the water is no problem then I just hook my hose to my sink and watch it fill back up I never miss a water change either I have to test my waters to prove to myself I should wait the half a week before I change it lol guess I'm obsessed I refuse to let my nitrates go above 5

 

[BBradbury]

Careing for Your Plants

Hello again J...

I've been avoiding water changes for the most part in one of my tanks. I emersed "Aglaonema" land plants into the tank water. The plants remove all ammonia, nitrites and most of the nitrates. I like a few nitrates for my aquatic plants.

I still maintain the standard HOBs to filter the water at night, when the plants rest. The land plants do such a good job of removing pollutants, I just need to replace the water lost to evaporation.

This is an older pic, the plants are larger than this now.

B

 

[Jesselav1233]

Hello again J...

I've been avoiding water changes for the most part in one of my tanks. I emersed "Aglaonema" land plants into the tank water. The plants remove all ammonia, nitrites and most of the nitrates. I like a few nitrates for my aquatic plants.

I still maintain the standard HOBs to filter the water at night, when the plants rest. The land plants do such a good job of removing pollutants, I just need to replace the water lost to evaporation.

This is an older pic, the plants are larger than this now.

B

That looks amazing!! What are the green and white ones sticking out of the top they look awesome I want some of those I don't have anything on the top of my tank but I read discus really like being able to swim around In the roots here's a pic of mine

 

[BBradbury]

Plant Care

J...

I like the job you've done aquascaping your tank. Mine aren't as neatly done. My planted tanks have a lot of pots in them, so they won't win any beauty contests. Attached is a pic of one of my 55 Gs.

The emersed plants are "Chinese Evergreen". They'll only grow with the roots under the water. The leaves have to be outside to take in CO2 from the air. The leaves also need indirect or ambient room light. The roots need a constant source of oxygen, so I have a large air pump going and have rubber tubes running under the plant roots.

The roots are white and get long and thick. The more heavily stocked the tank, the more plants you need, but the faster they'll grow. I also dose a liquid source of the "trace elements". I just mix the liquid with the replacement water. Other than the water "top off" and servicing the filter equipment regularly, the tank is pretty self sufficient.

B

 

[Jesselav1233]

I like how your tanks look with the pots in there and everything and so many plants it looks great I'm starting to appreciate the plants as much as the fish now lol

 

[Jesselav1233]

Is their a similar plant I could put in the top of my tank so the roots are hanging down that wouldn't require extra air pumps under the roots that u know of my tanks do have windows above them so anything sticking up would have indirect natural sun light?

 

[BBradbury]

Plant Care

J...

There are a couple of others similar to the Aglaonema. Not that they look similar, but they'll grow if the roots are emersed and the rest of the plant is above water and those are Peace lily and Impatiens.

Actually, if you have strong filtration in the tank, you'll have a high oxygen level in the water. So, the added aeration may not be needed. Anyway, the plants are very inexpensive and you can get them at Lowe's, King Soopers or possibly Wal-Mart.

You just need to rig up a way to keep the plant leaves out of the water. I used a piece of plastic lattice and opened the glass canopy covering the tank and layed the lattice across it. I just fit the plant roots through the lattice. The lattice keeps the leaves out of the water. Peace lily is large enough to use a lattice piece, but Impatiens are much smaller. If you use those, you'll need to use something besides lattice, I think.

B

 

[Jesselav1233]

Okay thank you I'm definitely going to look into getting some for my tank