Plants for a 40 gal.long

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Shesky

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
May 1, 2013
Messages
13
Location
Ocean City, NJ
Son-in-law has asked to redo his 40 gal. long with plants. He wants to have a sand substrate and I will give him three 5" red hooks. He also does not have a C02 system, the aquarium will get mid level light, and he has some good pieces of driftwood. Any suggestions as to what plants would be proper for these parameters? Any suggestions would be really appreciated as son-in-law does not usually ask for help.

Shesky
 
Welcome!

Cool! Here's some mid light level plants you could look up. I'll post a link to a couple of sites you can research. On the Tropica site medium light would be anything rated as 0.25 watts per liter. Some of my favorites are:
Background - Water wisteria, Ambulia, Cryptocoryne wendtii, Hygrophila corymbosa,
Mid ground & centerpiece - Anubias barteri, Echinodorus 'ozelot', Echinodorus Red Flame, Echinodorus Vesuvius, Red Tiger Lotus, Java Fern.
Foreground - Marsilea hirsute, Alternanthera reineckii 'Mini'
For growing on rocks or driftwood - Java moss, Christmas moss, Subwassertang.
There are many others but that's a start. Think about what you will use for fertilizers and a carbon source like Excel or Gluteraldehyde. Also the are good sand like substrates for plants like Eco-complete fine grade.
Tropica Aquarium Plants
Live Aquarium Plants
AquariumPlants.com
Extraplant Aquarium Plants: All Aquarium Plants
Good luck, have fun. OS.
 
Thanks so much - I will check out all those sites and research what thrive and look the best. Thanks especially for the wide variety to choose from.

Shesky
 
Do you know what lights and bulbs he will be using exactly? What you consider medium light may not be and knowing the exact lighting will determine which plants will thrive in the tank.
 
Rivercats Thanks for the question - right now it is simply the light that came with the tank - so I know he will need at least a new bulb that will foster plant growth. Sorry, I do not know more than that but my son-in-law is 3 hours away. I am going to try to work within over the weekends.
 
Tank Lighting

Rivercats Thanks for the question - right now it is simply the light that came with the tank - so I know he will need at least a new bulb that will foster plant growth. Sorry, I do not know more than that but my son-in-law is 3 hours away. I am going to try to work within over the weekends.

Hello Shesky...

Lighting that comes with a tank is mainly for viewing the fish and not for growing aquatic plants. If you stick with the subdued lighting that comes with a tank kit, then you'll be limited on what will grow. Possibilities are Anubias, Java fern, Pennywort, Anacharis and Hornwort. But, with a little fertilizer, like Seachem Comprehensive, your son-in-law's tank may do fairly well.

B
 
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