Setting up a Planted tank first timer questions

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kaz

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Joined
Sep 19, 2005
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good day I am buying a new 60g tank and would like to setup maybe half of the tank with real life plants randomly and roots/driftwood. i will be buying the rena xp3 for filtration and the plants i am looking on are as follow:
Riccia Fluitans
Amazon Frogbite
Crinum
Java Fern
Riccia Fluitans
Dwarf Hairgrass
Java Moss
Moss Balls
Glossostigma elatinoides
Christmas Moss
Beautiful Lilaeopsis brasiliensis
Bacopa Australis
Saggitaria Dwarf
Saggitaria Subulata
Pennywort
Ludwigia Repens

all these are what I've been liking so far and need to know everything about what works and what doesnt. I also need to know what lights to buy if I need any and any other equipment, fertilizers, substrate etc.
 
You can find many answers to your questions by reading the informational stickies at the beginning of this forum. Your plant list is quite varied and have separate needs.
 
In a nutshell, you'll want about 180watts of light, and CO2 injection. You've chosen several high light, CO2 demanding plants.

Eco complete for substrate, as most plants root better/spread better in it than flourite, in my experience.
 
ok so I notice co2 is important and I'm not ready to take that on yet. out of the list I provided is their any plants and I can use without having to setup a co2 system?
 
Definately. Under, say, 100-120 watts of light you could grow the following (and maybe others, theses are just the ones I've read about), without CO2:

Java Fern
Crinum natans
Java Moss
Pennywort
Ludwigia Repens

For this setup you could also consider most crytocorynes.

For pictures and info about plants you should check out the plant guide at www.plantgeek.net
Check out the Low and Medium-low light plants for other plants that would work with this setup.
 
I would think about buying a big variety like that once again anyway. I've bough masses of plants when I first set up my 70gal. It looked crazy and not very tranquil 8O . And after a couple month I had to take out plants, because after they've been growing a little they didn't fit in there anymore or died because they didn't get any light :evil: . And there went all the money I've paid for them... :evil:

I would stick to about 10 different types if you want to go heavily planted. You can look at www.tropica.com or www.plantgeek.net for info about light requirement and mature size. That way you can decide which plants look best, you can keep without high light and CO2, and where to place them depending on their height :wink: .
 
I agree with Tiffi...too many plant species makes the tank look cluttered, not 'aquascaped'.

But on the flip-side, starting with a wider range, you'll figure out what plants work best for you (that grow well, that aren't a beast to maintain/prune, and plants that your fish don't eat/uproot).

Also, CO2 use is driven by lighting. If you're not ready for CO2, don't exceed 2 watts per gallon of lighting. Even then, you might wanna dose Excel, or play around with DIY CO2. DIY isn't very viable on a 60gal high light tank, but with lower light you could familiarize yourself with CO2,a nd not have to worry about overdoing it.
DIY CO2 would cost $10 or less to build for that tank, including the bag of sugar, yeast, and a 1gallon juice jug.
 
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