What am I working with here.

[BEANS]

I bought some plants for the LFS where I live before I really cared or thought it mattered what I had. Could some of you guys help me identify some of these. They are all from two different plants I bought that have grown some off or I separated when I bought them. Also I have been using this 65w plant growth lamp outside my tank (infront) when im home to help growth along side my 32w hood lamp. Is this enough or what should I do diff lightwise?

ps I also have a liquid plant growth mixture I bought that I squirt directly on the plants from time to time.

thanks for any help! I am posting link and trying to upload photos so hope 1 works.

here is the link:
Pictures by aquabeans - Photobucket

 

[BillD]

Plants 2 and 3 are terrestrial, plant one looks like a bog plant.

 

[BEANS]

Hey Thanks BillD. Now time to google them and see what kind of a time im gonna have keeping them alive! By the way do they look like they are doing ok? I have had them for about 3 weeks or so.


Edit: crap. Does this mean I should only expect the terrestrial plant to live a short time in my tank before rotting. Or do some terrestrial plants live fully submerged in aquariums?

 

[fort384]

BEANS,

Yes, unfortunately the terrestrial plants are not going to make it. It would be best to remove them before they start rotting, which can cause some real algae problems, and water quality problems.

Check out PlantGeek.net - Plant Guide. They have a great section that details non-aquatic plants that are marketed as aquatic. Not sure why stores sell them, but you are not the first one -- a lot of people end up with the same plants you have. In fact, I had a dracaena s. in my tank before I found this site.

I think those lights will probably help some, but I don't think you could count the total wattage toward figuring out how much light you have over your tank. A lot of the light would be reflected/not used by tank by placing them in front with no reflectors.

Also, you will want to set your lights up on a timer. It is important to establish a fairly constant photoperiod once you get some aquatic plants. You can pick up a cheap timer from your LHS, or some pricier digital timers from your LFS. A good rule of thumb is to light the tank around ten hours a day when trying to grow out a scape, and somewhere around 8 hrs a day to maintain a scape. Balancing your lighting is one of the most important factors in controlling algae growth.

 

[BEANS]

thanks, so is the bog plant also not going to make it or just the other one?

 

[TankGirl]

Bog plants don't like to be completely submerged, so it will not be a long-term resident, but there is no reason to pull it until it starts dying, assuming you don't have a bog to put it in, lol. If it would be tossed in the compost pile, you might as well enjoy it while it still looks nice.

Many, many shops sell terrestrial plants as aquarium plants. I don't get it. Also avoid liriope, another common terrestrial plant sold as an aquatic.

 

[BEANS]

Tankgirl thanks for your help. I looked at some of your pics, very nice. What kind of lighting and how much do you have on that planted tank. Also was it DIY or did you buy it somewhere? Thanks.

 

[missileman]

Plant #3 I have a couple in my tank.
I can't remember the name but I bought it from Petco, it was one of those prepackaged plants off the shelf that is in a clear gell.
It is sold as an aquatic plant.
I have had mine about 2 months and it is still alive but has had no new growth.

 

[TankGirl]

What kind of lighting and how much do you have on that planted tank. Also was it DIY or did you buy it somewhere? Thanks.

Which tank do you mean? Some of those pics are rather old, but everything is DIY in this house! Well, later on I got pressurized CO2 that I run now, but DIY CO2 on small tanks.


missileman, the plant #3 is Dracaena.

 

[BEANS]

Your 150 and 55g, I have a 75g that i trying to get ready for some java ferns and other plants. any tips?

 

[TankGirl]

The 150 is mostly java fern, moss, Anubias and crypts, since that was what I had when I set it up, and as long as you have a little bit of fluorescent lighting you can grow those without any special care. Just rubber band the java fern/moss and the Anubias to a structure and it will attach itself. Do not plant them in the substrate. Cryptocorine species need to be planted, but are low light plants that require little if any special care.

I think the best way to go about it is to start out with low lighting and easy plants, and get the tank settled in and established, with good plant growth, and over time you can bump up your lighting, making things more complicated, but slowly and gradually. As you increase lighting you really have to stay on top of nutrients so the plants will grow rapidly and starve out the algae that will want to proliferate with the added light. That's just my cautious method that eases the learning curve a bit - maybe not how others would do it.

Try to get at least 1.5 wpg lighting over your tank no more than 12 hours per day. I do not think what you have currently is adequate, even for the low light plants. Do you have any flexibility with your hood to add a fixture?

 

[BEANS]

I dont know Ill take a picture of it today on my lunch break and post it here. the actual fixture i have now is only 40w max so ill probably need a new fixture altogether. There is no hood on my tank its just the light fixture on top of the glass so if Im understanding you right I can probably add anything I wanted. Any Ideas on what kind of lighting fixture I need. Also I will probably need about 130 to 150 watts for my 75g right? thanks for all your help

 

[beglely]

missleman, i believe plant no. 3 is a draceana sanderiana, or a white ribbon plant. Petco sells these saying they are an aquatic plant. I made the mistake of buying it assuming Petco knew what they were selling, and then upon further research learned they wont thrive underwater. And I must be the fifth perso to say this on this thread alone but i still dont know why they sell these either

 

[TankGirl]

What would be great to start out with on this 75 would be a fixture with 2 65w CFL bulbs. Current makes some inexpensive fixtures like this. It would be decent light but not so much that you run into trouble. Then, later, you could add another one of those, perhaps, to increase your light to grow some more challenging plants.

 

[Da Squid]

TankGirl, your suggestion to start with low light plants and working up to more challenging things is exactly what I had in mind as well.
Is there a substrate mixture you might reccomend to sustain low lights with the option of getting crazly later on?

I'm guessing the cheap way to go would be some fine substrate underneath a layer of gravel and add root tabs as needed, but please correct me on this, i'm clueless.

 

[TankGirl]

If you want the option of "getting crazy" later on, I'd not layer - it will get all mixed up when you move things and plant new things. If you can get some plant substrate like Eco-Complete or Fluorite (there are others) that would be ideal, but depending on the tank size it could be costly.

Get fine gravel, or pool filter sand, and use root tabs for crypts and lilies, or aponogeton (another bulb plant like the lily). If you get sand, stir the nonplanted regions from time to time so it does not compact.

 

[BEANS]

Hey thanks tankgirl. Here is a pic of my tank do you think what you said would work ok with this?

it is just a stock light fixture on top, no hood etc. (well the two glass parts too)


PS I found this on currents website but it says its for reef tanks. Does this mean I shouldn't get it for my FW planted?

The Current USA Satellite Single 48 inch compact fluorescent aquarium light is for reef aquariums. Please visit our Lighting Chart page to identify the best light for your particular reef aquarium.

• Additional photo
• Dimensions: 48.50" X 5.50" X 2.75"
• Two 65 Watt SmartPaq 50/50 Lamps (10,000K/460nm Actinics)
• Two lunar lights
• Docking mounts: mounting legs to lift the Satellite light above the top of the aquarium

And is this something I need or is there something better? BTW this one is priced at $125

I also found this one for $145 which is better?

Item #:209893Availability:Usually ships in 2-3 business days.Price:$145.99

Powerful lighting for freshwater aquariums. Whether you have live plants, or just want the most natural, brilliant lighting for your tank, the Freshwater Aqualight is your answer. With the power of compact lamps, your plants get the light they need to perform photosynthesis, and the full-spectrum output gives your tank a beautiful, natural look.

This Coralife Freshwater Aqualight is a sleek and streamlined fixture designed to enhance and complement freshwater and planted aquariums. Its compact and low profile style is suitable for applications where space is limited.

Instructions:
This fixture is for use over a covered aquarium.

Specifications:
Includes (2) 65 watt 6700K lamps with straight pin bases, built-in ballast, on/off switch, aluminum housing, polished reflector and acrylic lens cover.

Size:
48" long x 5" wide x 2.5" high.

Warranty:
This unit has a one year warranty.

 

[TankGirl]

Here's one on sale at Drs. Foster and Smith for $67.49 (48" FW 2x65 watt with two 65K bulbs included):

Compact Fluorescent Aquarium Lighting: Coralife Aqualight Single Compact Fluorescent Strip Lights

Edit: The bulbs are not cheap so this is a particularly good deal. I just ordered another type of strip from them that was also on sale, on back order, but it shipped on the "expected by" date.

 

[BEANS]

Thanks I think ill probably just go ahead and get that one. Going to order it today when I get home from work.

Would this be enough? It says the bulbs are 21" and two so are they like this:

_________ __________ or


_________ __________
_________ __________ this.

because if its the first one wouldn't this only be giving 65w to 1/2 of my tank and 65w to the other. But it says its 130W so Im confused. But I think this is my best bet though as far as lighting goes for my tank setup. Just hope its the second diagram I drew. like two bulbs connected in 1 pin then the other side is two bulbs connected in 1 pin /shrug.

Also one more important thing, is this going to work with my tank that has glass canopy on it? or am i gonna need a special glass canopy, or just not have a glass canopy on my tank and have open water from my tank to light fixture. sorry I have so many questions

 

[TankGirl]

Definitely keep the glass between the fixture and the tank. If you have the idea that you will be going to a much higher light, CO2, fertilized tank at some point in the future, you could get the 4x65w fixture, and just keep one row lit for now, then when you are ready to bump it up, turn on the other half. Typically these fixtures have two switches - one works the back row (two bulbs end to end) and the other works the front row.

There is a lot of debate about half of the tank receiving only 65w, but in practice, you're having the whole 130 watts. I've got the 4x65w fixture, and was running all four bulbs on my 55 at one time, and this was a very high-maintenance tank to deal with. I cut off one row and moved back to 130 watts and I could no longer grow the ground-cover or red plants, but I could grow most anything else. There was no question, though, that it was the full 130 the plants were getting (not just 65w on each side) - they are under the water feeling the full effect of the two bulbs. You'd have to build an opaque divider in the tank to block the light of one bulb from the other side of the tank.

So, if you want to keep things simple for now, get the single row fixture and maybe get another one down the road if you feel so led, OR get the two-row fixture and just run one row. JMO!