good plant selection?

[fort384]

are there roots attached to what is floating up?

 

[allaboutfish]

yea.

 

[fort384]

What kind of substrate are you planting it in? If you have the right nutrients and lights, DHG will root pretty quickly and this shouldn't be a problem.

 

[allaboutfish]

sand and 20 watts on a 10 gallon

 

[allaboutfish]

it's growing pretty well. it's starting to carpet too. it just seems like maybe the petsmart people put some roots higher or something.

 

[fort384]

Sounds like not enough light for it to grow healthy roots.

 

[allaboutfish]

but it's growing. some of it has smaller branches comming off starting to carpet, and it's only like 2 that are doing this.

 

[fort384]

If it's starting to carpet, it will eventually root very well. In my tank trying to remove it is like pulling out hair on your arm

 

[allaboutfish]

haha i think it was just petsmart trying to make it look better in the package or something

 

[allaboutfish]

i saw that your shrimp tank has dwarf hairgrass. how many wpg do you have on that? what are the other plants in there?

 

[fort384]

WPG is meaningless since it is only a 5 gal tank. I have 27W of CF lighting on it.

There is also rotala wallichii and blyxa japonica in the tank.

 

[allaboutfish]

what would you suggest for a 10 gallon? a link would be great.

 

[fort384]

It depends... what is your budget? Are you planning on or willing to dose a few different types of ferts? Are you running a CO2 system?

 

[allaboutfish]

ill have a DIY Co2 bc there is noway im spending a huge amount of money for Co2 in a 10 gallon, and ill be dosing flourish excel and have root tabs.

 

[fort384]

budget? How much are you wanting to spend on lighting? If you are growing plants already with what you have, are you sure you want to upgrade?

 

[allaboutfish]

i was thinking if the dwarf hairgrass didnt do so well, and for future reference if i need the fixture the budget would be around 50.00

 

[fort384]

AquaticLife 2x18W T5 HO Linkable Light Fixture FW - 20"

This is a little out of your price range, but you can find similar fixtures for less if you look around, I am sure. A dual 20" T5HO would be a kick butt fixture on a 10 gal tank... it will require CO2 injection (DIY will work fine) and fertilization though... probably a little more maintenance and a careful watch compared to the 20w you are currently rocking.

 

[fort384]

aqua forest aquarium

I also think this fixture is very sharp... but also a few dollars more than your budget... but something similar would also work well. It is compact florescent rather than T5HO.

 

[allaboutfish]

ok ill whatch my plants for now and if i think i need it ill start looking around. so 30 watts or more should be sufficiant?

 

[fort384]

well... I wouldn't go much more than 36. 36W of T5HO or CF on a 10gal will grow just about any plant you can find if the other nutrients and conditions are right.