Want another try at a planted tank and need help!

[KukaaKatchou]

I have a 5 gallon Tetra tank with heater set at 80F and a filter (on low). When I first got the tank I had real plants but they died on me. Now I have a good cycle happening and I want to get some live plants again for my Otocinclus. Can someone advise on some idiot proof plants that I can add that will be appropriate? The only light is the light that came with the tank that is "supposed" to be good for planted tanks. Thank you!

[prodrumernate]

i have red ludwigia in my 10 gallon.they are growing just fine.dont need a lot of light.they get their minerals etc from tap water when u do water changes and from fish waste..all i did was put them in my tank.its been over a month since ive had them.never did anything to them except make my own little post for easy moving and cleanup of old food and waste...1 had started to die and loose its leaves from sitting in a 2 gallon.moved it into my 10.growing leaves again...cheap.low maintenance and lighting needed.

heres a little info.as well as apic on this site.

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/my...udwigia_repens

:)

[toad]

^^That's awesome - I heard that red leafed plants require tons of light and are hard to keep alive, so I never bought any.

I am severely flora-challenged - I look at plants and they die - but I've got some water wisteria that is very happy and growing like weeds. Left them floating in my ten gallon tank so Howie could play in them, and they are doing great. Also, anubias are wonderful low light plants - mine have started to sprout new rootlets =]

And, let's not forget the best, lowest maintainence plant... the Moss Ball 8) Cute little guys who can grow anywhere.

Please post pics when you've got your tank planted :D

[MSG]

Kuka, name some of the plants you owned before.

I want to make sure I don't buy them.

I plan on getting ....

• Anubias Congensis
• Anubias hastifolia (Anubias hastifolia)
• Banana Plant (Nymphoides aquatica)
• ChainSword - Narrow Leaf (Echinodorus tenellus)
• Kleiner Bar Sword (Echinodorus 'Kleiner Bar')
• Cardinal Plant (Lobelia cardinalis "Dwarf")
• Ludwigia Peruensis (Ludwigia glandulosa) - this one I'm probably going to kill instantly.

I'm going to keep my eyes open for them. I'd rather get them @ a LFS instead of online.

[toad]

Originally Posted by MSG

Kuka, name some of the plants you owned before.

I want to make sure I don't buy them.

I plan on getting ....

• Anubias Congensis
• Anubias hastifolia (Anubias hastifolia)
• Banana Plant (Nymphoides aquatica)
• ChainSword - Narrow Leaf (Echinodorus tenellus)
• Kleiner Bar Sword (Echinodorus 'Kleiner Bar')
• Cardinal Plant (Lobelia cardinalis "Dwarf")
• Ludwigia Peruensis (Ludwigia glandulosa) - this one I'm probably going to kill instantly.

I'm going to keep my eyes open for them. I'd rather get them @ a LFS instead of online.

LOL @ online Snails!

How about a java fern? They are supposed to be nice and hardy...

[prodrumernate]

i thought the samething when reading about read leaf plants.i did a little more research and read they do good in low light.better in medium light.but mine still grow red leaves.which i was surprised at.i have a simple incandescent bulbs i thought didnt produce enough light.i keep them on about 12 hours a day.its sitting in a corner where not much other light reaches.

but it worked out :) java fern is great also.i havent owned any.low budget and setting up new tanks.once they are done i want to get some java fern.i had a coupon for 3 dollars off at petsmart.my plants were 2.49...so i got that and a betta that was on sale for .99 cents.total came out to .48 cents after everything.i was going to buy more plants but needed fish food so used my other coupon for that :)

[choob99]

Well i've got to say, I started using Flourish, Flourish Excel, and Flourish Iron and things have been going great for me so far (knock on wood!)

[Silverfang]

if you want easy hard to kill idiot proof plants, the top ones would be anubis, anachris, java fern, and java moss. Moss balls are pretty easy as well, just more expensive.

They are all low light plants too, which is great if you don't have a particularly good lighting set up. With the anubis and java fern you want to anchor it to decor, like driftwood or a rock. Never bury the rhizome of either plant.

[MSG]

The only way I'll get a moss ball if I have a gang of shrimp cleaning it.

Otherwise it's just a useless looking dirt collector IMO. I want a plant that the bettas with find a function with like the amazon swords.

I have Java ferns, but most are suffering from nutrient deficiencies. I've NEVER used any type of fertilizers.

Also I have to tie the JF again, but this time they're getting strapped to rocks instead of plastic decorations or pieces of wood. Most of the JF are floating around or stuck to the filter intake.

NOT a pretty sight.

Eventually I'll take some pictures and post on a new thread. Hard to photograph sickly looking plants.

Bettas are so much prettier to look at.

I'll need help with IDing what plants I have left.

[SpookyTooth]

As everyone mentioned anubias and java ferns are fantastic plants to start with. They aren't the fastest growing things but they look wonderful and are easy to grow. Another thing is java moss (though I prefer willow moss myself) which can be wrapped over ornaments and tied down slightly or left to float in chunks. Java moss can harbour micorfauna (like all plants really) which can be beneficial to your betta as food. Mine have hunted through their plants and will occasionally peck at something they've seen.