kandeecane Posted May 31, 2010 Report Share Posted May 31, 2010 So I'd like to aquascape my 2ft tanks... You know... Make them all pretty and green and bushy? I understand I'll need co2 and lighting... But what plants should I use??? I'd love something like this: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2522/376832...91fb08987_o.jpg But nicer... Maybe with some slate or other colour breaking it up a bit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raie Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 to do a fully planted tank there are a lot of things to consider and it can get very very expensive if you go for the best of the best. you need to decide whether you want the tank to be low maintenance or not, as high maintenance could mean daily trimming. if you think you only want to spend 1 hour a week doing maintenance (inc water changes) then you should consider low maintenance plants (slower growing). for a low tech tank you do not need pressurised co2, i use seachem excel (liquid co2) in my small tanks and it is working just fine. that or you can try to diy co2. fast growing plants are usually stem plants. the down side of stem plants is the maintenance - it grows fast so if you cut it off the top it looks ugly, if you cut it off the bottom you have to pull the roots out and replant the fresh cutting and wait for roots to develop and regrow... some slow growing plants include all the java ferns (also don't need good substrate so you can put in any old gravel/sand), all the mosses and fissidens, these also don't need substrate so you can have a tank without using expensive substrate. if you plant to keep rooting plants you will need to consider investing in a good substrate which usually costs like 40-$80 a bag of like 9L, and you'd need around 2-3 bags or so for a 2ft tank depending how big your tank is and how much slope you want. good luck and make sure to post pictures when you finally get it set up :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kandeecane Posted June 3, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 Lol it's 4 x 2ft tanks. I'm going to go with river sand as substrate... And i'll just plant and see how goes. Eventually pull em all out and replant when I figure out how I want to set it all up. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyb84 Posted June 21, 2010 Report Share Posted June 21, 2010 Try this one and also try this one. The substrate is important, but don't think that the substrate plants naturally grow in was originally created by Seachem. Lighting is important too. I've got lighting I got from guppysaquarium; under 100 bucks for decent lighting. Also, for CO2, to start with you are probably best off with the DIY CO2 until you get the hang of it, which also means time to save up for some decent gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alasse Posted July 8, 2010 Report Share Posted July 8, 2010 You can have a nice tank without the fancy lighting and expensive substrate, you just need to choose plants to suit The tank above is using standard a 2ft T8 light, and the substrate is JBL AquaBasis topped with black gravel No fertz or CO2 used Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neffy Posted July 8, 2010 Report Share Posted July 8, 2010 what kind of plants are in that setup ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alasse Posted July 8, 2010 Report Share Posted July 8, 2010 (edited) Swords, large and pygmy chains. Anubias Java fern Ambulia Java Moss Edited July 8, 2010 by Alasse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishfin Posted July 8, 2010 Report Share Posted July 8, 2010 Your tank is beautiful Alasse. That's what I'm looking at doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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