Looking to add plants to my 20g

[cambro]

I posted some time ago about putting plants in my tank and got some good advice about what kinds of plants, but now that I see the plants at the store, I am still unsure as to how to go about it! It apparently isn't just buying the plant and plopping it in is it? I looked at the stickys but felt a bit overwhelmed with all the new terms and products (felt like I did when I started with the fish!). So my question is, I see a nice anubia (?) at the pet store floating in a tank...If I buy it, what else do I need to get??? My tank has straight gravel, an aquaclear filter, and a 22V (?) light - I usually have the light on only in the morning for an hour or so and in the evening for 4-5 hours.

I would really like to get a plant or two in there for my otos!

[Blinky]

Hiya :D
I felt overwhelmed when I started with plants, don't worry, it does get easier with time. I'm still learning a lot (you're right, it really is like starting over again), but hopefully I can help a bit.

If the light is 22W, you'll need to stick to low-light plants - 1.1W per gallon is quite low for plants. If you want some higher-light plants and your fixture is 24" long, you could purchase a retrofit kit to change your lighting from standard fluorescent to power compact fluorescent. www.ahsupply.com is the place most people seem to find the best prices.

One thing that I find invaluable for my tanks is a light timer. The light should really be on for 10 - 12h per day with plants, and a timer can make it consistent.

You could start off with a single plant (like the anubias you saw), just to 'get your feet wet' - if it's in a pot just remove the pot and most of the rock wool, trim the roots if they're very long, and place the plant in the gravel (just like a garden plant - dig a little hole, put the plant in, and fill the hole back in). It will take a while to settle in after being transplanted, but soon you should start to see some new leaves growing. With low light the plants will grow slowly, so be patient.

If there are just a few plants they'll likely get all the phosphate and nitrogen they need from the fish, but they'll need added potassium and micronutrients to do well. You can add potassium (K) by purchasing KCl at the grocery store - a product called 'No-Salt', sold as a salt substitute. You can buy trace element mixes at aquarium stores - you won't need to add much in a low light tank with just a few plants, but I still think it's important - like vitamins for people :).

I found that for me, diving in was the best way to learn. The absolute worst thing that can happen is that the plant dies, and I've found that they're actually pretty tough. Good luck, let us know how it goes :)

[cambro]

Well, now that doesn't seem so bad :-). Thanks Blinky! You're right, I'll just have to dive right in - I think I just worry I'm going to hurt my fish. How much of the KCl would I put in a 20g? Will my fish mind the light being on so long?

[Blinky]

Your fish won't mind - tropical fish and plants tend to come from parts of the world where day and night are basically even. Near the equator I believe the pattern of light/darkness is about 1 hour of semi-darkness/dawn, followed by 10 hours of sun, another hour of semi-darkness/dusk, and 12 hours of dark. I believe most people with planted tanks keep the lights on for 10-14 hours, depending on their particular plants' needs and type of lights.
How much KCl to add is a good question - check out Chuck's planted aquaria pages (http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/) - it's a great site, there's a nutrient/CO2 calculator you can download that will tell you exactly how much to use to mix a stock solution or how much if you want to add the KCl (or other nutrient) straight to the tank - you put in your tank size and specs, and it gives you a number. I love the CO2 calculator; you enter the pH and KH, it tells you the CO2 in ppm. It's a brilliant site!

[cambro]

Well, I went out and bought on anubia and just plopped it in! I bought some "nu-salt" at the grocery store and will check out that link you mentioned. Thanks for you help Blinky!

[Blinky]

I'm happy to help wherever I can. Congrats on your new 'pet', I hope it does really well :D