5gal tank plant question

[dslwraith]

just got a small 5 gal tank and was wondering if there are some small plants that can go in a tank this size it only has 2 sunburst platys and a siamese flying fox.

would like to get something in there that they can hide in.

are any real plants viable in a tank this small.

thanks in advance

[Ms.Bubbles]

Yes there are plants suitable for a small tank. I have a 3 gallon tank with valisneria & anacharis (anacharis can be floated around the top of the tank or lightly planted in the gravel). Both look nice in a smaller tank (with a little pruning if they get overgrown) & my betta enjoys them. There are some others on this forum with awesome little planted tanks.

My concern would be how much light your 5 gallon tank gets. You'll need to choose plants that do well under your kind of lighting conditions (low, medium, or high lighting). If you can, check your wattage to see what you've got under your hood...

:)

[dslwraith]

i have a 15watt bulb in it it is pretty bright.

at night with all the lights up it lights up quite a bit.

[Ms.Bubbles]

Okay, you have a 5 gallon tank & a 15 watt bulb. That equals 3 watts-per-gallon of light, which is the same as I have in my 3 gallon tank (although my lighting is CF or "compact fluorescent", which is considered brighter that regular fluorescent, not sure if that's what you have).

Seems like a similar lighting situation. I've got valisneria & anacharis plants, stems separated & pushed lightly into plain gravel in my tank, with a little gravel over the stem bottoms to hold them down. I use Nutrafin Iron-enriched Plant Gro fertilizer about once every 3 weeks & I change 25% of my tank water every week. This has worked well for me, & has produced quite a lot of plant growth. I like the look of it, maybe you will too. There are probably a few other plants that would do well in your tank conditions, but these are the plants that I have personal experience with.

:)

[nursie]

I have a 2.5 tank with a clump of java fern with a little fontinalis (SP?) mixed in. Id does just find with the overhead florescent lights in my office..and the light fron the window.

[dslwraith]

got a floating plant today , i beleive some kind of fern i cant remember what he called it now.

i have a good connection now, the guy i got it from both his daughter and mine are in the same class at the same school!!

so i can always bother him with questions too.