Are live plants worth all the work?

[FishingAgain]

I am getting ready to start two aquariums (both 60 gallons).

One of them I wanted to do a heavily planted system, but it seems keeping plants alive and healthy is harder than for fish!

Is this true?

Should I not even bother with the live plants?

 

[sguthrie]

Nope.

 

[sguthrie]

I'm kidding. The difficulty of having plants depends on the types of plants you keep. You can have a great looking plant setup with minimal work or daily upkeep.

 

[FishingAgain]

Nothing literally nothing - other than what I have been reading as of late - do you have suggestions?

(Planning on making the planted aquarium a very docile community tank)

 

[sguthrie]

I'm not really the best for suggestions here because I'm still learning myself. You're definitely starting correctly by asking before starting, because that can save you $$ and effort by eliminating some of the starting mistakes.

[edit]
Whoops, I guess I should have read carefully before posting. My bad.

 

[FishingAgain]

I am open on the fish still -

Budget? I would say OPEN up to about $100 on plants? (Is that alot or very little?)

 

[sguthrie]

$100 is a lot of plants. A lot of the budget to which I was referring was for equipment ie. lights, filtration, etc.

This is where the type of plants you keep come into play. A high tech setup with co2 injection, with high light, and with dosing of nutrients can be quite costly. With these things, you open yourself up to a vast array of plants that will thrive in your aquarium.

Having low lighting will mean much less nutrient dosing and no co2 injection necessary, but it reduces your selection.

Here's a couple of websites that I've found pretty useful.

www.ahsupply.com - lighting (commonly recommended for lights, but I don't have any personal experience with the company)

www.plantgeek.net - has all sort of info on plants and whatnot

http://members.cox.net/tulsaalstons/AquaticPlants.htm#High Pressure CO2 - co2 info

I'm going to bow now to the plant gods because my usefulness draws to an end here. Good luck with whatever you choose.

Sam

 

[FishingAgain]

ahhh...

in regards to money for co2 injection and such... I'm not really interested in going that deep (it was talk about all that got me to post about this)

some plants that will do fine with a "Power-Glo" light and some minor additives.... (the light is by Hagen)

The info from the light box says:

18000K
30W
High intensity aquarium lamp -
Promotes coral, invertebrate and plant growth

Ideal for:
Salt Water Aquariums
Fresh Water Aquariums
Planted Aquariums
Corals
Invertebrates

135 Lux



This is as opposed to the "Auqua-Glo" light by the same company that says:

18000K
30W
Aquarium Lamp

Intensifies fish colors and promotes plant growth

with a 90 Lux rating

 

[djlen]

The number followed by the K is the kelvin rating. What you've got is a very, very high K rating, better suited to a salt water environment. The number followed by the W is the wattage of the tube(s).
In order to be moderately successful with plants, IMO, you need a minimum of 1 watt/gal. You are at .50 watts/gal. in a relatively deep tank(light must penetrate a bunch of water) and this is not going to get the job done for you.
Based on what you've related, I'd suggest that you think about upgrading your lighting to at least 90watts of PC(power compact) for each tank that will be planted. This will put you into a low light tank. Many plant people like the look and affect of a 6700K color spectrum.
There is no need for CO2 in this environment, although it would improve plant growth.
There are many plants that you can grow under that lighting. If you refer to the AH Supply link above you will find something on that site that fits into the 1.5watt range and hopefully into your budget. You could even go in to the 2.0 - 2.5watts/gal. range without the need for CO2.
I wouldn't waste money on plants for the lighting you have. I don't think they will do very well for you at the present wattage that you offer them.
Have you considered substrate(gravel) and filtration yet?

Len

 

[ChuckV]

Originally posted by sguthrie
$100 is a lot of plants. A lot of the budget to which I was referring was for equipment ie. lights, filtration, etc.

www.ahsupply.com - lighting (commonly recommended for lights, but I don't have any personal experience with the company)

I just managed to blow $400 on plants for my 180, haha. AH is GREAT. They were great when I called them. Speedy, efficient, informative. They went out of the way to get me what I needed in a hurry, seeing as I had $400 sitting in a box on my kitchen floor, and I had procrastinated with lights way too long. You really don't NEED C02 with moderate lighting, and there are plenty of plants that will thrive in moderate lighting. I strongly recomend Arizona Aquatic Gardens Give them a call, tell them your budget, your lighting, and what your want in terms of looks and such, and they'll give you plenty of plant recomendations.