picking plants for 2wpg 10g

serissime

serissime

second-guessing
Nov 24, 2008
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1
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Okay, so I have a 1 or 2 year old 10g that has 2wpg lighting that I would really like to plant. I'm having trouble finding plants that I know will stay an appropriate size. The plants need to be easy-to-find and fairly inexpensive. I'll be looking to buy them here on AC if possible..

If anyone has suggestions for me, please share! :)
 
in my ten g i have, java moss, java fern(regular, lace and a long thin one), bocopa(monierie and one other ), sunset hygro, hygro augustina, anubias nana, comboba, and 2 plants i can't id
you can also do pygmy swords, dwarf hair grass, anicharus and many many more

the stem plants will need regular trimming but that's about it. all mine are growing extremely well with 2x13 watt compact florescents
 
Are you looking for plants that either stay small, or grow slowly to avoid constant pruning? Some of the plants already suggested fit this category. Java fern, moss, anubias, many of the carpet plants will likely work for you as well. Check out small to medium sized cryptocorynes, I think a number of species would work well in a 10 gallon. A lot of stems (even with moderate light) will require quite a bit of attention.
 
i actually only trim my stem plants less than once a month. i trim them down fairly short and plant the tops in other tanks of give them away. i trim them so the back ones are a bit taller. it takes them a few weeks for the taller ones to touch water surface. then i trim again. i just pinch it off with my fingernails, so it's not all that difficult.
 
I have, in other small tanks, java fern, java moss, and anubias nana, but I've never had a whole lot of luck with good growth. (The moss is wonderful, but in the past few months it's been getting stifled by gunk... I think that's because the filter in that tank is a piece of CRAP!) The anubias is great and I love it... but I'd like plants that will stay pretty small AND don't need to root on driftwood :)

I don't mind occasional trimming... I'll probably do stuff every time I do a water change. I... just never have any luck with plants! I've had the java ferns over 6mo, bought them at about 3" and they have not grown at all.. propagated, yes, but no getting bigger. Should I do a little bit of excel... urgh plants stress me out but I soooo want to have them!

Also, I'd like a floating plant... my filter does not disturb the water very much if I keep the water level high.

So I'm thinking about more java fern, then some pennywort planted and floating if it will do well (I really like the look), I'd like to try the marsilea minuta if I don't kill everything else, bacopa monnieri or australis, some of the smaller crypts, sunset hygro and/or another smallish hygro, and dwarf hairgrass probably.

I just have fine sand in my tank... I need a little more depth for plants and I think I have some coarser sand. I can't afford replacing the substrate right now, so should I invest in some root tabs? My friend has my flourish right now but she doesn't need it so I can get those back too.

You guys are such great help so far. I read plantgeek and plantedtank up and down but having so little experience with plants can make research only so useful
 
just sand is good enough. you probably won't need ferts or co2 in such low-light. java fern grows extremely slowly so i wouldn't worry about that. you could try looking for a stronger bulb if you want fastr growth. also, most plants stop(or slow) growing when replanted while they adjust and grow new roots.
 
Okay cool... I think I'm going to go get a bunch of plants from my LFS tomorrow!! :)

I'm sure I'll have some questions soon, but thank you sooo far! :)
 
okay, I went out and bought a bunch of plants (Limnophila hippuroides, ludwigia, anachris, bronze wendtii, red melon sword, bacopa, pennywort, dwarf val, and dwarf hairgrass)

as for the pennywort, I planted a few stems but I want some to float... do I leave it in stem form or pinch it into smaller pieces?
 
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