Plant Advice

C

chrisfromnl

AC Members
Feb 20, 2006
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St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
Setup: 10G with peat moss/black turf covered in a layer of play sand. 2x 23Watt CFL's (comparable to 100 W each) 2700k.
Tank inhabitants (yet to be determined) but I would like some live bearers that won`t munch on my plants, and like to take care of young, not eat them.

Plants found at local stores so far:

$10.99 Bunch:
Purple Waffle
Mondo Grass
Onion Plants
Banana Plants

$4.19
Rotala Plant
Jungle Vai
Bacopa Plant
Banana
Money Wort

$5.29
Water Lettuce

$7.29
Aluminum Plant

Un-Priced:
Wisteria
Ludwigia
Cryptocornye


Looking for something that will grow well, and fill out. Also looking for a ground cover eventually.
Any of these plants fit that bill?
Also, you can recommend tank critters if you have an idea.

Thanks!

Edit: Just Started doing some reading, and apparently some of these plants are not aquatic, even though they have them submersed and in the fish store. Mondo Grass, Aluminum plant and Purple Waffle are the ones I read that are not aquatic.
 
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Non aquatic, just say no :headshake2:
purple waffle
mondo grass
Aluminum Plant

everything else is fine. for ground cover id go hairgrass, you have enough light for it.

keep in mind u are over 4wpg so you will have to look into ferts and co2, for a 10g the seachem products would be easiest.
 
I can down-grade the light bulbs if necessary. I am really surprised at finding out the purple waffle and mondo grass are non-aquatic, as they are at a small LFS which I trust for most advise/products. I'll have to go in next week and have a chat.
 
why is it that to much lighting and you need ferts and stuff is it because of increased growth rate?
 
Dexmaster said:
why is it that to much lighting and you need ferts and stuff is it because of increased growth rate?
Click to expand...

No, think of it this way. Plants need light, co2 and ferts to grow. But, it's sorta like making a sandwhich. You need bread, meat and cheese. Having a bunch of bread doesn't help to make the sandwhiches if you don't have enough meat and cheese to go with it. Just as having a bunch of light won't increase growth (on plants) unless they have enough co2 and ferts to go with the light.

Unfortunatly though, algae does not feel the same way about needing an entire sandwhich to thrive. Algae will take off if there is an excess of anything light, ferts and sometimes co2. The good news is that if the higher plants are getting the right balance of light/ferts and co2 they will outcompete the algae.

Does that make better sense now?
 
Those bulbs are not enough (wattage really doesn't matter in this case). The spectrum is wrong for plants. Look for something in the 6700-10000 range.
 
jaylin said:
No, think of it this way. Plants need light, co2 and ferts to grow. But, it's sorta like making a sandwhich. You need bread, meat and cheese. Having a bunch of bread doesn't help to make the sandwhiches if you don't have enough meat and cheese to go with it. Just as having a bunch of light won't increase growth (on plants) unless they have enough co2 and ferts to go with the light.


Does that make better sense now?
Click to expand...

lol...I don't know about you but I'm feeling a little hungry.
 
So will those bulbs work?
I bought them today for $3.99 for 2.

I went to Home Depot, Canadian Tire, Wal-Mart tonight to see some other options.

All Are CFL's

GE
15W=60W
900 Lumens
6500K
$9.99 for 2

GE
26W=100W
1600 Lumens
6500K
$12.99 for 2

Phillips
23W=100W
1600 Lumens
6500K
$12.98 for 2

Phillips
13W=60W
900 Lumens
6500K
$9.98 for 2

Phillips
9W=40W
550 Lumens
6500K
$7.98 for 2

Phillips
27W=100W
1660 Lumens
6500K
$12.98 for 2

Wal-Mart Brand
13W=60W
800 Lumens
5800K
$10.96 for 4

Wal-Mart Brand
9W=40W
600 Lumens
5800K
$10.96 for 4

Should I invest another $15 for bulbs, when I would rather spend it on other things like fish/plants?
 
CF wattages are the same as standard fluorescent. 25W CF is the same as 25W of any other fluorescent lights. The comparisons are to incandescent but when planted tank keepers talk about wattages they always mean fluorescent
 
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