trying live plants for the first time

ginagv

Hi. I just got some new plants.. Some of them came with weights. Am I supposed to remove the weight from each bundle of plants? I'm afraid the metals would leech into the water and kill the fish. I have Cherry Barbs, Cory cats and Otos..(that I like to call post-it fish). I know the Cories can be a tad sensitive to things in the water, like some meds and medicinal amounts of aquarium salt, so I just want to ask. The cories are my favorites and I would be crushed if they died.

thanks in advance,

Gina

james7139

i would personally remove them as they are prob lead.

Caliban

Assuming you bought your plants somewhere reputable, the weights should be safe for your tank, I believe. Here is a good basic outline of how to plant different sort of plants. As you can see, it gives you some options for weighted ones. Planted Aquariums Central

Inga

I remove the weights from my plants. Good luck with your new plants. They definitely make a tank look nice. We would love to see pictures. :)

Byron

I do not recommend leaving stem (bunch) plants tied together, so remove the tie whatever it may be. Lead ties that are sometimes used will leech lead into the water, probably not enough to be toxic, but why risk it? Elastic ties should also be removed.

It is usually better to separate the stems when planting. Lower leaves are somewhat less likely to die off if the stems are not bunched together, since they receive more light but more importantly water flow around them is better, and this brings nutrients to the leaves and carries away toxins.