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A Little Help Deciding Plants Please....

4K views 20 replies 5 participants last post by  redchigh 
#1 ·
I wanted to restart planting my tank, seeings how most of the plants that I bought died anyways. I bought a lot of plants from Petsmart (that was a mistake), but now I know of Sweet Aquatics.

I wanted to do something Amazonian. So any advice helps with what kind of plants to get and things like that. That's all I need. I wanted to order plants tomorrow or Monday, so that I can get them situated by the time school starts up again. I looked at Byron's Amazonian Riverscape and I really liked it. I just have no idea where to start or what to buy plant-wise.

Any suggestions accepted. :]

My tank is cycled and I have a couple plants in there already, but they don't seem to be doing to good.
My pH is 7.6 and I have soft to moderately hard water. I have root tabs in the substrate right now, but still need to get Fluorish Comprehensive.

Thanks!
 
#2 ·
First on my Amazonian Riverscape, all the plants in there are swords of the Echinodorus genus. Depending upon which photo, there may be some floating Amazonian Frogbit and Brazilian Pennywort, but other than those they are all swords.

The other Amazon tank is the 90g flooded Amazon forest, those are all swords too (some of the same species, several different). Floating are Frogbit, and Brazilian Pennywort depending upon which photo (I move the Pennywort from the 115g to the 90g at some point).

SA has a South American package, or probably a couple, if I remember correctly, so they might give you ideas.

I prefer substrate rooted plants and floating, with few if any stem plants. This is because stem plants take regular work and keep changing, which is OK if that suits you. The lovely thing about swords is that they stay where you put them, aside from getting larger of course. And they send out runners (the chain species) and inflorescences from which plantlets develop. There are several sword species in our plant profile section, and the Frogbit and Pennywort are there too.

If you spot any South American plants on SA or elsewhere and want some info, just ask. I think I can safely say I have a reasonable knowledge of many (certainly not all) Amazon plants likely to be seen in aquaria, and I have tried various ones in the past. Would be most glad to help.
 
#3 ·
I agree. I don't want to do a whole lot of maintenance with plants. I would also just want rooted plants or floating.

I'm not finding any packages that specifically say South American, but I'll be sure to check out lots of plants on there.

I would just like some beginner plants that are easy to maintain and take care of, but still look nice.
 
#4 ·
Soo... Let me know if I'm headed in the right direction because this is what I have in my shopping cart as of right now. And any advice is helpful! :-D

For my 20g long:
2 - Water Wisteria
3 - Banana Plants (I just like the looks of them! :])
2 - Small Amazon Swords
3 - Ruffle Swords
2 - Pennywort

I have no idea what else to get. Something that is red or a dark green would be nice to break up the light green color of most of these.
I THINK (not sure) that all these are rooted plants... Any info is helpful.
 
#5 ·
banana plants done really do well fully submerge in the early stages in a tank.they will melt.at least mine did.
 
#6 ·
The Pennywort is a stem plant.It can be put in the substrate or left floating.Have a look at the Ozelot Swords.I've got the Ozelot Green in my 37g tank.It's got green leaves with red spots.I've got the Ozelot Sword in my 50g and it's got red leaves with some green in them.It's still small so I don't know how much it will change.
 
#7 ·
banana plants done really do well fully submerge in the early stages in a tank.they will melt.at least mine did.
Are Banana Plants not true aquatic plants?

The Pennywort is a stem plant.It can be put in the substrate or left floating.Have a look at the Ozelot Swords.I've got the Ozelot Green in my 37g tank.It's got green leaves with red spots.I've got the Ozelot Sword in my 50g and it's got red leaves with some green in them.It's still small so I don't know how much it will change.
I was going to use the Pennywort as a floating plant, but I'm also debating on switching that out for the Amazon Frogbit that Byron suggested. But at this point in time SA says sold out on the Frogbit.

Are Ozelots substrate rooted or do they have to be attached to driftwood like Anubias do?


I also like the looks of Echinodorus Angustifolia "Vesuvius," but SA doesn't have the difficulty rating or how big they get...
 
#8 ·
Are Banana Plants not true aquatic plants?



I was going to use the Pennywort as a floating plant, but I'm also debating on switching that out for the Amazon Frogbit that Byron suggested. But at this point in time SA says sold out on the Frogbit.

Are Ozelots substrate rooted or do they have to be attached to driftwood like Anubias do?


I also like the looks of Echinodorus Angustifolia "Vesuvius," but SA doesn't have the difficulty rating or how big they get...
Banana are aquatic, but I agree with kitten that they frequently do not do well. They also generally only last about a year. I tried them years ago, would not bother again personally.

Pennywort is great floating; Frogbit is difficult to find it seems, but more to the point I find it very difficult to cultivate. It is about the only plant I currently have that does well for a time then dies off almost completely. I have it in 3 different tanks to experiment, but the same in all 3. Pennywort will be fine though.

All true swords (species in Echinodorus) are substrate rooted. While they can sometimes be grown on a piece of real wood, it is safer to plant them in the substrate.

Echinodorus angustifolius [this is the correct spelling, though it is frequently seen with the "a" ending] is a species in the pygmy chain sword group. Submersed growth will be leaves up to 30cm (12 inches) but sometimes up to 50cm (20 inches) depending upon light, parameters, nutrients. The pygmy chain swords can grow quite differently from one aquarium to another. Technically speaking, the pygmy chain swords are now in the genus Helanthium; I posted an article on this change in the Freshwater Articles section, here's a link to the article if you're interested:
http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/...es-pygmy-chain-sword-plants-49937/newmessage/
As noted therein, many nurseries and aquarium plant suppliers are already using the new name, but the long-standing names (Echinodorus tenellus, E. angustifolius, etc.) will likely be around for quite a while as the pygmy chain sword is a very popular plant.

Byron.
 
#9 · (Edited)
I have a banana plant that I transplanted to a small Betta soil-substrated tank. I agree they are sensitive.

The betta tank has no light, and is in a somewhat sunny window, and has sent up a floating pad. Maybe it will flower?

Anyway, their normal plant packages can be made to be SA (since they contain stem plants, rooted plants, etc.) but the crypts that come in the package would be the odd one out...

Their Biotope design services are available... There's a $15 fee, but it's convenient... Their designer will sculpt you a landscape to fit your lighting regimen, your tank size, and your budget. (Even with the $15 charge, they're the cheapest place to buy plants..)

The small amazon swords might outgrow a 20G long... Might want to go with Echinodorus Bartti or "red melon" instead? Or the Blehiri Compakt which stays under 10-12 inches...
 
#11 ·
they tend to take more time to adapt to the tank.if anything goes wrong in the start the become mushy but after given time to adapt hey grow babies.mines looking ok now bu i think i lost 4 of the original stalk.
 
#12 ·
So basically buy 2 or 3 and hope they make it. :]

I would like a midground or foreground plant, but I don't want something that is going to become a carpet. Any suggestions?

This is what's in my shopping cart now.. Lol. It continues to change.

1-Pennywort
2-Wisteria
3-Echinodorus Ozelots
2-Echinodorus Bleheri Compacta
2-Echinodorus Barthii "Red Melon" (Medium)
 
#13 ·
So basically buy 2 or 3 and hope they make it. :]

I would like a midground or foreground plant, but I don't want something that is going to become a carpet. Any suggestions?

This is what's in my shopping cart now.. Lol. It continues to change.

1-Pennywort
2-Wisteria
3-Echinodorus Ozelots
2-Echinodorus Bleheri Compacta
2-Echinodorus Barthii "Red Melon" (Medium)
If you are still thinking Amazon or South America, forget the Wisteria. On another note, it will overtake the tank too.

Given the 20g tank size, I would suggest only one of each of the three swords. I don't have this "compact" variant, but the others I do and they take up space.

You are lacking any "little" plant for foreground, etc., along the same lines Echinodorus tenellus (1) would suffice, they settle and runners with plants will grow.

The Pennywort will be nice in the corners or left floating.
 
#17 ·
some say stay away from duckweed the take over the tank too :shock: banana plants are bunched together when they are sold. 6 to 7 stalks in one bunch.
 
#19 ·
Agree with redchigh on all points.

Only difference I've seen between plants in pots and plants without is price, at least in my local stores. The theory is that potted plants should settle faster/better and be "healthier." A debatable point.
 
#20 ·
=S 6-7 stalks bunched together and tied down by weights.heres the pic.
 

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#21 ·
Ah, I get it.

Banana plants look like this:


but they can sometimes be propogated through cuttings... Usually floating leaves do best, or you can weigh a plant leave to the substrate and let it root before you remove it.

I think the people who sold you the cuttings ripped you off a bit.
 
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