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Planting details..

1K views 3 replies 4 participants last post by  eug 
#1 ·
So my first planted project tank is nearing its wet stage and I'm very excited. However, I seem to have overlooked a piece of the process I didn't really think about too much, the process of actually planting the plants. I know different plants will require different planting techniques. I just wanted some thoughts and tips on how everyone likes to do this. It seems that there's a bit more to it than just stuffing the roots down in the sand. I'm starting with some simple Amazon swords and Anacharis. But what about plants that I want to attach to driftwood like Java Fern or certain types of moss? And what about the driftwood itself? What is a safe practice to use to keep plants and driftwood from floating? I know you guys will want more concrete info like the exact species, but I'm just looking for examples of what everyone has done in their own tanks so i can get some ideas. Thanks. (I apologize if I missed a sticky somewhere on this)
:dunno:
 
#2 ·
For keeping driftwood down - toss a rock on top of it until it stays down on its own or use a stainless screw to bolt it to a piece of slate that you can drill with a masonry bit

For tying moss - use fishing line(wont ever deteriorate) or cotton threat (will dissolve over time) to tie it down, if you do it right you wont even be able to tell it was tied. what i did on mine was got a decent clump of moss and ties it in the center to keep it in place then spread it out slightly and tied it as needed to get the shape i wanted with fishing line, works the same way with rocks

For plants that wont stay in the substrate themselves because they aren't rooted yet or have small roots there are 2 options i know of, one is lead weights(very controversial, and I personally wont do it) the other is using cotton thread to tie the plants stem to a small rock and then burying the stone under your substrate (cotton thread will eventually dissolve so no worries on removing it after the plant takes root) if its almost sicking but sometimes breaking free and you dont want to tie it to a stone then sometimes you can just prop 2-3 small stones around the base and pin it in place

Hope I helped you some, a lot of it is trial and error.

Also with moss its always a good idea to put some in little home made "mini moss walls" that you can place on your gravel to create new patches just google making a moss wall and down size it as a referance
 
#3 ·
Won't repeat what Varkolak said, but will add that with Java Moss and Java Fern what I prefer doing is just tuck some in a crevice in the wood. It will then attach itself and spread. Nothing wrong with black cotton thread or fishingline, but I like simple.:)
 
#4 ·
On the subject of Java Fern - I have some on the big piece of driftwood in my tank, and it's been attached via rubber band to various points on the wood, but it isn't really taking hold too well. All I did was basically attach the stiff green rhizome to the wood in hopes that the brown roots eventually find the wood and attach themselves to it, but am I doing it wrong? Should I try to get the brown roots to be in direct contact with the wood?

On the other hand, java moss has been in the tank for just 2 weeks or so and it's already grabbing a pretty strong hold on the wood in some places. With the moss I used the "jam it into any nook and cranny" method.
 
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