What do i use to hold plants down in sand?

Bluydgrl

I'm starting my 36 Bowfront this weekend and i'm using play sand from Lowe's.The back of the tank will be planted.What do i use to hold the plants down and also something that will be healthy for them to grow in?

Chesherca

Most plants will stay down without issues in a sandy substrate :)
With some types of stem plants, you may need to use a metal weight (they usually come with the plants) to keep them from floating up while they're establishing roots, but oftentimes they'll be fine if you just get them in deeply enough.

I'm confused with the last question - do you want to keep your plants in pots? What type of fish are you planning to keep in your tank? Unless you're getting bigger fish, or those notorious for digging (some cichlids), you should be able to plant them right in the sandbed with no issues.

:)

Bluydgrl

No..Plant them in the sand.I'm going to have a peaceful community tank

Chesherca

Perfect! Just pop 'em in and let them grow! You'll want to be sure that you have some sort of nutritional supplement for them - Saechem's Flourish Comprehensive is what I use, and highly recommended. Good luck!

sidluckman

sometimes those potted plants have such a huge root mass (most of which is the stone-wool growing media) I try to carefully remove as much of that as I can without damaging roots. In other cases, I have opened the root ball from the bottom in four sections so that I can flatten it without removing any media or roots. Then it can be planted in a typical depth of substrate without a problem.

If cuttings of bunched plants like hygro or milfoil are not staying in place, I sometimes rubberband them gently to small pebbles, which I then "plant".

Bluydgrl

Thamk you for the reply's.I will try that.
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