phoenix44

dont do your whole large tank in flourite. I wouldn't - daltons will be better considering you don't want it heavily planted like mine - and even my tank has no flourite at all. all you need is the daltons and some JBL balls in the substrate where you plant your swords and crypts.

it looks quite spindly when you buy it from the store. nice leaf shape, but the red appears only on the tips, and it's no where as intense. I was actually quite surprised to see the transformation.

you dont need that substrate to grow plants. use daltons sand. its cheap as chips.

This is the tank today. Lots of crypts, and a few stem plants. Adler cones and a couple of oak leaves have turned the water yellow. The plants are doing better under the subdued lighting.

Update. Took plants out today and sent some to a couple of members on here. Pics taken just after.

I didn't have quite enough to send you in the lot I sent off today

so its common then?

tropica says that glandulosa used to be sold as Ludwigia Perennis, so you could be right. i usually label such plants, but i did not order this a few weeks ago, just grabbed some when i had the chance.

get rid of the geos.

Ok. so this is why i would never grow plants in a container in a tank. 1. it limits root growth. 2. the water flow is either non existent or marginal 3. if you 'seal' the top with stones that will just compound the problem unless you sort of dig through the sand once in a while. 4. I've seen it done a couple of times - with many types of substrate, and boy did those roots rot! the smell was enough to kill me hahaha. its different in a tank where you have lots of water flow, the occasional gravel vac and plants being shifted around sometimes. one way to over come this, or reduce the side effects is by using a normal ceramic pot with the hole at the bottom. just put a small convex piece of pot or something over the hole so the substrate does not come out. you'll find the roots come gushing out. you could try some stem plants but your mettnys will eat them.

powerglos have the same tinge but are much, much brighter. I use them. I think I know what an aquaglo is - sort of like the one in the aquaone tanks. I like those tubes, but they are dull - I think. I'd go powerglos. They make your fish look nice. Real nice. Have a look on TM for those tubes. maybe the seller still has some. I think it was a discus seller-breeder who had them too. maybe vincent... not 100% sure though.

powerglo! just powerglo. are aqua glos the dark / pale ones? if they are - they make the reds and oranges really jump out at you. There was someone selling a tube for discus on trademe not too long ago. not sure if it was t5 or t8.

I thought you wanted a cheap option!

Can any one give me a hand ID'ing this plant? I think it is L. Glandulosa. It is incredibly pretty and does very well under high light. I have some growing in my main tank (where these pics are from) and also in my puffer tank that has lower light (relatively) and the water there is tannin stained. Top view - Other -

+1 let them do it. A massive self cull of idiots would not hurt this planet. :lol:

i wouldn't use tea bags. plenty better things out there - almond leaves, aspen cones, oak leaves and heaps more. ive used oak leaves and those little aspen things and it looks good, pH is low and stable. puffers love it.

It depends on your idea of what a truly planted tank is. I call my tank planted but have met many many people who insist they have planted tanks because they have a single plant in their tank that barely survives a week before it needs changing. The first gravel vac i did in my tank in about 3 months was done last week, and the gunk mainly came out from the rear wall of the tank. there was nothing at the front. The amount of poop in the tank also depends on what fish you are feeding, how often and what you feed them. Due to the abundance of bottom dwellers in my tank I undoubtedly have a lot of poop in there. plants help with that and i've never had and never will have a problem as long as i deal with the excess waste in a sensible manner - i.e. never let it build up for 6 months at a time. each tank is different and you have to do best with what you have and do the best for yourself.

give it a few minutes at least! its probably damage from transporting them. clean water and salt will fix it.

argumentative mood eh? :lol: rather have photobucket and have access to your pics when you need them.

they are fat! i wish mine would eat that much. maybe i should starve them for a week.

you should stop going on that forum :lol:

the leaves get a bit bigger, they were only in my tank for about 36 hours when i took that photo. its a relatively slow grower, but as i said Id is needed. it is converting to submersed growth at the moment and is doing well. PS- 21 cardinals now. more to come soonish

yes, joefish. that was my point. That green plant where the cardinals are has been I'd by many on this forum as L. Aromatica its amazingly beautiful. when i get time ill ask for an independent ID on plantedtank.net my understanding is that there are 2 types of aromatica - a red one and a green one.

the L aromatica is different. I have it, and it only grows green. even submersed. very very pretty plant though, and slow growing for a stem plant.

yeah, don't worry about the pH. my puffer tank sits at about pH4.5 or so. best not to alter it.