New To Plants

[raeven]

I decided I wanted to start using live plants because, frankly, they look a ton better than the cheap, plastic fake ones. And it just seems a lot more natural and healthy to look at, and the fish seem to like it.

I bought three different kinds, although the only one I remember was called Sword. The other two, I'm clueless. All I know is that they are quick growers.

One thing I noticed is that the other two came with a plastic black casing around the roots. I'm wondering if that's something I should be taking off? Or if it's suppose to stay on. I can't imagine much root growth in that thing.

Also, these plants are currently in my 55 gallon. How often should I be putting waffers in for them?

Any recommendations or feedback would be appreciated

[roadrunner]

Welcome! You came to the right place! I'm beginner myself and I've learned a lot since I become a BC aquaria member. I picked the harder (cheaper) way and I've been struggling a little. I have no CO2 system and just gravel. I do regular EI dosing.
Intro To EI (estimated Index)
So technically you'll need good light, good chemical balance in your tank, CO2 system and regular cleaning schedule. It's pretty much up to you how much you're ready to spend in the beginning. My next set up will have good substrate and definitely CO2 system to save myself lots of headache. Anyway, it's fun either way. Since I've picked the harder way, I think I've learned lot more. I also appreciate my aquarium lot more now since I put so much work into it. Oh and I had lots of fun (I won't lie: frustration too) along the way.

[Captured Moments]

The black casing around the roots is the plastic pot that comes with the plants when shipping. They usually stuff it with some kind of cotton wool. You need to remove the pot and as much of the stuffing as possible when planting. If you give more details about the existing setup in your tank (light, substrate) we should be able to help you better. Seems like you got some easy plants. If you just want to have some plants in there and keep things simple, then you can just keep your tank low tech and save some money instead of having to spend on Co2 or upgrading your lights, etc..

[raeven]

Okay, so I went and planted them by looping an elastic around the roots to a rock. Just to give it something to hold onto until it grows a bit more.

As for the lighting, I honestly can't be sure. It came with the tank when we bought it. The one thing I do know is they're flouresent.

[Ladayen]

You are going to find out what you're lighting is. Take the bulb out(maybe do this first thing in the morning before you turn the light on so it's not hot.) and read what it says on it. As to food for them I use Seachems Flourish+. It's a liquid fert and I just drop the necessary amount in with the water pouring from my HoB filter. Swords can grow quite large btw up to 4' in some cases, 3' is fairly common. You're going to have to trim them once in a while. A Co2 system in your case isn't really neccessary and may be a nuisance even with a fast growing tall plant like swords.

[raeven]

Okay, I pulled out the lighbulb and it says Marineland, natural daylight F15T8/18". We have two of these, one on each side of the tank.

I'm noticing that one of my plants is falling apart a lot. There's only one stem left standing, and I'm really unsure as to why that is. I don't think any of my fish are much of plant eaters.

[PaulCheung]

It will help if you can take a few pictures showing what plant you are having.

If it is a stem plant, you need to plant it into the substrate. Some other plants such as Java Fern and Anubias, you can tie time to rocks or driftwood.

Fertilization needs to be balance with the photo period, lighting and the CO2 availability. Too much fertilization with low light would encourage algae growth.

[springboard]

I wonder if the plants are getting enough light. I would start by turning on the lights for an 8-hour period a day if you haven't already done so. Since you have a two tubes in your lighting system, consider swapping one of the tubes for a plant-specific bulb. That way you will still have the daylight bulb to enhance the fish colours and a plant specific bulb to provide the optimal light spectrum for the plants.

[Captured Moments]

post some pictures so we can see what kind of plants you have or at least try to find out what they are.. and are you using plain gravel? Isn't a 55 gallon a 4 ft tank? so you have one T8 18" that's 15 Watts covering one half-length of the tank and the other tube covering the second half? In any event, that is low light. Do you want to keep it a low tech setup or are you willing to spend more money upgrading the lights and a few other products?

[raeven]

I wish I knew exactly what kind they are called. I'm sure I could find out if I head to the fish store, although I suspect that will take me about a week or so thanks to a busy schedule.

Unfortunately, my camera isn't working at the moment, so this is the best I'll be able to do beyond looking through a slough of pictures and trying to match names and descriptions. I'll give it a shot anyways cause it's going to bug me otherwise.


And yes, I'm using plain gravel.

At first I was actually getting these plants in specific cause they grow quickly, and might stand a chance against my apple snails. But, this doesn't seem to be the case, so I moved the snails back into my 45 gallon anyways. So really, ultimately, at this point I just want to have some nice looking plants in there, and if they're lowlight, that would probably be best for me. At least for now until I get the hang of the plant thing in general.