What are some good plants for a 6 gal Fluval Edge

[Tazzy_toon]

I just got fluval edge given to me, it was horribly neglected and had alot of snails and the lighting housing burnt out, but the 2 live plants have a tiny bit of life in them and i'm hoping to add some more.

Does anyone have any suggestions for some small plants that will thrive in that enviroment. I still have a few horned snails and am using a lamp to light the tank for now. I am going to be eventually putting a few guppies in there.

Thanks for your time.

[CGY_Betta_Guy]

I have grown swords, crypts, vals, pennywort, windelov java fern, marimo moss balls and some other moss in it. My substrate is about an inch of fluorite and I swapped out the stock halogens with MR16 and I also have LEDs sitting out on top of my glass for additional lighting. Even though everything was growing fine I started pressurized CO2 and things really took off in terms of growth.

Hopefully you can get yours growing well too.

Edit: Anubias would probably do quite well in there too but I never tried it.

[tang daddy]

+2 for cgy betta guy!

All those plants he mentioned would do well, it shouldn't be a big deal to change the light on the edge and you can probally find a replacement light at home depot.

[CGY_Betta_Guy]

Here is a pic of my tank from last year... apparently i also gave anacharis a try in the back corner too. I remember I got tired of trying to trim it every week in such a shallow tank and took it out. Hope this gives you some inspiration.

[Tazzy_toon]

Thank you both for the encouragement Cgy Betta Guy, that is indeed encouraging. That looks wonderful. I did add a lil crypt plant and I have 2 plants that barely survived my sons care.
But it looks horribly bare compared to yours. I put the crypt behind the white rock. I'm thinking of switching over to sand tho, but haven't decided yet. I guess i better figure it out before it gets too planted.

[CGY_Betta_Guy]

I would say that if you are using the stock hang on back filter choosing sand might be a tough call since the water fall would make a hole in the sand eventually. You could either position the large rock or a stategically placed plant in that spot to be a water break. I am not sure since I have never used the standard HOB filter.

[CRS Fan]

The tank looks like its off to a good start ! It looks like an anubias species in the background (but maybe my eyes are old and tired ). If so..... make sure you don't bury the rhizome . The crypt and anubias will be fine with the lower light levels. I do suggest putting the light on a timer with an 8 - 10 hour photoperiod (if you haven't already done so).

Best Regards,

Stuart

[Tazzy_toon]

I would say that if you are using the stock hang on back filter choosing sand might be a tough call since the water fall would make a hole in the sand eventually. You could either position the large rock or a stategically placed plant in that spot to be a water break. I am not sure since I have never used the standard HOB filter.

Oh gosh, never even thought of that! I did figure i'd need something over the intake, maybe i'll have to re evaluate the sand. Thanks for bringing that up.

[Tazzy_toon]

The tank looks like its off to a good start ! It looks like an anubias species in the background (but maybe my eyes are old and tired ). If so..... make sure you don't bury the rhizome . The crypt and anubias will be fine with the lower light levels. I do suggest putting the light on a timer with an 8 - 10 hour photoperiod (if you haven't already done so).

Best Regards,

Stuart

Thanks, I looked at some pics and it does look quite simular, but it's in rough shape so it's hard to say. I'm not doing anything special with the light at this time, just a lamp during the day close to the glass that i move higher up in the evening and turn off at bed time. I've kept and care for many plants but never in an aquarium. I'm quite uneducated on it atm, but look forward to learning more about it.

[CGY_Betta_Guy]

I would also suggest that if you are trying to get your crypt to recover, a better position would be to put it nearer to the center of the tank where the light shines into the water rather than hiding it behind the white rock. My crypts and swords always seemed to grow the best about 1-2 cm inside the square that makes up the opening. The more light it can get will help it to recover and grow stronger.

Also since its a root feeder you might consider a root fertilizer to give it nutrients to draw from.

What substrate do you have in there right now? It looks like fluorite black gravel which is what I have in my edge tank.

The crypt in my picture eventually out grew the tank and was quite impressive.... I wish I had take a pic of it when I pulled it. Because the gravel was only about 3/4 of an inch deep the root system of the crypt had extended to almost all 4 corners of the tank and the leaves were easily twice as long as those in the picture. I had pulled it because it was shading everything else in the tank.