# New here, questions about plants



## KriStellar26 (Nov 5, 2012)

Hello! I am starting out completely new to the fish world.. and decided that I would like to try a couple live plants when I set up the tank. I purchased am Aqua Fern 4" and one that says assorted Anubias. What should I know about these types of plants? So far I have only purchased gravel. Do I need sand also? And how much? It will be a 10 gal tank. I have already purchased 10 pounds of gravel. Also, lighting? Do I need particular lighting for these plants? I made a pretty uneducated purchase. Hopefully I can make these work.
Do I need to feed/fertilize these too? Basically ANY help you can give me will be helpful. I am clueless!! I will be purchasing a betta for this tank, once it has been set up a while. 


Thanks for any advice you can give me!! :-D


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## kfryman (Nov 7, 2011)

Aqua fern can mean a variety of things, if you can post a picture (Go to advanced and the paper clip). Anubias is an awesome plant! You don't need special lighting for anubias, but if you want any other plants, get a 6500k plant bulb. Then you would be able to grow many more plants like anacharis, wisteria, water sprite, crypts, rotala, najas/guppy grass, java fern, amazon sword, and ludwigia have all worked well for me or others in low light.

gravel or sand works, but if you want other plants, again, you are going to need at least 20 pounds for a standard 10 gallon tank. Have about 1.5-2 inches in front of the tank and then move to 2-2.5 inches or so. You want to slope the substrate for some added depth and plants need room to spread their roots.

A fert like API Leaf Zone is fine for lowlight, but only get it if you get more plants like the ones I listed.

Stay away from most plants in the tubes, anubias and java fern are fine, the other things tend to be semiaquatic. Mondo grass, ribbon plant, bamboo, and a couple others are not truely aquatic. Stick to the plants I recommended so you have a chnace to have a nice planted tank.


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## KriStellar26 (Nov 5, 2012)

Ok... I think I got the picture attached.. What type of fern do you think it is? I looked up java fern and it did not look like that.. 

Thanks for all the info too!! I think this will be it for plants for now. I am new to fish, so I want to get more comfortable before I add more


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

read the label... it should have a scientific name


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## KriStellar26 (Nov 5, 2012)

oh duh!! 

it says trichomanes javanicum... and i did a quick search to find that this isn't even an aquatic plant   I guess I will be returning it!! I will just start with the anubias for now.


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## KriStellar26 (Nov 5, 2012)

I really like that anacharis plant.. i am thinking about ordering some of that to add in to my setup. However by the time I order it, I plan to already have the rest set up and my fish in there also. Is it hard to add a plant to a current setup? Also.. will I need sand for the anacharis to root? Or will it be fine in gravel? So if I get that, I will have that and the anubias. Will I need a fert having these two?


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

it's actually easier to add plants after a month or two, when the substrate "sets"
you can really take your time and instead of doing it all in one go, do it slowly. easier on your wallet too


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## KriStellar26 (Nov 5, 2012)

oh ok.. so I will wait a month then! less to worry about just getting started 
should I set the tank up with gravel and sand to prepare for getting the anacharis? or is gravel enough for that plant?


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

I highly recommend fine gravel. I forgot where they can be found.... but there are brand that offer fine gravel as opposed to the large graind gravel. they are non floaty, and are much more forgiving than sand when you are trying to move things around 

but if you already bought gravel it will be fine to use that XD

make sure when you clean the tank to avoid plant roots and such


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## KriStellar26 (Nov 5, 2012)

good to know!! I will look for that.. I didnt purchase enough regular gravel, so maybe ill do half and half. Thanks for your advice!


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

well just know that the larger grains will always settle on top


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## KriStellar26 (Nov 5, 2012)

ohh so should i return it for the finer stuff?


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

not at all  just saying that if you want to mix it, it's good to know that the coarser grains will move to the top of the substrate and it will affect the aethetics of the tank (so if you like the look of your current substrate, that's a good thing 

wheter you want to return the substrate is completely up to you XD


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## KriStellar26 (Nov 5, 2012)

oh ok.. yeah I like the look of the bigger gravel.. so thats fine  I just want to be sure my plants will also be healthy. thanks again!!


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