# Natural Plant Newbie - Nano Tank Diaries (and Questions!)



## eden000 (May 23, 2013)

Hey guys! After having my Aqueon Evolve 2 set up for a couple months, I decided I wanted to add live plants to make my betta's days a little more natural. I also couldn't stop drooling over some of the lush jungle looks I've seen in this and other forums. 

At first I just got a bit of Anubias petit nana tied to some driftwood (with the stock LEDs), but it slowly turned a weird orangey/brown colour. Disappointing. I did a bit more research, and was intrigued by the whole "a planted tank with fish will be more successful than a fish tank with plants" thing. 

Here's my new setup: (and I GREATLY welcome any suggestions/critiques. Like I said, I'm a complete newbie and don't really know what I'm doing)

Tank: Aqueon Evolve 2
Lights: Fluval 13W (I just got this today...we'll see how it does). (On 8 hour/day cycle)
Substrate: White, unenriched sand with Seachem plant tabs
Plants: Anubias nana petite, some kind of crypt
Fertilizer: Seachem Flourish

My questions: Do I need to add much more plants to avoid an algae outbreak? I think the light I have is pretty strong for the tank, but the stock LEDs just didn't seem bright enough. Should I be dosing the Flourish, if so how much? 

Does anyone else have any plant suggestions for things that would work in a tank this size, with this setup?


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## Fishybitty (Dec 29, 2012)

I read that moss balls help with algae, because it uses up the nutrients algae needs. Btw I like that tank! Looks nice


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## eden000 (May 23, 2013)

Thanks! Hmm, I forgot about moss balls! Good idea  
I really want the tank to have a lush, overgrown feeling. So I'm hoping the crypts grow fast enough for them to spread a little. Also looking for suggestions of some fuller plants that could give me that look!


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## babystarz (Aug 3, 2012)

> My questions: Do I need to add much more plants to avoid an algae outbreak? I think the light I have is pretty strong for the tank, but the stock LEDs just didn't seem bright enough. Should I be dosing the Flourish, if so how much?


Yes to more plants, some floaters would be ideal (and they are the best at sucking up ammonia). I would recommend you get some frogbit. This will also make your betta happy and give him some shade.

Using Flourish is up to you, I do suggest you start at only 1/8 the recommended dose and slowly work up to the full dose over time to avoid shocking your plants.


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## eden000 (May 23, 2013)

Okay, awesome suggestions  I'll get some this weekend.


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## eden000 (May 23, 2013)

Update: Getting a bit of hair algae, but hoping to buy some type of anubias, moss ball, and maybe frogbit this weekend. The crypts get uprooted _so_ easily when I'm doing water changes, it's rather frustrating. I had to move them around a little yesterday


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

your tank looks great! and the moss balls will certianly add more awesomeness!
Do you plan to put a heater in sometime? or is it warm enough where you live? 
please update us when you get new plants!


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## eden000 (May 23, 2013)

Thanks aokashi! Oh, there is and always has been a heater. I keep the temp around 82, as I've noticed my betta likes that a lot better than the more common temperature of 78. I live in Canada, so a heater was definitely a must-have! 

Here's a current picture. Really worried about the hair algae taking over... Going to do a water change and add more plants tomorrow after I finish work. Any ideas why the white sand has turned that yellowy colour? Also thinking of adding liquid carbon. Might it help with the algae issue?


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

i dont see any hair algae  but Ido see lots of bubbles!
Liquid carbon may kill moss balls to as they are also a type of algae ^_^


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## eden000 (May 23, 2013)

Haha, it's hard to see in the picture. But around the edges, you can see the yellowy-green film which is actually really fine algae (i'm assuming), sticking to the tank. There's also a bit on the leaves of the anubias and crypts. But yes, I love seeing those bubbles ^^


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## eden000 (May 23, 2013)

Scrubbed off some of the film when I was doing my water change - it was actually Brown. Gross.

In any case, here's a picture: 
Didn't get any floaters, but I did add some rotala and a marimo  She gave me a tiny leaf of what I think is duckweed. I have it in there, hoping it'll spread since I didn't even pay for it!


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

heehee brown "film" sounds like diatoms. they're a sign of a new tank or a change in water chemistry, it usually happens when there are more silicates present in the source water. I'm no algae expert but, under most cases, they will go away without a trace once your plants and tank settles in 

Lovely moss ball! your "rotalas" may be Ludwigia repens, a plant with bigger leaves but will turn a love shade of red when it gets closer to the light  a good find!


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## eden000 (May 23, 2013)

Left my tank for a week without WC (not optimal, I know), and a few days during thanksgiving without monitoring. I was happy to see that there wasn't a huge algae bloom or anything, but I'm really wondering about a few things...

First of all, the petit anubias nana is really turning brown, and smells incredibly mouldy. If it keeps being like this, I'll have to get rid of it because I'm allergic to mould. Is this the diatoms you're talking about? To me, it seems like the plant is just dying.










I picked off the worst looking leaves of the nana, and replanted the tops of the ludwigia because it's growing quite fast with new leaves coming in! It is turning brownish, though, compared to the original bright green. Wondering about some reasons for this? I also removed some melted crypt leaves.

Update picture:









I just did a 80% WC, and added a bit of seachem flourish. The roots are branching out a lot more, and the plants were quite stable when I was doing the WC so that made me happy. 

Thinking about getting some invert to help out with algae - does anyone think that this tank could support a MTS in addition to my betta, and would this help with algae? I've read it would, in addition to aerating the sand.


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## KennioSays (Sep 10, 2013)

hey eden i see you started up your tank! looks great bud!


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

nice tank.the problem you are having is too intense light.right now you are at 6.5 wpg. and most of your plants are low light.you need a 5 watt 5000-7500k bulb.this will bring you into low to medium light range.6.5 is in the high light high tech range where you need different flora and co2.you could go as low as a 3 or 4 watt bulb.your anubius is getting scorched.even in lower light i give mine shade or they grow algae.i would not use ferts at this point as there is no balance between light and plant type.get a lower wattage bulb and start newly planted tanks at 6 hrs light cycle.after the plants have established a bit you can up the amount of light hrs.think of it as establishing a base tan when you lay out in the summer. i do not use alot of ferts on my low tech/light nano tanks.i think i have dosed for potassium about 4 times in the last year.it is harder to balance smaller tanks.i only use ferts when i see a deficiency.if you have heavy root feeders then you can use root tabs sparingly.


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## eden000 (May 23, 2013)

Okay, I hear what you're saying about the anubias and I'm going to take it out anyways. All my other plants are doing great, though - there's tons of new growth, and the only problem I'm having is diatoms on the older leaves but all the new leaves are a nice bright green! The ludwigia repens have a beautiful red color on the underside of their leaves, and they look even more beautiful than when I took them home! 

I really don't think that the light is too strong, except maybe for the anubias. I'm planning on getting another plant soon, and a snail, and I'll look at medium light options for that.


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## eden000 (May 23, 2013)

So… this tank has changed a _lot_, and I thought I'd do a little update picture ^^


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