# glass bead as a substrate?



## InfiniteGlory (Dec 17, 2012)

I have a anubius and compact sword plant. will they be ok in being planted in glass beads or do I need another type of substrate beneath the glass beads?

also what brand and type of fertilizer would I need that could be used for both? I have a Petsmart nearby for supplies.


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## pittipuppylove (Feb 23, 2012)

Anubias should do fine with glass beads as it needs to be anchored to something in the tank (such as driftwood or other decoration) to keep the rhyzome out of the substrate or it will rot. 

I'm not sure how the sword would do. They feed heavily from the roots and make massive root systems, so it may depend on the size of the beads. 

Flourish Comprehensive is a really good general fertilizer. It seems rather expensive compared to other ferts, but it's extremely concentrated and the bottle will last a really long time.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## babystarz (Aug 3, 2012)

Just a warning, glass beads trap lots of detritus and they make it very hard to clean! If you like the look of the beads but not the mess, you can mix colored sand with beads of the same color and it looks really cool. The sword will do better with sand to grow into also.

I second the Flourish recommendation.


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## InfiniteGlory (Dec 17, 2012)

The glass beads I have are like these I will see how everything does in them. Thanks for info and the recommendation on the Flourish


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## InfiniteGlory (Dec 17, 2012)

Just a little update. The glass beads were fine as a substrate but I decided to switch over to TopFin Betta sand. Easier to clean

My compact sword plants and anubias starting putting out new leaves once I started using Flourish. Thanks again everybody


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