# Substrate and Fast growing plants



## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

Hello Plant people,

I am getting a 10 gallon tank soon (maybe this weekend) and i would like to do a planted tank. I don't want to make anything complicated right now so im thinking low-tech setup.

For substrate i like to use play sand. Is that good?

What are the easy plants to grow?

i'm thinking of 
crypts 
anubias
Java fern


I would like something that can grow fast without additional CO2 or any other nutrients.

Any help or suggestions are appreciated.

I'm in Mississauga so aquatic kingdom is a good place to buy these plants?


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## solarz (Aug 31, 2010)

GAT said:


> Hello Plant people,
> 
> I am getting a 10 gallon tank soon (maybe this weekend) and i would like to do a planted tank. I don't want to make anything complicated right now so im thinking low-tech setup.
> 
> ...


The concern with playsand is that it tends to be easily disturbed and does not hold down plants very well. You will also need to does micronutrients like iron, since plants won't be able to get those from playsand.


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## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

what kind of substrate would you suggest? may be i can add cat litter at the bottom.

2inch of cat litter and then 1 inch of play sand? 

i don't like dark substrate though.


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## ubr0ke (Jul 12, 2011)

buy a bag of worm castings..add water and boil for 20 min...remove any floaters..then mix with play sand...about 50/50...lay about an inch in tank...then cap with an inch or so of kitty litter..then finally cap that with play sand..

thats about as easy as it gets for a diy nutrient filled substrate.
kitty litter alone has no nutrients..its just clay..but worm castings are full of nutrients..

you can just use play sand..I have a tank using just that..but I heavily dose the water collumn...whether you use a nutrient rich substrate or an inert substrate, I still suggest dosing the water collumn..nutrients will not cause algae but will expose other issues that may lead to algae..
example...phosphate dosing will expose co2 issues..
As long as you don't overdue it on light..the demand for co2 and other nutrients will stay rather low.


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## solarz (Aug 31, 2010)

GAT said:


> what kind of substrate would you suggest? may be i can add cat litter at the bottom.
> 
> 2inch of cat litter and then 1 inch of play sand?
> 
> i don't like dark substrate though.


you can try to make mineralized top soil and then cover it with play sand.

If you want to dose ferts, you should read up on the EI method. Regular, large, water changes are vital to this method. Fortunately, your tank is only 10 gallons, so water changes are pretty easy.


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## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

solarz said:


> you can try to make mineralized top soil and then cover it with play sand.
> 
> If you want to dose ferts, you should read up on the EI method. Regular, large, water changes are vital to this method. Fortunately, your tank is only 10 gallons, so water changes are pretty easy.


I read the EI method. Honestly, i don't think its for me, at least not at this moment.

Cat litter at the bottom then play sand, I will them dose tank with Flourish once a week or once every two weeks?. I know it seems im going after easy method but i don't want to complicate things.


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## solarz (Aug 31, 2010)

GAT said:


> I read the EI method. Honestly, i don't think its for me, at least not at this moment.
> 
> Cat litter at the bottom then play sand, I will them dose tank with Flourish once a week or once every two weeks?. I know it seems im going after easy method but i don't want to complicate things.


I've never tried cat litter, but from what I've read, it's even messier than play sand. If you can wait a couple of weeks, it should be easy to mineralize soil for a 10 gallon. With MTS, you don't need to dose ferts, at least for a while.

Or, you could go with some plant-specific substrates like Fluorite or Netlea. If you don't like dark substrates, just cover them with light-colored gravel. (Not sand though, because smaller particles will sink through the larger particles.)

However, you will eventually realize that you need to dose *some kind* of ferts sooner or later. In my case, the tank uses a mix of inert gravel and fluorite black, and I currently dose Potassium every few days (whenever I remember to).

There's just no avoiding that if you want a beautiful planted tank. Remember the last time you saw gorgeous underwater plants in nature? Yeah, that doesn't exist. Aquatic plants are always competing with algae and struggling to get enough light and nutrients in the wild.


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## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

thanks for advice solarz!

i guess i need to think this through before i start setting up the shop.

what do you think of the seachem flourish? use inert substrate and dose weekly with seachem flourish.

any advice on fast growing low demanding plants?


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## solarz (Aug 31, 2010)

GAT said:


> thanks for advice solarz!
> 
> i guess i need to think this through before i start setting up the shop.
> 
> ...


Well, "fast growing" and "low demand" is kind of contradictory. The faster a plant grows, the faster it will use up nutrients in the tank.

What are you trying to accomplish, exactly?


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## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

I'm trying to setup low-tech stand for now. I meant easy growing plant that doesn't require any CO2 injection or high light.


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## solarz (Aug 31, 2010)

GAT said:


> I'm trying to setup low-tech stand for now. I meant easy growing plant that doesn't require any CO2 injection or high light.


- water sprite
- vallisneria
- hygrophila polysperma
- hygrophila difformis
- java moss
- hornwort


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## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

thank you!


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## solarz (Aug 31, 2010)

You should consider adding a DIY CO2 to your tank: very easy for a 10 gallon.

Without CO2, you will very likely run into algae problems. My tank was almost covered in green hair algae before I started running a bottle of DIY CO2.


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