# Akadama for plant substrate?



## creature55 (Apr 3, 2014)

Just wondering if anyone has experience using Akadama as a plant substrate? I currently have a 20g with Akadama that I'd like to make heavily planted. Have been considering swapping it out for ADA aquasoil (which I know works great), but don't really have the money for aquasoil ATM. Would it be okay to keep it as is?? I have pressurized CO2 and a dual T5 light. 

Thanks!!


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## xriddler (Feb 16, 2012)

I think (dont quote me cause i might be wrong) that with correct fert dosing you can use anything as substrate

aquasoil will run out of nutrients eventually so fert dosing is needed regardless


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## aniroc (Aug 23, 2012)

I believe (and don't quote me either) that it depends on the type of plants you intend to grow. A heavy root feeder such a crypt or sword will benefit from a nutrient rich substrate while a floating frogbit or watersprite will need water column fertilizer.


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## wantzz (Apr 2, 2013)

xriddler said:


> I think (dont quote me cause i might be wrong) that with correct fert dosing you can use anything as substrate
> 
> aquasoil will run out of nutrients eventually so fert dosing is needed regardless


sry i'm "quoting" u on this one but just for another question  isn't the goal of using aquasoil to reduce the need to dose (at least the micros)? I havn't used neither of aka/ada but with stratum i'm not finding micro deficencies after a yr yet...and i basically planted every inch of my substrate floor... (just a note...i do NOT know if stratum has nutrients to begin with, but again..my plants grew fine...)

but i guess for what might be meaningful for the OP...wouldn't the real question be...how long can the nutrients (if any) last for any given brand? obviously there's no infinite energy source here...i'm interested to find info/test/reviews like this too!


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## creature55 (Apr 3, 2014)

wantzz said:


> sry i'm "quoting" u on this one but just for another question  isn't the goal of using aquasoil to reduce the need to dose (at least the micros)? I havn't used neither of aka/ada but with stratum i'm not finding micro deficencies after a yr yet...and i basically planted every inch of my substrate floor... (just a note...i do NOT know if stratum has nutrients to begin with, but again..my plants grew fine...)
> 
> but i guess for what might be meaningful for the OP...wouldn't the real question be...how long can the nutrients (if any) last for any given brand? obviously there's no infinite energy source here...i'm interested to find info/test/reviews like this too!


Yup, that I think that would be the right question....except I don't know if Akadama even has the right nutrients for plants in the first place! So that's what I was really trying to find out.

I think that having a good plant soil would definitely provide a lot of the nutrients for root feeding plants, but not so sure about non-root feeders? I'm such a noob with plants though that I definitely don't know if that's right. I am dosing this tank with Akadama anyway because I really don't know what nutrients it provides.


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## xriddler (Feb 16, 2012)

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=509777

here have a read at this thread i googled. Quite interesting of course it was only between two people so truth or not i dont know.

This is pretty cool too:
http://www.theplantedtank.co.uk/akadama.htm


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