# Best low maintenance for tropical.



## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

I have decided after my last tank cleaning to throw out all my rocks so now I want to go to sand and get a few plants in there. I don't want to really be adding more chemicals to my aquarium. So I want something that will grow on its own. Any recommendations?


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

I should add that I'd like to just throw it in and let it grow.


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## Charlie1 (Dec 31, 2011)

Anubias always is a good plant. Java moss grow quickly, although you would have to attach it onto something (rock, driftwood, etc.) and surprisingly, bamboo is a good plant. You can get the bamboo at Petco.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

anubias...java fern....java moss...cryptocoryne...all are great plants that need little to no care..


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## Fuzz (Jan 27, 2012)

Fair warning : Java Fern never grows in my tanks(right now). I have tried high light, low light, Co2, no Co2, ferts, no ferts....The reason why it wont grow is because my water is VERY hard. Keep that in mind if you want JF.

I have never had any trouble with Amazon Swords, Crypts, or Anubias. Cabomba looks cool for a little while and then melts. I'm experimenting with Jungle Val right now, but I've heard that it takes a long time to adapt. I have an R/O unit on order and I'll be able to soften my water to where I should be able to grow anything...


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

I'm going to try the amazon swords first and if that does not grow in my tank I'm not sure where I'll go from there. I'm adding sand to my tank today, do you plant them right in the sand?


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## BettaGuy (May 6, 2012)

Anubias definetly. It grows very nice in my tank.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Do they grow fast? I was going to get the plants today, but I hate driving in the rain so I'm putting it off until tomorrow. Any pics of your guys plants? So I could get a feel for how they look in a tank?


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

anubias are very slow growers..but well worth having...just make sure that you do no plant it...just attach it to a rock or piece of driftwood....same thing with javaferns..
i live in cleveland ohio..we have medium hard water here...we grow all kinds of plants from anubias to salvinia....
african cichlid tank with dolomite substrate , anubias,cryptocoryne and a couple of others.









montezumae swortail tank with aponogeton ulvaceus..leaves are close to 3 feet long...










there are a lot of plants you could use ; but i would suggest starting with some undemanding low light plants and see how they do for you first..


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

What are the low light plants?


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

they are plants that do not require a lot of light or a strong light..1-2 watts per gallon


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

I have a shop light above my 55 gallon tank. It's a 4 foot strip light. I'm not sure how many watts it is. Will that work?


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

light intensity is inversely proportion to distance. So if the light sat on the tank and has 2 40W bulbs, it would count as 80W / 55 gallons. Still low-light. The higher it hangs, the less light reaches down into the tank. Plants will do best high in your tank. If you don't care what it looks like, you can float hornwort. Or you can tie java fern to decor. I would not even try a plant that isn't "low-light".


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## bveister (Aug 9, 2011)

Fuzz said:


> Fair warning : Java Fern never grows in my tanks(right now). I have tried high light, low light, Co2, no Co2, ferts, no ferts....The reason why it wont grow is because my water is VERY hard. Keep that in mind if you want JF.
> 
> I have never had any trouble with Amazon Swords, Crypts, or Anubias. Cabomba looks cool for a little while and then melts. I'm experimenting with Jungle Val right now, but I've heard that it takes a long time to adapt. I have an R/O unit on order and I'll be able to soften my water to where I should be able to grow anything...


Vallisneria is actually one of the few plants that grow well in hard water. That's why they recommend it for if you wanted to plant a cichlid tank.


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## yannis2307 (Apr 23, 2012)

i have 2 12watt bulbs. that means 24 watts for 16 gallons. 1,5 watts per gallon..but i called the chain store and they said plant lights are different, it's not the watts that matter, they have something else special...is that true?


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

emc7 said:


> light intensity is inversely proportion to distance. So if the light sat on the tank and has 2 40W bulbs, it would count as 80W / 55 gallons. Still low-light. The higher it hangs, the less light reaches down into the tank. Plants will do best high in your tank. If you don't care what it looks like, you can float hornwort. Or you can tie java fern to decor. I would not even try a plant that isn't "low-light".



Thanks for the tips. I just checked how many watts they are both 40w and yet are about 3inchs from the water in a homemade canopy. The inside is painted with a high gloss white it puts off a lot of light for the tank. At night I am using strips of LEDs that I got of eBay that are sort of purple just enough to light the tank up.

Also the canopy does not leak any light from it. 

So would I still need low light plants? I was also wondering what type of rocks do you put in the aquarium? I've ditched all of my decorations and gave it to my sister for her tank. I'd like to get my tank looking as natural as possible.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Yes, stick with low-light. You might get away with a few low-medium plants that float or on a shelf 4" below the water line, but the bottom of such a deep tank will be low-light only. Forget any ideas about carpet grasses unless you plan to invest in more lights.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

How much light would I need for them? Or would I need to ditch my lighting and get something else?


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## Fuzz (Jan 27, 2012)

the other rating on lights is light "temperature"(rated in Kelvin). 6500K is ideal for most plants...or if you're a painter or artist, you know that the color that you see is the color that is reflected(and the rest is absorbed)...so green light in your bulb's spectrum does no good for your plants. red(pink bulbs) that have a big red spectrum are more ideal for the green plants


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Thanks for the info. I've decided on going for some low light plants. I'm going to start with the moss that was stated before. I'll give that a shot first before I try other stuff. I can't get my girlfriend to let me spend a ton more on my tanks she hassles me about it :/. But I did buy her a kitten tonight so maybe I'll get her to let me buy a new light for my tank.

The kitten was a bribe tonight to let me buy some old barnwood for my new 55g tank stand/ canopy  so once that build is started I'll post some pictures to show you guys. I'm not the best at choosing stuff for In my aquarium but I do know how to build all types of stuff so at least on the outside it will be real pretty! 

And of course with some help from the forum will help me choose what to be putting into it. I'm doing it as natural as possible I'm also going to run 2 filters on this tank to help cut back on cleanings. So on my 55g I'm going to be running 120g worth of filtration. Witch I've read is going to help me manage the sand I'm putting in. So hopefully I can get my stand made so I can put in some plants soon. Then I'm going to cycle it for about a month before I add fish.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

You can buy special bulbs, but "daylight" bulbs from the home improvement store are fine for low light. You can have a nice tank of java fern, anubias, etc. without too much effort.

Cheap plants is a good reason to find you nearest aquarium society. There are at least 2 in your state. The Milwaukee aquarium society has a HAP program, which means members get points for reproducing plants and selling them at meetings. If you live too far to go to a meeting, it is still worth connecting with "locals" as they will likely have something that likes your water and the shorter the trip, the better and cheaper plants are shipped.


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## emilychung (Jun 27, 2012)

I get some beutiful lowwatt bulbs and put them on the aquarium wall. Look so great.And that can help plants growing fast.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

cory...i will check and see if my buddy is still selling plants...he had been sick for a spell and i haven't talked to him lately ; but if he is ok i will hook you up with him...
plants that i have great luck with using regular shop lights on my 40--55--75--90--125 and 135 gallon tanks......

anubias...all varieties..
cryptocoryne.....several species
java fern
mosses of course..
hornwort and anacharis
aponogetons.....great plants for deeper tanks....madagascarensis..crispus..undulatus..
and ulvaceus.....i have a special place i get them from...they are really fast growing.. 2' in 2 months....ulvaceus are the most beautiful and graceful plant you have ever seen...


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

That would be awesome, I wanted something that will fill my tank up a little bit, I mean the rocks look great but I always want something better lol. To bad Petco here has no low light plants or the java moss I wanted to start with


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