# Trouble with small plants floating...



## Infinite (Apr 17, 2009)

I have had a lot of trouble with Baby Tears and small grasses in my tank. Basically, any small plant that has very small root structures have this tendancy to grow towards the light instead of there roots growing into the spoil. I am presently curious if my substrates is to blame. I use a very simple mix of common round gravel with lots of fluorite. About 3 or 3 1/2 inches of substrate. Pretty much anything will grow in the tank due to the Metal Halid and CO2 system. Big plants are very happy and if anything I am spending more time running or getting rid of runner. Yet anything smaller seems to struggle rooting and often ends up floating. I have a ton of potted baby tears which I buried the pots. After about a week they all wiggles out of the pots (growing) and then take over the surface of the aquarium. I have to remove about 1/2 gallons of babytears a week to keep them from covering the entire water surface. You can almost watch them grow once they make it to the surface.

Will a softer substrate help? The runners of most other plants have no issue taking root.

-h


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