# What plants to add



## Dave_m13 (May 10, 2005)

Hi I have been a member for a while but have so far not used the forum. 
I have a 110 litre, about 29 US Gallon tank, which has cycled now for about 7-8 weeks, the substrate I am using is Sand from the lfs it is about 1-2" in different places, probably 2" deep at the back. 

I have purchased several plants, not really knowing what they are or whether they would live and grow well in the tank. I know I have Amazon Swords, Red ludwigia, Elodea Densa but others I am not really sure. After having the plants for 2-3 weeks i can see that quite a few are just dying. 

I have a Hagen CO2 unit which is bubbling but do not think it is producing enough bubbles, I probably get 1 bubble every 5-10 seconds. So this could be an issue. 

Also my lighting was not too great to start with second hand tank but i have just purchased some new lights with reflectors and I can see the difference in how bright they are, so this could help. Also my temp is quite high at the moment due to Ich but this has gone now so i am slowly bringing the temp down to about 80-82. Would high temp cause plants to die. 

Can anyone recommend back, middle and foreground plants that will survive in Sand and can have high temp. I have 2 Rams and a Cockatoo dwarf cichlid, along with 3 cardinal tetras. I am slowly stocking this is why there are only 3 tetras, will be getting more shortly. 

I know there are lots of questions etc but hopefully someone can assist. 

Many Thanks
dave


----------



## Cavan Allen (Jul 22, 2004)

Exactly what kind of lighting do you have?

I suggest you consider a pressurized co2 system. That would help even if you don't have a whole lot of light.

What about your fertilizing?

There are a good many plants that will do fine in warmer temperatures. _Hygrophila_ species in particular don't seem to mind. Check out our Plant Finder and do a search on www.tropica.dk for plants suited to discus tanks if you will have to contend with higher temps over the long haul or would like to have it that way for the rams.

The sand is probably not the main issue here and isn't usually a problem anyway.


----------



## stcyrwm (Apr 20, 2005)

80 to 85 is pretty normal tank temps so I would think you could grow most anything you wanted. Along with Tropica, plantgeek.net has a pretty good plant guide for you to peruse. Plants get most of their ferts from the water so although it is nice to have a more fertile substrate it shoudn't restrict you very much. If you don't want to do CO2 things will just grow slower - which some of us prefer. You'll have to keep lighting below 2 watts per gallon. 
Once you decide whether you're going pressurized CO2 or not you can post your lighting and folks can give you fertilizing tips.

Good luck, Bill


----------

