# Time to plant



## Fishguy10 (Aug 6, 2011)

Hello, I'm starting up my first planted tank and I've got one quick question. Once you have your tank all set up (rocks, gravel, wood) and you have all of the plants that you plan on using, when should you plant your plants? Should you plant: 

1) when there is no water in the tank, but keep the plants moist throughout the planting process by misting them with water 
2) fill the tank about halfway with water, and then plant your plants 
3) fill your tank all of the way up and then plant your plants

Which of these options is the easiest way to plant your plants without them getting damaged?

My only other quick question is what type of tools do people normally use to plant their plants? I've heard of people using tweezers and other "gripping" tools, but I was wondering what tools, if any, you all use. Any feedback or recommendations would be greatly appreciated


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## Nubster (Aug 12, 2011)

I see alot of tank threads where people are planting their tanks with no water. I think if you add just enough water to saturate the substrate and keep the leaves moist you shouldn't have any problems with the amount of time the plants would be out of water. If you think about it...how many days are plants in the mail just damp when being shipped around the country.


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

I always plant with an almost full tank. I know masters like the famous aquascapers say plant empty but I want to see how the plants flow and fill out with water.


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## Fishguy10 (Aug 6, 2011)

I've heard to plant your tank empty, but I wasn't sure if anyone actually did this. It seems like it might be easier to plant the plants in a dry substrate. I'm not overly worried about the plants drying out because you are right, they survive in the mail for a few days with no problem, so it seems like they should do fine in the time it takes to plant your tank. Filling up the tank at least halfway or almost full would let you see how the plants flow and fill out their space though, so that would kind of be good to see. Thank you, both of you, for your opinions, I'll have to decide how to plant my tank  

So how does everyone plant their tanks, and what tools, if any, do you all use?


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

All three methods will work--it is mostly a matter of personal preference. If I have potted plants with big root systems, I like to put them in place even before all the substrate is in. This way I don't have to dig a hole and try to get all the roots covered. Instead, I just fill in around the roots as I add substrate.

Smaller plants I usually plant with the tank about half full.

The only tools I use regularly are a long set of forceps for small rooted plants and stems, and a small kitchen spatula for smoothing the substrate. The credit card you maxed out buying all your equipment is good for this too, LOL!

--Michael


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## Gumbie (Apr 18, 2011)

I fill my tank more than halfway with water before planting. The tools I use are 10" aquatic forceps and 8" aquatic scissors that I got online from Foster & Smith.

One of my favorite plant videos is a silent Tropica presentation on YouTube called Tips and tricks for handling plants in the aquarium, Tropica Aquarium Plants. 
www.youtube.com/watch?v=44cDbR2YvK4

It is very detailed and demonstrates trimming stems, roots and leaves, separating and planting anubias, ferns, swords, stem plants, etc. (be sure to read the subtitles). It's still difficult for me to prune the roots and leaves before planting, but it really works.

I also like tutorials by TheGreenMachineLtd: www.youtube.com/watch?v=jslpO_I7Lwk&feature=BFa&list=ULXHYs1NILXNA&index=10


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## Silvering (Jun 10, 2011)

That video really needs to be stickied somewhere! Please!

Planting would have been so much easier if I'd seen that before hand, I wouldn't have tried to plant a sword still in its pot with rock wool.  Forceps do look very useful, I've been using nothing but my own fingers and it doesn't work as well.  I also planted with the tank filled, but then, I have an inert sand substrate, so it doesn't make a mess. I also just got some pond gloves to wear during maintenance, and that means I'll have to use tools instead of my fingernails while I'm wearing them! (I have sensitive skin, and getting my arms wet all the time was taking its toll. Otherwise I wouldn't bother with gloves.)


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## Coursair (Apr 18, 2011)

I just got a nice set of tools off eBay. It is much easier to plant stuff now using tweezers or forceps instead of my hands. My set is 11" long. 

I tend to plant with the tank half full. But I'm new at this, so learning new things everyday.


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## Fishguy10 (Aug 6, 2011)

I found the Tropica videos awhile ago and since then I've seen most of them a couple of times each. That's mostly where I saw the technique of planting dry, and it looked like it worked really well and was easier to do. The only thing that I don't get about those videos is how short they cut some of the plants before planting. I know you should trim the roots and do a little pruning before planting,( I think that that will be kind of hard to do though) but on some of those plants, it doesn't look like it would ever be able to recover from that. Like that Eleocharis parvula in that video. They take off all of the green growth basically, and turn it into tiny little plugs that supposedly turn into a dense carpet. It looks like that would pretty much kill the plant. Other than that though, I have really enjoyed watching those videos and they seem to be very helpful, I guess I'll find out soon.  I'll also have to look at that other video, I don't think I've seen that one before.

The tools, especially forceps and scissors seem to be very important. I've tried planting a decent sized crypt without trimming the roots, and without any tools, before. It really didn't work out all that well.

Sounds like people prefer to plant their tank about half full of water. It seems like that way you get the both benefits in one. I may try planting it dry, just like in the videos, but I'm not sure yet. 

Thank you everyone for your opinions and input, they really help a first-timer  
Btw, what backgrounds do you guys usually use for your tanks?


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## Silvering (Jun 10, 2011)

Latex paint on my 75G, black plastic background on my planted 55 - make sure to do the background _before_ you fill the tank, I had an awful time trying to put that black background up and get rid of all the air pockets with 5" of clearance between the tank and the wall. :lol: Latex paint gives you a lot of flexibility with color, if you want to do something other than black. The commercial background is probably easier if you want black or "swimming pool blue".


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## Fishguy10 (Aug 6, 2011)

It seems like most of the backgrounds I see are black. You really don't notice the background unless you are actually trying to look at it though. Blue might be a little bright, I don't want the background to stand out more than the plants...What about the picture backgrounds that they have at LFS? Do they look ok or are they too distracting?


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

IMHO, the picture backgrounds are unbearably cheesy. Next to real, live plants, they look like terrible fakes. But this is a matter of personal taste.

Black seems to be the all time favorite, either painted or a sheet. Sometimes when black doesn't seem right to me, I will go to an art supply store and buy large sheets of colored paper or poster board. Art stores usually have a wider selection of colors in subtle shades. One of my favorites is a muted blue-green.


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

I agree with Michael. I think the reason people use black most often is that it creates shadows. As if you were trying to look through a deep woods and it just gets darker. Shiny black reflect the real plants so that it's almost like a mirror. 

It really is a matter of personal opinion. I'm sure you've seen the fake rock an tree stump backgrounds. They are nice too in my opinion. The only issue with them is they are expensive and you are then stuck with that "location".


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## Silvering (Jun 10, 2011)

I've used the photo backgrounds before, and as Tex Gal says, they lock you into a particular look. (I've also grown to think they look terribly fake and cheesy - unless the scaping of the tank is matched to the plants and hardscape in the photo.) I've also used art store posterboard, but I found that difficult to work with when I need more than one piece to cover the whole background. If you only need one piece, just tape all the way around it with clear packing tape so no water or dust can get between it and the glass. (That invariably makes any background look hideous no matter what color it is.) One thing you can do with paint that I've seen is vary the shade of the background, so you go from light to dark the way water gets darker the deeper you go. 

I have to say that plants look very good against a black background, that's probably why it's the most popular!


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## Fishguy10 (Aug 6, 2011)

That was my worry with the picture backgrounds. I thought that they would look really bad compared to actually plants. I do like the way that a black background adds depth to the tank, especially with the shadows. I really don't want to paint my tank, I'll probably go with a black background. I wonder which would look better for my tank, a flat black color or more of a glossy black to get reflections and more shadows...


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## Silvering (Jun 10, 2011)

The glossy black background (from Petsmart) I have on my planted tank is adhered to the glass with SeaView gel - so I only get one reflection, from the glass surface itself.


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## Fishguy10 (Aug 6, 2011)

I got my background and I'll be getting my plants soon, then I'll plant my tank and be ready to go.


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

Looking forward to it...


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