Adding Fish

[Gourami Swami]

J

how do you plant them? do you just stick them into the sand? i heard that sand doesn't have nutrients for plants, and i can't get a nutri-tab in my area..

Yes you can just stick them in the sand, I wouldn't go for advanced plants though. You would need a high-tech setup for a lot of more difficult species. Stick with anubias, java fern/moss, valisneria, cryptocorynes, etc.

 

[duanes]

I push the roots of the plants into the sand, and the fish waste landing on top provides plenty of nutrients for the type plants I use, even with my 30% every other day water changes.
Dwarf cichlids will be fine with the plants, but anything larger than 3" is too big for that size tank, and will probably uproot the plants anyway.
You do not say what type water you have, soft and lacking minerals, or hard and alkaline. This might have a bearing on what the fish to choose.
Many rams, and Apistos prefer soft, low pH water, and don't do well if that is not provided over time.
Dwarf cichlids from the African rift lakes (such as the genus Neolamprologus, shell dwellers) prefer hard, high pH, alkaline buffered water, but tend do poorly in soft low pH water.