This is from Caribsea’s website regarding Eco Complete:
“Eco‑Complete™ Planted is now Eco-Planted™. Same great product but with a new name. Eco-Planted’s™ secret lies in rich basaltic volcanic soil which contains iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, sulfur plus over 25 other elements to nourish your aquatic plants. Floraspore™ symbionts activate the root-substrate interface to facilitate the uptake of minerals which make for a healthier root and healthier plant. Iron rich Eco‑Planted™ eliminates the need for laterite. No artificial dyes, paints, or chemical coatings. Eco-Planted’s™ has highly porous spherical grains for optimum diffusion performance and contains live Heterotrophic bacteria to rapidly convert fish waste into natural food for your aquatic plants. It establishes a natural biological balance which makes cycling a new aquarium faster and safer.”
Whatever it lacks, you dose with fertilizers. Also, the nitrogen cycle will convert excess fish food and fish waste from ammonia to useable nitrates for your plants.
Walstad is great but the concept isn’t rocket science. Super nutrient rich soil, tons and tons of plants to use all those nutrients before algae can take over, and low fish load to create a balance. Simply, the plants grow quickly and abundantly due to all the nutrients and therefore, they will use up whatever nitrates are produced by a low fish population so your water changes will be minimal. If you start with unhealthy, sparse, or small cuttings in that environment, algae will take over. If you add too may fish, it’ll throw off the balance and algae will take over.
Whatever theme or combo you choose, it’s about balancing the plant and animal life, the nutrients, lighting, etc. All the different methods out there can work if you understand this balance. Check out Duane’s setup above, it works fine with an inert substrate but his fish load and leftover nutrients from fish food grow plants fine. It seems you prefer the Walstad method…that’s great…just start out with tons and tons of plants or it’ll fail
“Eco‑Complete™ Planted is now Eco-Planted™. Same great product but with a new name. Eco-Planted’s™ secret lies in rich basaltic volcanic soil which contains iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, sulfur plus over 25 other elements to nourish your aquatic plants. Floraspore™ symbionts activate the root-substrate interface to facilitate the uptake of minerals which make for a healthier root and healthier plant. Iron rich Eco‑Planted™ eliminates the need for laterite. No artificial dyes, paints, or chemical coatings. Eco-Planted’s™ has highly porous spherical grains for optimum diffusion performance and contains live Heterotrophic bacteria to rapidly convert fish waste into natural food for your aquatic plants. It establishes a natural biological balance which makes cycling a new aquarium faster and safer.”
Whatever it lacks, you dose with fertilizers. Also, the nitrogen cycle will convert excess fish food and fish waste from ammonia to useable nitrates for your plants.
Walstad is great but the concept isn’t rocket science. Super nutrient rich soil, tons and tons of plants to use all those nutrients before algae can take over, and low fish load to create a balance. Simply, the plants grow quickly and abundantly due to all the nutrients and therefore, they will use up whatever nitrates are produced by a low fish population so your water changes will be minimal. If you start with unhealthy, sparse, or small cuttings in that environment, algae will take over. If you add too may fish, it’ll throw off the balance and algae will take over.
Whatever theme or combo you choose, it’s about balancing the plant and animal life, the nutrients, lighting, etc. All the different methods out there can work if you understand this balance. Check out Duane’s setup above, it works fine with an inert substrate but his fish load and leftover nutrients from fish food grow plants fine. It seems you prefer the Walstad method…that’s great…just start out with tons and tons of plants or it’ll fail
