I'll be rescaping my 20 tall (24" x 12' x 16") riffle tank soon and by that I mean taking all the fish and decor out into bins and completely changing my substrate as well as adding a background and adding plants. My first and only attempt with plants in my original tropical tank ended badly to the point where I killed Anubias, Anacharis, and Java Fern. I'm hoping this was because I had terrible coarse gravel as substrate and dim lighting and not because I can't keep plants healthy. For this tank I am serious about plants. A few questions though.
1) The owner and my friend of my favorite LFS who is a planted tank pro says I should use coral sand as substrate, I was under the impression that it rose pH no? Either way would it be ok to use in my tank with a stock of 2 Rainbow Darters, 2 Greenside Darters, and 9 Emerald Shiners?
2) What would be the best type of bulb for native plants and how long should it be on per day?
3) Would it be ok to mix some of the looser gravel I already have in the tank in with sand since I think it'd look more natural or would that not be good for plants?
4) What are some good hardy (and I mean hardy) PA native plants that would go well in a tank this size and are somewhat easy to find? My sources would be my LFSs, my local creek, and my diving quarry but I'd prefer to get plants from my LFS.
Thanks!
1) The owner and my friend of my favorite LFS who is a planted tank pro says I should use coral sand as substrate, I was under the impression that it rose pH no? Either way would it be ok to use in my tank with a stock of 2 Rainbow Darters, 2 Greenside Darters, and 9 Emerald Shiners?
2) What would be the best type of bulb for native plants and how long should it be on per day?
3) Would it be ok to mix some of the looser gravel I already have in the tank in with sand since I think it'd look more natural or would that not be good for plants?
4) What are some good hardy (and I mean hardy) PA native plants that would go well in a tank this size and are somewhat easy to find? My sources would be my LFSs, my local creek, and my diving quarry but I'd prefer to get plants from my LFS.
Thanks!
