[Wet Thumb Forum]-i need general education

[candoh]

i feel like my brain is about to melt. so i have had this really small 2 gallon tank i think for about a year with my one fish and my one plastic plant. recently i upgraded to a nameless plant from walmart. my fish ate it and i thought it was dead and gone, but it grew back fast and my fish doesn't eat it anymore (he is a cherry barb).

so now i am upgrading big... ha. a 10 gallon. bought another nameless plant from local pet store.

i have left both plants in there little black plastic containers that hold the ummm... rockwool like substance onto the roots of the plant... is this okay? or so i need to remove them from it? one of the plants came with a little intro that told me to just stick the whole thing in the water and cover it with the gravel to the rim of the tiny slotted black plastic "pot" that it is in.

i have really enjoyed reading the many post i have gone thru, i see that many people plant a lot in their aquariums... is it unusual to just see a few small plants in a tank?

[candoh]

i feel like my brain is about to melt. so i have had this really small 2 gallon tank i think for about a year with my one fish and my one plastic plant. recently i upgraded to a nameless plant from walmart. my fish ate it and i thought it was dead and gone, but it grew back fast and my fish doesn't eat it anymore (he is a cherry barb).

so now i am upgrading big... ha. a 10 gallon. bought another nameless plant from local pet store.

i have left both plants in there little black plastic containers that hold the ummm... rockwool like substance onto the roots of the plant... is this okay? or so i need to remove them from it? one of the plants came with a little intro that told me to just stick the whole thing in the water and cover it with the gravel to the rim of the tiny slotted black plastic "pot" that it is in.

i have really enjoyed reading the many post i have gone thru, i see that many people plant a lot in their aquariums... is it unusual to just see a few small plants in a tank?

[Paul Higashikawa]

How you would like to set up your tank is totally up to you. For some, it means turning it into a beautiful dream-scape, while for others it may be just a few plants here and there. It's totally dependent on each person.

As with the plant in the pot; it is likely orginally from Tropica, a European aquatic plant supplier that is world-wide famous. In their own site, you could read about how they teach people about plant husbandry. When you receive your plants you would want to take it out of the little pot that it came with. Gently remove the wool; if the plant is small or delicate then you could cut the lower half portion of the wool. Plant whatever rest you have into the substrate. Generally, this is the best way to encourage the plant to grow in its new home. I know some people deliberately put the plants in pots, but that is another story Good luck; I think you may very well be on your way to being a plant addict!



Paul

[imported_JanS]

Hi Candoh,

I'm not sure how familiar you are with different aquatic plants, but our WalMart has been selling nothing but regular houseplants as aquatic plants lately. If that's the case with the ones you've bought, you'll want to keep a close eye on them so they don't start deteriorating in your tank.

[candoh]

thank you.

as far as pet stores or even fish stores... there are very few around here, so yeah walmart and a place in the mall is all i have locally, but i think my plants might be safe, i tried to look them up and they looked like some of the plants i saw, perhaps i should just post some pics of them to be identified so that i can make sure they are okay.

[tsunami06]

If you're in the US, the plants in pots are most like from Florida Aquatic Nurseries (FAN).

Importing Tropica plants into the US is illegal because of import restrictions.

I would recommend placing another light bulb over your tank to give the plant a better chance of surviving. Crypts, Anubias, and Java Fern, and Sword plants are good choices (tip).

Carlos