Plants and Trees - Aquarium Plants
About Aquarium Plants
Introduction
Aquariums are magnificent to look at. It’s not only the fish that make an aquarium what it is, but also the plants inside of it that provide a natural beauty. Aquarium plants help improve your aquariums health and give your fish a more genuine habitat.
Growing Aquarium Plants
There are three major elements that contribute to the success of growing aquarium plants. They include a quality substrate, adequate lighting and good nutrition. These three all work in conjunction with each other for optimal growth of your aquarium plants. Every element is explained in detail below. Substrate
Substrate is the term given to the medium your aquarium plants will root in. The substrate should be chosen according to the types of aquarium plants you wish to grow. This is because aquarium plants have different substrate needs depending on how much nutrition they need to get out of their roots. There are a few varieties of aquarium plants that don’t rely on the substrate at all for nutrients and just use it as an anchor, while others greatly depend on a quality substrate for their nutrients. Even though a quality substrate may be more costly, it will pay off in the end. Substrates such as Eco-Complete and Fluorite offer a continuing supply of Iron to aquarium plants through the roots, which is vital for plant growth. Cheap gravel won’t do the same job and may hinder aquarium plant growth, so it’s best to start with a decent substrate to ensure optimal aquarium plant growth.
If you’d rather opt for gravel, your aquarium plant will still survive in it, but the size of the gravel is a significant factor. It will need to be a finer grain in size and will also need to be fertilized to make sure the required nutrients are available to the aquarium plants. It is recommended to put a layer of Laterite and peat under the gravel to provide the Iron needed. The depth of the substrate should be 3 inches. One smart way to lower the cost is to layer the substrates. You can set down 2 inches of an Iron enriched substrate on the bottom, and then top it off with either fine gravel or sand.
Lighting
Another important element for aquarium plant growth is lighting. The aquarium lighting that usually comes with your tank is sufficient for viewing and is not enough for successful aquarium plant growth.
The aquarium lighting is measured by “watts per gallon” which indicates how many watts you will need to grow certain aquarium plants in your tank. Between 2-4 watts per gallon is enough for the majority of aquarium plants requiring moderate light. Aquarium plants have varying light requirements, so depending on the plants you can install lighting with the necessary amount of watts per gallon. Aquarium lights should be on consistently for around 10-14 hours a day. If you do not want to put too much effort in lighting then choose from the following lowest-light aquarium plants: Anubias, Cryptocorynes, Java fern, Java moss and water sprite
Nutrition
Once you have dealt with the substrate and lighting, you can now tackle the nutrition. Aquarium plants need to be supplied with beneficial nutrients in order to achieve an attractively planted tank for your fish.
Normally, it’s better to allow your newly inputted aquarium plants about four weeks just to settle before you start fertilizing. You will need to watch your aquarium plant’s health to determine their growth and health needs. If you find yellowing leaves, spindly stems or stunted growth, it’s most likely to be due to lack of nutrients. The higher level of lighting you have, the more plant growth there will be and the more nutrients you will need. Aquarium plants need micro nutrients available in tap water or in bottled liquid fertilizers, for instance Kent and Pro-Plant. They also need macro nutrients such as Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potassium found in trace element fertilizers.
