Amazon Sword - bought one, now have 3. Slow growers but very pretty. When they shoot up the central stalk and it starts to bud, cut it off and plant it.
Anacharis - really best in a colder tank. Supposedly one of the easiest aquarium plants to keep but in my tanks (all 78-80 degrees) they don't last.
Cabomba - another cold-water plant, does better in ponds.
Anubias Nana or Dwarf Anubias - VERY slow grower, plant it in shaded areas as it will grow algae. Attracts black "beard" algae which is nearly impossible to get rid of short of plucking leaves and throwing them away.
Java Fern - slow grower, doesn't need much of anything and can do well even in low light. Reproduces by forming new plants at the tips of its leaves, so if you can wait, you only need 1. I bought 1 about a year ago and now have 12 in 2 different tanks.
Cryptocoryne Wendtii (green or red) - another hardy, low-light plant. Reproduces through runners and will eventually spread vigorously. Another one I bought 1 of and now have several.
Some other plants that deserve mention:
Ludwigia Repens (red Ludwigia) - stalk plant, grows in bunches. I've found it to be much more forgiving of a tropical Amazon setup (higher temp, lower pH) than Cabomba and Anacharis. With the right lighting and ferts, it turns a rosy red.
Hygrophilia Difformis - VERY forgiving plant. The biggest issue I've had with it is that it grows TOO well. Three 6-inch stalks now covers nearly 1/3 of my 55G tank, substrate to surface. [Reply]
I'm completely obsessed. I've done DIY CO2, built my own powered reactors, I buy granulated fertilizer ingredients online and mix my own ferts, I've built a custom light fixture for my daughter's 14G tank and it goes on and on and on.
I'll post some pics later - all I'm getting right now is the glare coming in from the south door... [Reply]
Originally Posted by htismaqe:
Popeye is EXTREMELY easy to treat. The best thing you can do is aid medication absorbtion and protect the underlying tissue by swabbing it with Methylene Blue.
The biggest factor that plays into fish susceptibility to disease, IMO, is their origin. Neon tetras have a high mortality rate because they're genetically "watered-down". Some fish, like otocinclus catfish, are fragile because their wild-caught and the methods used are often very traumatic for the fish.
EDIT: I've had virtually ZERO opportunistic infections (Columnaris, Saprolegnia fungus, etc.) since installing a quality UV sterilizer.
FYI, male bettas make GREAT tankmates for community fish. You just can't keep them with fish that are notorious fin-nippers because they'll get abused and you, obviously, can't keep them with other male bettas.
Originally Posted by KC Fish:
I wouldn't say cichlids in general are a no-no for planted tanks. Certain species of cihlids are diggers though, and can uproot plants. But certainly not all. I've never really had a problem with plants being uprooted by my fish. It just depends on what you get.
And I didn't mean to sound harsh in regards to "boring starter fish". I'm just not a big fan of the little "dime-a-dozen" varieties that you find in every Petsmart. I grew bored with that a long time ago. I get much more satisfaction in having wide variety of larger fish of different types. It's more of a challenge I guess.
And I agree that clown loaches are pretty cool. But compare that to cichlid varieties like these:
Ngara Flametail cichlid:
Tropheus Firecracker cichlid:
Sunshine Peacock cichlid(I have one of these):
German Red Peacock cichlid(have one of these too, but not old enough to look this good):
That kind of color and variety is easily possible, and these are all mellow cichlids that would do fine together.
Fine together but what about with non cichlids? I don't want a cichlid only tank. Wife wants glofish and tetras. [Reply]
Originally Posted by htismaqe:
My 55G tank is on the left. My daughter's 14G tank is on the right.
Beautiful tanks! I especially like what you did w/ the Driftwood! I have a 12" piece of Mopani for my Pleco and tried adding plants to it, but it was full of fail. I attached Anubias and Java Moss to it, but the bastard keeps knocking them off the wood. :-)
Originally Posted by Silock:
Fine together but what about with non cichlids? I don't want a cichlid only tank. Wife wants glofish and tetras.
No, I made a list earlier in the thread. That list wasn't comprehensive, either. It was just what we found on liveaquaria. I'm sure there are more species out there that are very colorful (preferring reds and blues) that aren't cichlids. [Reply]
I had a 60 gal freshwater tank that was super easy to maintain. But then I accidentally killed 2 fish, my eel died mysteriously, and I was sad. Don't ever love is what I'm saying. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Lumpy:
Beautiful tanks! I especially like what you did w/ the Driftwood! I have a 12" piece of Mopani for my Pleco and tried adding plants to it, but it was full of fail. I attached Anubias and Java Moss to it, but the bastard keeps knocking them off the wood. :-)
I've used quite a bit of Mopani (the wood you see in the 14G tank is actually Mopani). I've attached Java fern and moss to Mopani with no issues and if you look closely at the 14G picture, behind the leaves of the Amazon sword, there's a java fern attached to the middle piece at the top. Of course, I don't have a pleco so you can probably guess which one is your issue. :-)
I actually had more problems getting them attached to the new driftwood because it was so smooth (I ended up using the girls' little rubber bands for pony tails :-)) Mopani has so many little cracks and crevices, there's lots of places to stick plants. Here are some of my previous attempts:
My problem with Mopani is that it's so dense. In terms of tank decor, it eventually becomes more like a ROCK than a piece of wood, settling to the bottom and becoming un-assuming, which is the last thing you want from your centerpiece driftwood. I actually had some interesting Mopani arrangement but ultimately opted for the much more visually impressive hardwood piece you see in the pic I posted yesterday. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Silock:
Fine together but what about with non cichlids? I don't want a cichlid only tank. Wife wants glofish and tetras.
No.
Cichlids will make quick work of glofish and tetras. What she wants is an Amazon-style freshwater tank, which is what I have. Softer water (lower pH), plants, etc. Cichlids (with some notable exceptions) are from Africa and water is hard with not alot of plants (because the Cichlids will destroy them). In fact, there's only certain Cichlids that can cohabitate. If you go with Cichlids, you're going to only have Cichlids (and perhaps some bottom dwellers like Pleco).
Like KC Fish said, alot of freshwater community fish are kind of boring. If you want "interesting" my daughter has Kuhli loaches.
She also has Killifish, which much like Bettas, have coloful males. This is what her's look like:
If you want to get some color but don't want Cichlids, I strongly recommend Colombian Tetras - they're my favorite fish.
Originally Posted by suzzer99:
I had a 60 gal freshwater tank that was super easy to maintain. But then I accidentally killed 2 fish, my eel died mysteriously, and I was sad. Don't ever love is what I'm saying.
Originally Posted by Lumpy:
DJ definitely knows his shit! :-) I think he has me beat though... I know absolutely nothing about Cichlids.
Well much obliged, Lumpy.
I'll graciously concede that freshwater crown to you, though (or htismaqe w/ the late run). I know a fair amount about cichlids and that's about it. Everything else I just kinda chuck in there and hope they live.
When you have to cross your fingers and pray that your $100 Clown Tang starts eating in the 10 or so days it's going to have before it starves to death (and invariably it won't), you develop something of a callous attitude about the loss of a .99 cent molly. So I've not done nearly the homework I should on community fish.
Originally Posted by Silock:
Fine together but what about with non cichlids? I don't want a cichlid only tank. Wife wants glofish and tetras.
There are a handful of cichlids you can try with that bunch, but they're still iffy and can be pretty susceptible to bad water conditions.
I've found that I really enjoy the shell dwellers; they're fairly small Tanganyikans that breed like rabbits. They're very passive and fascinating to watch. They're kinda like the sea-monkeys of the cichlid kingdom in that they're constantly interacting with each other. That said, they're pure bottom runners, so they're more of a supplemental addition, IMO.
Bolivian Rams are awfully neat, especially when they pair off. They can be fairly colorful, but not always. Blue and Gold rams can be extremely attractive, but just a small water spike will kill them off. Usually right about the time they pair off and become badass, you'll look in the tank to see 'em floating. Kribensis could work as well (not a Rock Krib; those are Victorian and mean as hell, just a regular Kribensis).
They're extremely colorful, like cichlids. They' significantly more docile, though. They'll school better than Cichlids (who mostly just form territories and go to war). They seem to be much more in line with what your wife is looking for. If you're looking for a planed tank, these are unquestionably the way to go. I've had decent luck with them in the past, before I let my freshwater tank go to seed.
(!@#$ it, just save up your nickels and go saltwater; you'll never go back :-) ) [Reply]
