Good results start with the purchase of healthy plants. These are ones that have green leaves and white roots. Some damaged or broken leaves are inevitable and these minor defects should be removed before planting. Plants with excessive damage, sponginess, no roots, smelly black roots, or evidence of snail or algae infestation should be avoided. Removal of damaged parts is required because the leaf damage never repairs itself. Under good conditions, plants can rapidly replace damaged leaves, but there is no point in starting off with poor quality stock. If there is a choice, always try to purchase taller specimens rather than shorter ones. The taller plants have a better chance of doing well because their leaves are closer to the light.
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A large number of plants are required for an initial set-up. The best place to obtain large quantities of starter plants is at club auctions. The object in an initial planting is to achieve the highest possible plant density in the tank. The plants can then out-compete algae for available nutrients. Tanks with only a few plants seldom do well, because under these conditions there are so many excess nutrients in the water that algae growth completely overwhelms the plant growth.
The plant species chosen for the first planting should be cheap, fast growing plants such as Vallisneria, Hygrophilia, Cabomba, and hornwort. Other stem plants, Java fern, sword plants, and Cryptocoryne affinis (avoid other Cryptocoryne species for the first three months) are also suitable but more expensive. With all of these plants, a close inspection should be made for snails, snail eggs and algae. Emersed cuttings from Nomaphila stricta (temple plant) or Hygrophilia lacustris (willowleaf hygro) make excellent starter plants because the emersed growth is free of any snail or algae contamination. Unlike other emersed cuttings, temple plant and the Hygrophilia species adapt very quickly to submerged conditions.
Floating plants, such as hornwort, Najas, and Java moss can also be used to help a tank get started. However, too many floating plants can block out too much light. The problem is even worse with small floating plants like duckweed. Once you've added them, it's very hard to completely eliminate them. Therefore, I consider duckweed a pest, just like algae and snails, and recommend that all traces of duckweed be carefully washed out of incoming plants before adding them to your tank.
The best way to start off a new tank is to have a light fish load. Fish which are good algae eaters, such as mollies, flying foxes, and certain catfishes are good starter fish because they can pick at any algae as it appears. These fish should be fed sparingly to encourage them to find algae and keep the nutrients levels low. Eventually, more fish can be added. The total depends upon a number of factors, but keep in mind that the more fish, the more waste, and if your water changes can't keep up with waste production, then you have a potential algae problem.
Once established, planted tanks require regular maintenance to look their best. The most important thing of all is frequent water changes. These water changes remove excess nutrients, such as nitrates and phosphates, from the water and reintroduce new ones, such as iron, which are required. Your fish will also appreciate the clean water. I perform weekly water changes of between 50% to 75% per week (remember to use a hose and not a bucket) and I've never noticed any fish in distress. However, hobbyists with other water supplies may not be as fortunate and will have to test what their fish can tolerate.
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Well-established tanks with heavy plant growth may eventually require some trace element additives to replace essential micronutrients such as iron and manganese. Usually these are present in sufficient quantities in our tap water, but heavy plant growth may require extra supplements. The symptoms of a trace element shortage include yellow leaves, weak growth, and holes in the leaves. However, these problems can also be caused by poor lighting, poor water quality, snails, or plant-eating fish. Before resorting to trace element additives, be sure that these other possibilities are considered. Only a trace element additive specifically designed for aquarium use should be used.
Maintaining a nice, healthy planted tank would be very easy if it wasn't for two problem pests, snails and algae. Snails can cause serious damage to plants, especially to young growing leaves. Expensive sword plants and Aponogeton species seem to be among the most susceptible to snail damage. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to detect the presence of snail eggs on incoming plants since they are colorless, jelly-like masses underneath the leaves. Adult snails can easily be picked off or detached from the plants by dipping in alum solution. Alum, however, doesn't kill the eggs.
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Once snails have become established in a tank, complete removal is very difficult. Copper sulfate treatment is frequently recommended because copper is toxic to invertebrates. However, in alkaline water such as Calgary's (pH 8.3) copper immediately precipitates out and has no effect. Chelated copper additives aren't much better, because the chelation reduces the toxicity. The only sure way I've found to satisfactorily use copper to kill snails is dangerous and not recommended. It involves removing all of the fish, removing all carbonate decorations (such as shells, coral, limestone or marble), reducing the pH to <>
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