Artificial Aquarium Plants.

[dem0n]

I've previously never been a fan of plastic plants in aquariums but as my new(ish) 8' tank was looking pretty bare I thought i'd give some a go.

I got about 4 different brands (that i cant remember at the moment) ... lots of different shapes & sizes ... got one of those 'silk' imitation sword plants & one of those new 'marina' (i think) plastic imitation swords.

Overall all these artificial plants seem over-priced & badly made! :urgh: thier original bases fall off at the drop of a hat, the silk plant is better attached to it's base but it's base is too light & the fish easily pull it out of the substrate. the long tendrilly (my new word) plastic plants have these snap-together points that snap apart at a swish of my salmontail's tail !@# & then they float around looking aweful. the new marina plastic imitation sword is the best so far but imo it's base is too light for the size of it... once a bit of substrate is dug away from it's base the wieght of the metal wire in it's 'branchs' makes it fall over :urgh:

So last night I took all the plants out... glued all the snap-together points so they can't snap apart anymore, took off all the bases (except for the imitation swords) & CABLE-TIED them in bunchs to a heavy chunk of slate I took the base off the marina sword & attached a heavy ceramic toroid to the base then glued it back on... now the plants seem pretty solid... despite dopey fish that try n dig/rip them out!

I will say however that the new marina sword plant with the wire in it's branchs looks pretty nice once you've spent the time to bend all the branchs into a realistic shape.

Anyone else have stories about artificial plants?

[Motorman]

I have range of plastic plants they are great

Look real and they have a sturdy base which keeps them standing up and on the bottom

They are made by a local bloke and arent availiable in many shops

He also has heaps of larger ones for the tall tanks

Brad

[aquaholic99]

..........

Edited March 23, 2011 by aquaholic99

[damo83]

I often use real plants for short term displays or to help finicky fish breed. When I say real I mean terrestial plants. Ficus, maple, tall grass, anything which isnt poisonous will do. It only lasts a few weeks but there are trees full of stuff in the garden.

I've done this in the past also... you just have to be sure that no pesticides have been sprayed on the plant.

[dem0n]

Motorman : that's good to know, thanks! ... looks like i'm gonna have to make a trek down to Nerang some time soon & check these artificial plants out.

I am trying to avoid using real plants in this tank as the fish (large american cichlids) will just destroy them & the detritus clogs the mechanical filtration too quickly. even in my 4' planted tank the plant detritus often clogs the inlet manifold on my RESUN AE808 canister filter.. which is a pain to clean out.

All seems pretty good now that i've glued & cable-tied everything together ... only had one strand of plastic plant break away from the bunchs so far.

Cheers for the replies

[gtr73]

I got some alright looking plastic plants from Bargin City (of all places). Cheap and looked much better than the more expensive ones I've had over the years. They have ceramic bases to keep them grounded dispite digging Africans.

Best thing however is I've got Java Fern that has taken hold onto the plastic plants. If you aren't aware, Java Fern isn't touched by Africans and feeds off the water column, so you don't need to keep it planted. Also doesn't need much light, in fact too much artificial light (such as +10 per day) will tend to burn the leaves. Perfect plant for an African tank.

In the past I've just let Java Fern float around the tank, but when I got the plastic plants it's kind naturally taken hold onto them and it all now looks fantastic without any manual labour from myself.

[Benji]

my experience with the java fern has been a bit different, I've got 3 lava rocks with Jave fern ryzomes, they did have leaves but, the mbuna either ate them or tore them off. I got this stuff because i read africans don't touch it.

[gtr73]

Surprising to hear that. Mine definitely don't touch it.

Perhaps the one bad thing about Java Fern I've found over the years - the leaves burn if there's too much artificial light per day and if the tank's light time isn't reduced they eventually fall off and float around the tank before they rot and disintegrate or get eaten. But when healthy the Java Fern leaves appear too tough for Africans to tear into it.

Maybe that's what could've happened Benji?

Java Fern only requires minimum amounts of light to thrive, which is either good or bad depending on your setup. My display tank gets one hour in the morning before work and three hours at night and that suits it just right.

If someone had a fully planted tank then Java Fern maybe wouldn't fit in with the more light intensive plants.

[Motorman]

My display at home gets heaps of Light

and I throw in pieces of Java fern that have grown very very well

I also get Pieces of it from the shop that have come apart as I have some fish that dont eat but rip it apart

And those little Pieces have grown into great plants

I never throw out any piece Just put it in a tank somewhere and let it grow back

Brad

[Benji]

all my java fern is in tanks/tubs without lights and minimal sunlight, so no problems with burning.

they are are great reproducer though. i've got heaps of little ones floating around the place, the roots/rhyzomes are great survivors.

[dem0n]

i have some java fern in my planted tank which seems to be doing fine... only rainbows & catfish in that tank though. is this burning of the leaves look like where the tips all split up? coz mine do that on some leaves.

i spoke too soon about the cable-tied & glued plastic plants being fine. the fish have now ripped about a quarter of them back out.. luckily i took some pix before they did

[chickadee]

Ive used Sinkers before for the weights and have had no trouble...