"dc" wrote in message
...
FishNoob wrote in
news:MPG.1e724b14994fa862989819
@nntp.dsl.pipex.com:

Whee, so my plants have arrived. Now what do I do? LOL

I take all the weights off to allow to roots to spread, but you may be
causing yourself a headache depending on the grade of your substrate.
Some
stem and grassy plants love to float away (bacopa for example) at the
slightest disturbance until they are rooted.

Most dealers ship stem and grassy plants in large bunches bundled
together.
It would be wise to separate these out and plant them in groups of two or
three to ensure the entire plant receives the light it needs. These
plants
will naturally branch and fill out as your lighting allows and when you
prune them. Leaving most of these plants in these tight bunches will
starve much of the bottom part of the plant of light leading to the death
of much of the stem.

Epiphytes like java fern and anubias should be planted with the rhizome
(the horizontal stem) party exposed--completely covering it can kill or
stunt the plant. These plants don't need to be planted in the substrate,
you can tie/staple them to logs or rocks and they will eventually grab
hold
themselves.

A good tip is to look down from above at your plants while you are
planting
as well as from the front. When you look down on your plants you get a
better idea of how well they are spaced and how much light they will
receive. Your plants should not be overlapping or shading each other.
Try
to keep in mind how much room the plants will need to grow-in instead of
trying to densely arrange everything from the start.


Another good thing to do would be to purchase some thin peat blocks. Make
sure you leave the water down very low, just enough to keep the plants wet.
Put down a block, place the plant roots on top and cover with some good
plant substrate. Keep working along plant after plant until you have it
completed. It is really easy to do with the water do real low, that's the
key. The peat not only provides a permanent, strong root anchor but it also
prevents you from scratching or damaging the bottom of the tank during
gravel cleaning.



Sean