![]() ![]() Goldfish produce a lot of waste and the substrate can get very dirty which can lead to pollution and health problems if it is not able to be properly vacuumed. ![]() My reason for this is that I like to be able to keep the substrate clean. My personal suggestion for substrate in a planted goldfish tank is quartz gravel, very fine pea gravel or a mix of the two. There are many commercial substrates available but I?m not going to go into detail about the majority of them in this article, I?ve personally only used soil and gravel so cannot comment from experience on other substrates ? there is plenty of information available though so have a look through the forum or post a question if you would like more information on planting substrates If you have no fish then I would suggest stems as these are cheaper, but if you have fish already I would suggest going for rooted in rockwool as the established roots will help the plant hold onto the gravel. Stem plants added to a tank which already has fish in it are very likely to get pulled up before they have a hope of rooting. For example you can buy stem plants, push them into the substrate and leave them to root while the tank cycles. If you do not yet have fish in your tank you have a greater choice of ?formats?. Plants come in a variety of ?formats? bunched, single stems, rooted in rockwool or in some cases attached to bogwood or terracotta sticks. This will stop the fish from getting close to the roots when they are digging and help weigh down stems against being pulled up.ĭo I go for stems, bunches or potted plants? It is a good idea to put some heavier stones or terracotta planting weights around the base of new plants in tanks which already have fish living in them. If your fish are in the tank already and you are looking for ideas to re-vamp their tank you may need to take extra measures to help keep the plants in place while they establish. If you are just starting out and have not yet set-up your tank and added your fish it is a good idea to get the plants in first so they can establish their roots while the tank is cycling (click here for fishless cycling article. Goldfish make a mess, they eat a lot and they produce a lot of waste so their tanks need to be easy to clean. Consider the maintenance of the tank goldfish tanks need to be robust and easy to maintain. Those amazing aquascapes in the magazines and websites are beautiful but are not likely to last against a tank of goldfish. When designing your set-up be realistic in your expectations. This article is written from personal experience and my own opinions other people will agree/disagree so use this as part of your research into finding the best planted set-up for you and your goldfish. So, goldfish and planted tanks? Of course it can be done it just takes a little trial and error. Goldfish are intelligent, busy, ?doing? fish ? they really do benefit from an interesting environment with plenty of things to do. It makes a more natural habitat for them and encourages natural behaviours. Goldfish enjoy the sensory experience of playing around with plants, swimming through them, hiding in them and of course snacking on them. But goldfish really benefit from having live plants in their tanks, they are just as deserving of a nicely planted set-up as their tropical counterparts. Goldfish and planted tanks may sound like an impossible dream, so many people say it can?t be done ? after all, they eat plants, they dig, they blunder about, they pull up plants, and they like cold water whereas many aquatic plants are tropical.
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