Jim

First, definitly learn about fish before you dive into plants... trust me on that one, I have 2 planted tanks,and someday I'll write an article or something on how badly I screwed them up before I finally got it down. Plants are a science in themselves, and are amazingly rewarding. But unless you know about caring for their needs they can be a nightmare scenario waiting to happen. Again, trust me, I've been there and it's not fun...lol.

Now, as for your gouroumi, I have a big male pearl and 3 smaller honey gouroumis, and my Pearl acts the same. They're not the same family, but they seem to act close to a cichlid, and do seem to some extent to recognize people and objects outside the tank. So I don't know if it's just that they recognize the hand that feeds, so to speak, or if they are actually aware of their owners, like some cichlids are. I think it's the later of the 2.

treehugr

I definitely agree with you on the live plants - that's a whole hobby in itself. I'll get the fish-keeping down first. And, when I finally do dive into the live plants, I'll start simple. I was just thinking of a low growing plant that would give the smaller fish (and shrimp) a place to hide and add more oxygen to the water. But, when it comes time, I'll definitely seek the advice of seasoned people, like yourself, on Fishlore.

treehugr

Do you have any pics of your gouramies? I was wondering what others looked like. Mine (Dwarf Blue) is iridescent light blue and has orange eyes. I love how the light shines off of his colors when he swims and turns.

Since we're on the subject...if I were to get another gourami, what kind would you suggest? Would I have to get the same kind of gourami for them to interact?

Also, I have heard it's not a good idea to get another male as they will get aggressive. I have also heard that, if you do get a female, you should get two because the male will drive the female crazy by chasing her all day. Is this true?

Jim

Well, I don't know about "seasoned"... maybe more "crusty, old, fish-geek..." lol.

But seriously, when you're ready we'll be here, and more than glad to help you with anything. I'm just glad you're starting slow. Live plants are amazing, and I wouldn't have a tank now without them. But your exactly right, it's almost a completely seperate hobby from the fish themselves, and you really need a good understanding of them BEFORE you start.
In the meantime, if you want to give your fish some cover and deck out your tank without gong to all the trouble of live plants, there's some really high quality silk plants available that're very hard to tell from the real thing. I saw an article in a fish mag (can't remember which off the top o' my head) maybe 2 months ago on decorating tanks with silk plants, and some were amazingly realistic looking. Throw in some nice driftwood and a couple good rocks and unless they look really close no-one will be able to tell the difference.

Jim

The best pic of my pearl is probably here.\:

If you look, he's right in front near the middle.
As for behaviour, I'm not the best gouroumi expert, but I can tell you that despite their reputation, my pearl male is pretty peaceful, and gets along with the little sunset gouroumi's fine.

treehugr

Thanks, I definitely appreciate the advice and suggestions everyone gives. This site is a great thing.

As far as plants, we have some nice looking fake ones (not silk) that look pretty real. The live plants would be more for the happiness of the fish, not so much for us. That's why I was thinking maybe just the low growing plants for the bottom of the tank. Could we do that instead of using gravel? Also, how do the plants stay down - do they grow in some type of mud??

As far as rocks and stuff, when we started the tank we had driftwood, a rock that had a cool little cave area and a piece of coral. However, when we started having issues with algae (the green kind, not these diatoms we're dealing with now), we took them out because it was hard to keep them clean. Also, because our tank is only 14g, we thought it might be too much -- we wanted to make sure the fish had enough free space So, we just have the fake plants in the back and then our little tiki statue right now. I might add the driftwood or one of the rocks back in. Or, maybe I'll just hold onto them until we get a bigger tank.

treehugr

Was just checking on of my other threads (regarding algae eaters for a small tank) and someone suggested Java Moss as an easy plant. Said to tie it to a piece of driftwood. What do you think about that - is it easy? Does it spread? I don't want anything to take over my small tank

Jim

Java Moss is VERY easy. It attaches to wood or rock, or just sort of sits there and grows. It doesn't require a lot of light, although it will grow faster with it, and it's a great Nitrate eater I'm told. I've had such good luck with it I occasionally have to trim some and give it away.
Also, if you happen to have, or get a FEMALE Betta, there's something about real Java that drives them nuts. Ive caught mine diving into it, swimming thru it, even tunnelling UNDER it! They are from the same region, and just love the stuff.

treehugr

So, do you think I should get some or wait until we get the larger tank? If the fish I have now will enjoy it I could try it. If they could care less, then I'll wait

Jim

OK, the big thing as I see it is, with the exception of a couple tough species of Amazon Swords (that I think could grow in cat-litter), aquatic plants are just like terrestrial plants, and need good soil to grow in. I use a combination of 3 products, Eco-Complete, Floutrite and Laterite. These are specially formulated substrates (gravel) for planted tanks. Warning, they're NOT cheap; Eco averages about $25.00 a bag. I spent well over $150.00 for just substrates in each of my tanks.
There's also a thread currently going around by a couple members experimenting with real soil under a top layer of gravel. I've never done it myself, But i'm intrigued, and am watching this thread closely to see what happens.
As for anchoring the plants down, that's simple. Just plant them like any other plant. Now I know that's sort of a pat answer, but I'm actually serious. When you first buy a plant, they usually come in these little pots with stuff called Rockwool. And unless the plant is exceptionally unhealthy (you shouldn't be buying it anyway), it should have a nice root base. Just VERY carefully remove the plant from the rockwool and trim back any dead leaves if necessary. Then very carefully use you fingers, dig a little hole and plant it. If everything goes right the plant will continue to root, and like some of my big swords, root to the point you might not ever get them back out! lol

Jim

If you can find some healthy Java, then I say go for it! Real plants, whatever the species, are definitly beneficial to the fish and tank, and some even swear they have some sort of medicinal properties with the fish. Now I don't know about all that, but I do know once I got things right I've had much greater success with planted tanks than non-planted tanks. There just seems to be something about real plants that brings the whole underwater environment together.

treehugr

Interesting. Well, what I might do once we get that larger tank is to plant just one side of it, or just the center. Maybe that will keep the maintenance and cost down some

treehugr

I could see how fish would be happier/healthier with live plants. I wonder if those plants have to be the same kind as the fish's natural environment in order for the fish to benefit from them.

BTW, Just looked up Java Moss and am a bit leery of trying it right now with our small tank. It says it can spread quickly and can be hard to get rid of if you decide to take it out. Apparently it loves flowing water and can colonize your filter, etc. and impede the flow.

So, I think I'll wait until we get a larger thank to experiment with live plants.

Jim

Yes, this is true, Java can clog your filter. But you have to really be not paying attention to your tank for it to get that bad. In fact, I got a great idea from another member here, MrWaxHead, on using Java in my outflow to cut down on water current. FYI, both my tanks are very still water environments. As for getting rid of it, why would anyone want to? I let mine grow wild just to see what it's going to do next!
As for regional plants, I don't think it effects the fish too much. Most I've seen don't care what species it is, to them it's a plant. The bigger thing is making sure the plants have more or less the same requirements as the fish. In other words, a hard water plant is not going to do well in something like a Discus tank, that needs very soft water, get it?

treehugr

Makes sense.

treehugr

He's gorgeous. I saw some pearl's at my LFS yesterday but they didn't look as nice as yours. They were just shiny and a sort of pinkish color with dots on the fins. Yours looks like he has a cool blue/black stripe along his middle.

Awesome tank too. Kudos.

BTW, the sunsets aren't Dwarfs, right? I saw some at the LFS and they were so beautiful but they weren't marked as Dwarfs so I dismissed them.