10 Gallon Tank Any background plant ideas?

[airdog44]

Hey guys, I have one corner in my 10 gal that really needs a bushy plant. I already have water wisteria, java fern, and windelov java fern. I was thinking jungle val...but I have floaters and I hear it's a pain to trim...any ideas? (I have a sand substrate) I'm open to anything! Thanks!

 

[grac3]

guppy grass or hornwort maybe? what kind of floaters do you have

 

[airdog44]

red root and salvinia minima

 

[grac3]

ohh okay, if you decide on jungle val, you can remove the floaters and trim it. the floaters you have are super easy to remove, unlike my giant duckweed lol

 

[airdog44]

haha. I just don't want it to take over the whole top of the tank and I've read horror story's(strong words lol) of people trimming it and then the plant dies. I don't know it's just not the look I'm going for. I want like a jungly tank and all my plants are still babies so once they grow in then I guess I will decide. Thanks for the help though!

 

[ProudPapa]

Have you considered crypts?

 

[airdog44]

No, I thought they were a carpeting plant? Are there any certain species you would recommend?

 

[ProudPapa]

No, I thought they were a carpeting plant? Are there any certain species you would recommend?

Cryptocoryne wendtii is the only name I can think of off the top of my head, and it does well for me. There are green and red varieties.

 

[Freshfishguy]

No, I thought they were a carpeting plant? Are there any certain species you would recommend?

Can you post a picture of your tank? How often would you be fine with trimming?

 

[airdog44]

I’m totally fine with a lot of trimming. Sorry I misspoke. I am planning on getting salvinia minima.

 

[Freshfishguy]

I’m totally fine with a lot of trimming. Sorry I misspoke. I am planning on getting salvinia minima.

Cool, beautiful tank and scape! You’re looking to put the bushy plant in which corner, front left?

 

[airdog44]

Thank you! I was planning back left by the sponge filter behind the wood. You if you look close you can see all the baby plants, on the wood, and another on the left wall(Java ferns)

 

[Freshfishguy]

Thank you! I was planning back left by the sponge filter behind the wood

Awesome. Here are my suggestions

-Rotala Rotundifolia. There are different color varietals depending on what you’re looking for, and with the right trimming approach you can get it to be super busy and nice, and it shouldn’t grow insanely quickly since you have a low tech tank.
- Pogostemon Stellatus Octopus. It’s this plant in the back:
-Limnophila Green Wavy
-Some type of ludwigia (just make sure you get one that will grow well low tech)

Make sure you research proper trimming techniques for whatever plant you go with, because that plays a huge factor in getting the plant how you want it to look. You can also feel free to just message this thread again or PM me with any trimming/husbandry/maintenance questions.

 

[airdog44]

Ok thank you so much for your help! I think the red would be a great contrast against the green plants. So for the rotala rotundifolia how do I get it super bushy?

 

[CoconutTheBetta]

I’m totally fine with a lot of trimming. Sorry I misspoke. I am planning on getting salvinia minima.

Amazon swords maybe? You can never go wrong with those!

ohh okay, if you decide on jungle val, you can remove the floaters and trim it. the floaters you have are super easy to remove, unlike my giant duckweed lol

YES! I feel like some jungle val would look nice as well.

 

[ProudPapa]

Amazon swords maybe? You can never go wrong with those!

YES! I feel like some jungle val would look nice as well.

Both of those get a little large for a 10 gallon tank.

 

[Freshfishguy]

Ok thank you so much for your help! I think the red would be a great contrast against the green plants. So for the rotala rotundifolia how do I get it super bushy?

No problem! First, you’ll want to plant the stems each individually with a little bit of space between them to give them room to grow side shoots and fill in healthily. Then you want to let it grow to the water level before giving it its first trim. Once it’s grown out, you’ll want to trim it to at least half way down the tank. You also always want to make sure to cut the stems right above a node as shown here: Trimming stem plants - Aquascaping Wiki. You can either replant the top halves of the stems around the bottoms of the initial stems, or you can just toss them. You’ll do the same thing with those newly planted tops. I’m currently doing it to a type of Rotala I have in my tank:
Before trim:

After:

And now I think about 2ish weeks later after doing the trim you can really see the new side shoots coming in:

As long as the plants have grown to the water level and look healthy before cutting them down, the bases will then produce side shoots, you’ll just have to be a bit patient since your tank is low tech. After they reach the water level again, for the second trim you’ll cut them down to a height a bit higher than before. There’s lots of information on trimming techniques you can find by googling if you are confused about where to go from there, but that’s the basic rundown .

 

[JLAquatics]

Honestly, if you let that Water Wisteria of yours grow out some more you will have yourself a stunning background plant.

The Water Wisteria is on the left and right side of this wild tank of mine.

Here are a few tips to encourage the Water Wisteria you have to grow in a more bush like pattern (some may have already been mentioned).
1. Plant stems in close groups approximately 2 to 2.5 inches apart.
2. rip a few leaves off the bottom of the stem and place a good chunk of this stem in the ground. It should stay in place and begin growing thick roots provided the substrate is not disturbed.
3. Trim the plant once it begins growing side shoots off the mother stem. this will cause the mother plant to send out double the shoots and cause your Water Wisteria to gain a thick, bushy-like appearance, great background cover.

Keep in mind these tips are not only good for Water Wisteria, but many of the other stem plants the other members mentioned. Bacopas, Rotalas, Limnophilas, Hygrophilas and Pogostemen plants all follow this same approach, except #1 in which some stems can be planted much closer to one another depending on the species.

 

[airdog44]

Ok thanks again!

 

[CoconutTheBetta]

Both of those get a little large for a 10 gallon tank.

Really? I feel that as long as you manage it, having those plants would be completely fine. I have 2 swords in my 5.5-gallon tank. They've been in there for around 6 months and have not outgrown it.
I've seen jungle val in tanks less than 10 gallons as well. I feel that as long as you have enough light and nutrients then those two plants are completely fine in whatever setting you put them in. Just be prepared to conduct maintenance if any needs to be done.

 

[airdog44]

Thank you for everyone’s help, I have decided to go with Rotala Rotundifolia. I will update pictures when it grows in!