Starting with plants

Hi, I am complete newbie with an empty 30L (8 gallons) tank so far.

1. What does "low-light" plants mean? Will they be ok in a low natural daylight filled room (no direct sunlight)?

2. I feel a bit overwhelmed by the amount of information I try to embrace. Which strategy seem ok for a scared newbie:

a) start with plant-friendly soil and fake plants. Then start adding real low-light plants one by one? Removing fake plants one by one at the same time.

OR

b) start with semi-empty soiled tank. And add real low-light plants step by step?

P.S. My plan is to keep in 30L tank: couple otocynclus (oto cat), few shrimps, a snail (all algae eaters), 6-7 nano fish.

 

P.S. My plan is to keep in 30L tank: couple otocynclus (oto cat), few shrimps, a snail (all algae eaters), 6-7 nano fish.

Scratch the Otos. They should not go in a new tank and not into one that small.

1. What does "low-light" plants mean? Will they be ok in a low natural daylight filled room (no direct sunlight)?

Means the type of light is not important, but at least a weak one. Small LED that comes with a tank set is enough. I run a small, all-plants tank with a desk lamp.

a) start with plant-friendly soil and fake plants. Then start adding real low-light plants one by one? Removing fake plants one by one at the same time.

Don't. Why add nutrients (and removing them with waterchanges) without any plants to use them?

I'll also ask a mod to move your question to its own thread.

 

Hello, and welcome to the forum.

• As I understand it, low light means that an average LED aquarium light is enough, and they don't need high powered, expensive lights.
• I'd suggest your second option. I wouldn't spend money on fake plants if you plan to replace them anyway. If you aren't comfortable filling the tank with live plants right away start with a few, and add more as you want to or have the opportunity.

 

If I were you I’d just go for plants off the bat. I’d start with a dirt substrate capped with sand— cheap and contains enough nutrients so you won’t have to worry about fertilizers for a lot of plants. I’d plant heavy from the start rather than slowly adding it as it helps the tank balance better and will actually make your plants grow better with less risk from algae. I order plants from Pets Warehouse and they offer free shipping over $30 and have super cheap prices for high quantities of plants… $30 there was enough for me to fill a full 15 gallon really densely with a variety plants so I would recommend that for your 8 gallon to start off good. People often over exaggerate the difficulty of keeping a planted tank— so long as you start in the right spot it’s actually very easy. If I were you I would just dodge the fake plants all together and jump right in. If you do it right it can be quite simple and far more rewarding. Just don’t overthink it and don’t be afraid to jump right in

 

Thanks a lot for the encouragement and advises! Also - links this forum provides are amazing. Yes, I have a tendency to overthink. I'll try not to.

 

Thanks a lot for the encouragement and advises! Also - links this forum provides are amazing. Yes, I have a tendency to overthink. I'll try not to.

Like many others have said, go straight to the live plants. I had a 10 gallon at one point that I had fake plants in. My betta kept tearing his fins on the fake plants so I started to add A LOT of real plants to keep him from tearing up his fins, this was the best idea I had as the live plants really brighten up the tank.