On Sun, 30 Oct 2005 21:04:49 -0500, Bill Stock wrote:

What's a good ground cover for a tank with moderate hardness, good light and
CO2?

If it is bright enough, glossostigma elatanoides will make a good cover.
It requires bright light, good CO2, and a nutrient rich substrate.

Other good choices include the various lilaeopsis and echinidorus tenellus
(narrow leaf chain sword). If you don't mind either buying a ton off the
bat or waiting forever for it to fill in, cryptocoryne willisi is small,
and dwarf hairgrass can make a very beautiful foreground as well.

Check out plantgeek.net- they have a plant DB where you can search by tank
placement and see the foreground plants commonly used.

Also, what about gravel vacuuming when you have a ground cover?

In a heavily planted tank you should not need to do much. Sucking up big
globs of the stuff is fine, but actually churning the gravel past the
first 1/4" or so should be unnecessary.

I
imagine the fertilizer requirements really jump with a ground cover?

Most ground covers will want a fertile substrate. What kind of substrate
do you have in there now?

have a bit of shade from the Ludwigia, will this be a problem for the
Lilaeopsis?

It should be fine, but you may consider padding that area with some
midground species that will do well in shade, like cryptocorynes.

~Empty