Dick wrote:

Wow Liz! I would hardly call your interest "basics."

Well, I'm kinda obsessive and hate not knowing what I'm doing! :-)

I am a
minamalist with "Low Light" tanks. Somewhere around 1.5 watts/gallon
is the number I remember.

I use no CO2 nor fertilizers.

This seems to be a recurring theme - low light = no special effort
needed (assuming the plants are compatible). I've also found some
very nice looking plants and example arrangements on the internet
which make use of this kind of arrangement - It may very well be how I
decide to go.

I didn't see any mention of gravel, my tanks have different gravel
types and I believe I have seen different growth patterns.

Yes, I forgot to include that. I've got Flourite in my planted tank
(and my experimental 2g tank g). I've also been reading about
Eco-Complete. Is there a particular type of gravel that's worked
better for you?

Light wave lengths may be as important as strength. I have one 10
gallon tank with 15 watts of light, but the plant growth has been
minimal, where as in two other 10 gallon tanks with same plant stocks,
the growth has been much fuller.

I hadn't thought about wavelength, but that would likely make a big
difference in terms of penetration into the water. What kind of light
do you have in the two tanks with fuller growth?

I have a mysterious difference between my 29 and 75 gallon tanks.
Same crypt stock, but in the 29 gallon tanks they are weeds needing
constant pruning and growing so long the tops lay over whereas the 75
gallon tank has healthy growth and needs modertate pruning as they
spread, but the same stock is less than 6 inches tall 14 inches tall
in the 29 gallon.

Have you figured out the difference yet? I suspect I'll never go much
beyond a 55g tank (but who knows), so shorter plants and slower growth
will likely be better for me... Perhaps your 29 has more WPG or the
light is getting down to the plants better?

Good luck, sounds like a lifetime project.

Thank you! And yes, I expect this is a lifetime thing now (very
addictive, the little fishies, and the real plants look so much nicer
than the fake stuff...).

Liz