I'm planning on converting my 29 gallon tank to a planted tank. I've
sketched out a layout with some plant species and am wondering if these
plants and this layout will do good in my tank conditions.

29 gallons
3x20 watts (about 2wpg)
pH somewhere above 7.5 (off my chart)
planning on a DIY CO2
Haven't tested the hardness, but the water supply has just changed from
hard well water to a city supply, so I'm guessing the hardness will
drop over the next water changes

Any help would be appreciated from any aspect--technicalities to
aquascaping. I'd rather give it the best try the first time for
keeping the cost down!

http://www2.gvsu.edu/~klutingd/images/tank.jpg

Oh...and I have a large buenos aires tetra that I've read eats
plants...any experience with this?

I have a heavily planted 29 gal tank, and the plants are doing very
well. 65 watts (Custom Sealife "Britelamp"), DIY CO2, KH about 5, pH
6.8-7. Flourite substrate.

I experimented with all sorts of DIY CO2 setups before coming to the
one I have now, which is very easy to maintain. Two 2-quart juice
bottles connected by a "T" in the tubing, I swap each one out about
every 2 weeks. Hagen "natural plant system" diffuser. AquaClear HOB
filter ... a lot of people will tell you that a HOB filter will
generate too much surface turbulence, but that's not true in my case
.... as a matter of fact, I have an airstone rigged up under my diffuser
to blow off excess CO2. I use a pH controller which turns on the
airpump when the pH gets too low, but the airpump runs mostly at night
and probably a simple timer would work too.
Low maintenance, no worries!