Although silk plants look more natural than plastic varieties,
there are some types that can appear quite natural inside a tank. Take for instance an artificial Ludwigia
plant, or a hygrophila/cabomba plant.
These are all great examples of artificial plants that look great in
home aquariums.
I will attach some links so that you can easily find more
about these plants below.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=18480
http://www.arcatapet.com/item.cfm?cat=7623
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=19771
There are several disadvantages; in fact the only advantage
I can think of is that they are easy to maintain. Real plants help fish survive in many ways,
leading to the reasons why artificial plants are at a disadvantage.
•
Real plants can act as a source of food for your
fish
•
Fake plants cannot keep your tanks carbon
dioxide/nitrate levels low
• Real plants fend off algae growth
My personal favorite is the Eco-Complete plant
substrate. It is widely available in
most chain pet stores.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=9087
Here are a few other types of planted aquarium substrates
for you to choose from -
http://www.aquascapist.com/substrates/choosing-a-planted-aquarium-substrate/
How many watts you
need depends on the type of plants and the volume of the tank. Here is an excerpt from an article that will
help you determine proper wattage.
Instructions
Identify
the species of plants you have in your tank or that you plan to put in your
tank and how much light that species needs. Each species of plant will have an
optimal lighting requirements, from low light to bright light. To determine the
plant species, compare photos on the Aquarium Plants Photos and Profiles page
of the Aqua Hobby website, or take samples of the aquatic plants to your local
aquarium store for identification.
Write
down how much lighting each of the plant species in your tank needs. Give each
plant a rating of low, medium or bright. The books "The Complete
Fishkeeper" and "Freshwater Aquariums for Dummies," as well as
your local fish store, are good sources of information for this.
Review your
list and determine what type of plant dominates your tank. For example, if you
have mostly plants that need bright light, then use a bright-light formula. If
you have an equal mix of plant lighting needs, then use a medium-light formula.
Calculate
a range of watts of lighting you need for your tank with one of the following
formulas, depending on the amount of light you determined you needed for your
plants. For low light, multiply one and two by the number of gallons. For
medium light, multiply two and three by the number of gallons. For bright
light, calculate three and five by the number of gallons. For example, for a
20-gallon tank with plants that need medium light, you would get a range of 40
to 60 watts (2 x 20 = 40 and 3 x 20 = 60).
Read more: How to Determine Watts Per
Gallon for Aquarium Lighting ' eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_8014286_determine-per-gallon-aquarium-lighting.html#ixzz23KB8HErA
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