Gravel vac and plants

I want to get some plants that cover the gravel. I saw the posts that MC did a while ago with some of the fishtanks looking better than my garden, and a lot of them had 'lawns' instead of gravel, and I would like to have something going towards that. I dont want it to be OTT, byut just want some ground cover plants, so which ones are best to get.

next question is, if I do get some of those plants, what do people do about gravel vac'ing. I already uproot my plants every time I vac the tank, so what do you do if you have just green stuff there.

Finally are there any gravel vacs which have narrow bore tubing (the bit that digs into the gravel)?

I like Riccia as a carpeting plant. Bit tricky to secure though

I had Riccia fluitans as a floating plant initially - it went everywhere, clogged the filters and just drove me mad so one day, in a fit of fury I ripped it all out...

If a tank is heavily planted and has a carpeting of dwarf plants in the gravel, then there's no need to gravel vac, Guppy, as the plants absorb the excess nitrates from the substrate. I only gravel vac near my plants as I too have uprooted several of them in the past...

So how about all the bits of poo etc, are they just ledft on the bottom of the tank?

The decaying faeces and uneaten food (collectively known as mulm) are absorbed as fertilizer by the plants.

Sorry about this Mry, but would that only happen when the plants had properly covered the gravel? I suppose until that happens I would still have to do a decent gravel vac wouldnt I?

Exactly. Most of my tank substrate is either covered with plants or inaccessible due to rocks, wood etc. so I just gravel vac the bits that are bare.

I usually strip my tank down once every couple of months or so, remove the wood, ornaments and rocks and give the gravel a good clean where those things have been.

Perhaps it will be easier just to grow a lawn!

Diana wrote:

I usually strip my tank down once every couple of months or so, remove the wood, ornaments and rocks and give the gravel a good clean where those things have been.

Perhaps it will be easier just to grow a lawn!

I do that to. An have just done so in fact

Mary wrote:

The decaying faeces and uneaten food (collectively known as mulm)

:lol: Mulm...

Diana wrote:

I usually strip my tank down once every couple of months or so, remove the wood, ornaments and rocks and give the gravel a good clean where those things have been.

Too much of a palaver...plus I have too many plants now to do that. :lol:

Well I am hoping my greenery will spread a bit and prevent me havinf to do this for ever!

Mary wrote:

plus I have too many plants now to do that. :lol:

So do I