Material to use when tying down plant?

[Appistoenthusiast]

Howdy folks....
I was wondering if there was a certain material you guys prefer to use when tying down your plants? Are there strict limitations on the material that can be used? I was also wondering about the caves I am going to makes for my aquarium. I want to keep the tank as natural as possible. I was thinking about just ordering some "natural aquarium racks and building my own. If I decide I want use say pvc instead is there away to attach the java fern to the pvc. Or another way to make it look natural. I want to use plants that are easy to maintain and care for. I have read the java fern and java moss are really easy. Any help would be greatly appreciated...

 

[regani]

for natural looking caves you can pick pieces of driftwood with some hollows in them (facing down into the sand) or coconut shells.
java fern can be attached to almost any surface using super glue. just apply super glue t the surface, dry the java fern a little with some paper towel and press into the glue. after a few minutes it can be placed into the tank.
if you want to tie other plants to driftwood or other structures, any fine string will do. they may start to get weak after a few months but by that time the plant will have attached itself to the structure naturally. you can also use fine fishing line, which is transparent, not easy to see once in the tank, and won't rot away over time.
and java moss or java fern are good choices for easy-to-car-for plants. java moss can be a bit intrusive over time, though. there a number of other mosses around as alternative. floating plants are also good as they give the fish a sense of security and are great nitrogen sinks as they grow faster and use up all the excess nutrients. amazon frogbit is a good choice here, duckweed can get a bit out of hand.

 

[slimbolen99]

I'll attest to the super glue comment. I thought it was crazy, that it would kill my fish, but over the last year or so I've used it probably a 100 times and have seen no ill effects.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

java fern can be attached to almost any surface using super glue. just apply super glue t the surface, dry the java fern a little with some paper towel and press into the glue. after a few minutes it can be placed into the tank.....I'll attest to the super glue comment. I thought it was crazy, that it would kill my fish, but over the last year or so I've used it probably a 100 times and have seen no ill effects.

I use cycanoacrylate supe-glue as well, the only downside is that it leaves a white mark if you are a bit enthusiastic. Another option which people keep telling me is "dangerous", but actually works really well is a staple gun and ordinary steel staples. You take a wodge of moss, put it over the root of the java fern, and then staple through them into the wood. This doesn't work with coconut shells, as they are too hard.

cheers Darrel

 

[Appistoenthusiast]

Thanks for all the comments guys.... I guess ill go with superglue lol. I started ordering some of supplies for my tank this past Friday. I can't wait to have it up and going so I can post a pic