# I need help planning - 45-gallon tall



## Daximus (Oct 19, 2011)

Tall tanks are sometimes tough to light up. I'd probably look at a low light setup, and plant accordingly. Look around for low light plants. 

When it comes to taller 'scapes...twiggy skinny driftwood always appeals to me.

I might caution you on the barbs...they aren't necessary aggressive per se, but I have seen a pack of them get bored and torment a slow mover, like a betta with a big fluffy tail.


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## Diana (Jan 14, 2010)

In that large a tank I would go with a slightly larger Cory. 
Schooling fish that do not nip are a good idea with a Betta. Maybe Harlequin Rasboras. Nice looking, school OK, not nippers. 

I have one of those tanks, too, 1-2-3-45 (1' x 2' x 3' = 45 gallons) and 'scaping is difficult, except that the tall Valisneria works well. 
An arching, lightly branched piece of wood is good, too. Not too twiggy. Put Anubias or Java Fern on it for interest mid tank or higher. 

The hardest part of that narrow a tank is to make it look 3 dimensional.


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## doggo (Jun 14, 2014)

This is the same tank as yours. The light is the Marineland Planted LED. Don't ask what all the plants are - I don't remember all of them! :icon_surp Can't advise on fish as all I have in this tank are Bristlenoses - adults and 3 spawns.


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## Zuzu (Sep 1, 2014)

@Daximus, yes, I’m definitely thinking low light, and thank you for the caution on the barbs. 

@Diana, do you think habrosus wouldn’t do well, or are you just thinking of scale in the large tank? The habrosus appeal to me because of their appearance and, from what I’ve read, they stick to bottom dwelling. 

I’m certain I will have vals, just not sure what kind yet. Is there a type that has, like, a loose corkscrew to it? (Does that even make sense? LOL)

I’m on the lookout for driftwood and leaning heavily toward manzanita. I love the two-tone look and like how the branches can add “movement” to a tank. On the other hand, Mopani is a lot easier for me to find locally, which would save on shipping.

@doggo, thank you for the pic of your lovely tank! I will have to look into that light. I am an utter newb with plants and have no idea how to get the right balance. Much more Googling in my future!


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## Raymond S. (Dec 29, 2012)

This is where your creativity in finding the right piece of wood will help you a lot. Generally speaking dead wood that has not fallen yet works well because once on the ground, no telling what is in it.
And of course this is only a suggestion.
If you can find a small tree which has died and find on it a limb which goes out almost straight from the trunk(parallel to the ground)a foot or so before turning up. The trick is to find one with a branch coming from it half way between the tree and whare it turns up. You cut it so that what you have is a fork. If you place the limb which came up at that half way point on the bottom of the tank, the rest of it should go up
a ways and then turn to go across the tank. This makes an excelent place to tie Java Fern, Anubia Nana, Bobitus etc and gives something half way up the tank to break up the open space that would be there if you only had plants in the sub.


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## Zuzu (Sep 1, 2014)

I've found a couple of nice-sized pieces of cholla online to try. 

I need to learn more about lighting, etc. so I can figure out what to get. I'm having trouble finding the right balance, I think, in my current 10-gallon tank. I think I'll start a separate thread in the Plants subforum regarding that.


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## JohnNY C. (Apr 5, 2014)

*Upside down manzanita*

Manzanita is great for tall tanks and if you flip it upside down and bury the tips it give a great tree root feel. Plant wise low light all day and avoid ground cover plants. Val, and crypts can't be killed and still look great. If you wanna go even easier Anacharis and hornwort are what I consider nuisance plants, they grow so much you'll get tired of trimming their unruly branching growth pattern. Try floating plants with a tall tank but don't let them choke out your aquatic plants by growing across the entire top. Moneywort and duckweed look good together. Moneywort is usually sold in stem variety but if you let it floAt it will eventually change growth patterns. For some variety you may consider any members of the anubias family, their rhiszom growth pattern is meant to grow slow in low light and will do well in taller tanks. They can also be easily attached and trained to grow on most anything from driftwood to rock.
Fish wise your betta will be very uncomfortable in a tank that tall. Bettas ancestors are native to very shallow body's of water, hence the misconception that they're happy in a bowl. They prefer at least 10 gallons but in the shallowest tank possible. The happiest I've ever seen a betta was in a 20gallon breeder tank. It will survive in the 45g happeirthan the bowl but it's likely to hide most of the time. I have a betta in my 55g that never strays more than a few inches from his spot. Tank mates for a betta avoid anything prone to fin nipping(barbs large tetra cichlids) or anything shaped like a betta(angelfish long finned tetra) or related to a betta( gouramis paradise fish)

Bump: Here's a pic of my discus tank, it's tall and I've flipped the manzanita, combined with the floating moneywort it has a great natural feel. Dunno why it's upside down


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## Melissa71 (Jun 14, 2013)

Do consider getting a bubble leaf lace plant (Aponogeton boivinianus) or two. This is a broad leaf plant that will survive well in low light situations and flourish under high light, and is compatible with a bettas water conditions. They grow very tall and are best as a center showpiece plant. When I had bettas in my 10 gallon, they loved to rest on the lace plant's leaves, especially when the plant reached the top and curled back under. However in such a small tank I had to prune the plant often and perfect grow outs came and went. A taller tank would have been better for this symbiotic relationship, I bet. I recommend buying a plant that is already growing (these are grown by bulbs) to be sure the bulb is viable. I got mine through Extraplant.com and their specimens were excellent and were still growing for me after one year. I've neglected them, though and have just a baby growing now and no betta to enjoy it. The Red Wenditti seems to stunt when the bubble is growing good, and the reverse seems to be playing out now as the Wendy is bushy and the bubble is struggling. My bettas just really liked that bubble plant, though, is why I wanted to recommend it, and it's best used in a tall tank that might be hard to light all the way to the bottom. It will shade out other plants.


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