For your aquarium plants to grow healthy, soil or substrate is a vital consideration. Aquatic plants are found to record enhanced development using this simple method of creating a two layer soil.

How to lay substrate and gravel for aquarium tank

1. Lower layer
For the lower layer, add sufficient water to some vermiculite so as to wet it but not so much that it begins to float. Press and pound the vermiculite to make sure there is no air trapped inside and also to make the layer as thin as can be. Now, put in some soil that you have dug up from the garden. Make sure the concoction is not gooey or your tank will have a cloudy appearance when you fill it with water; if not, add more vermiculite and soil. It should look like cake batter ready to go into the oven. This becomes the lower layer of the soil which provides the aquatic plants with a great medium through which their roots enter and absorb nutrients. Make this layer as thick as possible, but then, not so thick that it mars the beauty of your tank.

2. Upper Layer
For the upper layer, you can use about an inch or two of sand only to act as a shield and prevent the lower layer from making the water cloudy. The most highly recommended is the sandblasting grit number three which is normally available for US$10 per bag of 100 pounds. You may use any sand as long as it is not too fine and not from the sea. Number 3 sand is approximately 2mm in size. If you think the sand is dirty, you may wash it first. Then put it in on top of the first layer. This second layer of sand can be between one and two inches thick.

Lasty,
Fill water into the tank with the utmost care. Keep something like a flat tray down in the tank while filling in water to make sure that the soil doesn’t rise up and make the water muddy. The water will be extremely clear if you have been cautious. Else, if the soil does muddle up the water, it might take anywhere from two to five days for the soil to settle again. Whenever you dig up an aquatic plant, a little bit of soil might come up, but it poses no problem.

After you finish putting in your aquarium plants, you may add a bit of fertilizer to the lower layer.

Read here to find out how to make a moss wall for your aquarium tank, or
Read here to understand how to choose the combination of plants and fish in your newly setup tank

David