How To Plant Dwarf Hairgrass Tutorial

Here is the best tip I've learned on how to plant dwarf hairgrass. This is also the easiest method as well. The trick is all in how you hold the tongs to put the hairgrass into your substrate. In this video, I got an amazing full cup of tissue culture hairgrass that will work perfectly to add into pennywises low tech fluval flex 9 gallon. I personally use thumbnail sized clumps of hairgrass to plant it. In my experience putting the whole clump in doesn't work at all. Trying to plant clumps that are too small are difficult for the tongs to grip as well. This is a super easy plant to grow in low and hight tech tanks. In low tech tanks you'll achieve more of a natural patchy look, where as in a high tech setting you'll achieve much more of a carpeted appearance.
This is the taller species of dwarf hairgrass called aciculatis. It should grow roughly 10-15 cm in height or roughly 5 inches.

[@tik_tok-compilation6525]

this was sooooo helpful thank you

[@AquatikGuru]

You’re welcome!!

[@TheSunIsMyDestroyer]

this plant is hard to kill, i accidentally left a tub i was propagating outside under the sun for too long and it browned. i put them in the tank and they eventually turned green again, impressive plant

[@AquatikGuru]

Once it’s growing you’re not wrong lol. I have a plastic tub outside with used substrate in it, now it’s half full of hair grass growing everywhere lol. And there’s no water in it other than trapped humidity

[@brookecances5962]

This was so helpful, now I'm going to go out and buy more hair grass as I didn't plant my previous one correctly 😂

[@AquatikGuru]

Glad it was helpful!

[@kathykelch4202]

I can not seem to keep my planted.... It eventually come lose and pops up above my gravel substrate.... any suggestions on what I can do?

[@AquatikGuru]

With gravel, it is much harder to plant hairgrass. It takes a lot more patience. The best advice is to just take a deep breath and keep trying.

[@Accipiter22]

I got some that was wrapped in a band....I didn't know you were supposed to break it up. I left the band on, planted it, and wondered why it never spread....

[@AquatikGuru]

Now you know :)

[@cindywood8129]

My husband bought me this big rectangular hair grass that was attached to a mat. It's just laying on top of my river rock in my aquarium. There's a little green on it a lot of its brown and I have used plant food. Should I take it off of the mat and plant it into the river rock?

[@AquatikGuru]

I would recommend getting aquatic soil. Grass does not grow well at all in rock.

[@glenkrakow1546]

My hair grass is melting. I planted them in 3" of sand and 1" of akadama (bonsai) soil below with fertilizer tabs. No CO2 and I regularly add liquid iron. Do you fertilize you tank? I also have an underground filter.

[@AquatikGuru]

I do not fertilize any of my tanks other than with a good substrate such as fluval stratum, brightwell, uns controsoil, or ada aquasoil

[@Hikarixhikarixhikari]

This is extremely helpful, thank you!! The tong technique was all I needed, I was doing it completely wrong, thanks again! *btw I did this with dwarf baby tears, not dwarf hair grass, but it still works perfectly the same 👌🏼

[@AquatikGuru]

You’re welcome!! Yes it works great for baby tears, Monte Carlo, and many more too!

[@MrPmsavage001]

Rinsing it then placing it back in the yuck water 😂😂

[@AquatikGuru]

You should see the results of future growth. Didn’t seem to affect it all. Filled 4 tanks with hairgrass lmao

[@DanL4x4]

Will this grow with fluval stratum

[@AquatikGuru]

Yes that’s exactly what I grew it in. But I would recommend co2 highly even if it’s something like the aquario neo diy co2 kit I used and made videos of

[@joefav76]

Hi Bud, why no CO2 in the Flex you showed us today? Looks good by the way. I was going to invest in that diy system that you had showed us for my two planted tanks. I was going to put a two way split on it, just like you had done. Both your set ups are looking good👍

[@AquatikGuru]

Mainly just to run a few tests. I want to see how truly great this kit is vs a more expensive pressurized system. Gonna see how it pans out for a month then I have a 2nd kit that’s on back order coming and both tanks will have their own bottle for a stronger co2 level

[@celticstephenhill]

I just started a DHG carpet with passive co2 through an upside down container and a Soda Stream to fill it every morning. It's only been 2 weeks and it's already deep rooted and looks like it's in need of a trim.

[@stoneysscapes7544]

@@AquatikGuru qq

[@liquidrockaquatics3900]

I absolutely love your beta. I have the opposite- red body, white fins but dumbo pectoral fins

[@AquatikGuru]

Thank you! I fell in love with the short finned plakat bettas. They’re super active.

[@acesup26]

Now that was really good info from start to finish. Subscription completed ✔️

[@AquatikGuru]

Thank you!!

[@McNair39thNC]

Thanks for the tutorial. I bought some and planted as directed, can’t wait to have a carpet of it!

[@AquatikGuru]

Great! Keep me posted!

[@anthonynguyen4088]

Thank you! I got some dwarf hairgrass in my 10 gallon planted in gravel with some platys. Gonna get some root tabs and CO2 supplement next week so hopefully it'll form a full carpet.

[@AquatikGuru]

You’re welcome! Good luck!

[@jayasree8992]

Does is really need a co2

[@anthonynguyen4088]

@@jayasree8992 Nah. CO2 just kinda helps with all plant growth and I'm impatient so I just want it to grow as fast as possible.

[@kathleenmonsegue9700]

☹ my local petco doesn't carry the dwarf hair grass in cups. I wish they did though. Also, how fast or slow will it grow without pressurized co2? I have low tech planted tanks.

[@AquatikGuru]

Ask them if they can order specific plants in.

[@AquatikGuru]

It grows slower and less compact without co2 but will still grow well.

[@kathleenmonsegue9700]

@@AquatikGuru would liquid co2 work just as well as the injected kind?

[@AquatikGuru]

@@kathleenmonsegue9700 no liquid co2 doesn’t actually work like a co2. Hugely false advertising on their part. If I was you, look into the videos I’ve made about “aquario neo co2 kit” it’s a simple diy type co2 kit that comes with everything you need to make the mixture and set it up. Very affordable I believe roughly $30US and extremely effective as well.

[@Gumster1001]

I can only dream of getting that much tissue per pot, holy cow.

[@AquatikGuru]

What’s even more surprising was they were from Petco!!!

[@marcbenoeraguindin7606]

I have a 62 gallon tank 90 cm x 50 cm x 50 cm And I'm currently using Ledstar AQ C90 series with 42 watts. I injecting CO2 on that tank. Would that DHG be able to grow and send some runners? Thanks

[@AquatikGuru]

Yes I do believe that would work perfect for a carpet of hairgrass. I’ve never personally used Ledstar lights, but I’ve heard great things!

[@Amocles]

You made me realize I'm kind of sick of all these scientific names I wish we would just give them like a hash code or some number instead of having to pronounce it.

[@AquatikGuru]

Hahahaha! I couldn’t agree more lmao

[@allisonwendell9942]

So thank you. I wish I had taken the time to look this up before I dumped my grass into my tank LOL. No instructions with the grass. So finger crossed that it spreads and not just grows in the one space. Patience is key and I don't know if I have it to do 20 separate clumps. Mine had some brown ends which I separated. Well we'll see. By the way, do you have to add CO2?

[@AquatikGuru]

You’re welcome. It happens haha! It will still grow without being separated and without co2 but it won’t grow as thick. You’ll get a more patchy look

[@josemontalvo4532]

Thank you for sharing. I enjoyed watching.

[@AquatikGuru]

You’re welcome

[@viixkyy]

will hairgrass do ok in a tank with a ph of 6?

[@AquatikGuru]

It should :)

[@Ironwolf-pm7zs]

How long will it take to start growing denser?

[@AquatikGuru]

With co2 around a month. Without co2 4-6 months roughly.

[@prinzecesartonares9332]

Can I carpet this without aquasoil? Just sand ?

[@AquatikGuru]

Like most grass, it’s heavy root feeder and carpets very well in a loose substrate like aquasoil. Sand will compact down and the roots won’t spread nearly as well. I’d assume with co2 and root tabs it’s possible, but I’d personally rather spend the money on aquasoil than all the other stuff

[@TheGjboz]

Wow! Great video! Great production value and educational.

[@AquatikGuru]

Thank you!

[@venusforfran]

Hey there! I was wondering, can I plant this into gravel with a layer of nutrient soil in the bottom? Thanks!

[@AquatikGuru]

Yes. It may grow a little slower, but it should still be able to grow so long as theirs a nutrient rich layer for it to feed off of.

[@venusforfran]

@@AquatikGuru thank you

[@AquatikGuru]

You’re welcome

[@praktika1082]

Latin C is a hard K sound. Eh-lay-oh-car-is ah-key-coo-lah-rays

[@AquatikGuru]

I’ll keep practicing so I can explain the scientific names better lol

[@ryanrogers8211]

thank you for the tips on hairgrass. Please check out FatherFish for more planted tank advice. I'm excited to get my plant shipment in for my first planted tank tomorrow.

[@AquatikGuru]

I will check it out

[@MrsArenisZ]

Damn, i've been holding the tweezer wrong all this time. 😅

[@AquatikGuru]

🤣🤣

[@syedahmadib9270]

bro, need to know the timelaps song :D

[@AquatikGuru]

Can’t remember off the top of my head. It’s through my epidemic sound subscription

[@sagittarius544]

Will this grass grow on vermicompost capped with river sand?

[@AquatikGuru]

It should. I’m growing it in one tank with Fluval stratum capped in sand

[@apoorv1441]

What substrate are you using ?

[@AquatikGuru]

Fluval stratum. Sorry for the delayed response! Been very busy!

[@oblvr8]

sweeet thank you doing this right now 🤣🤣

[@AquatikGuru]

You’re welcome 😉

[@singhbling7566]

How long do you keep the light on

[@AquatikGuru]

10 hours with the co2

[@Flatty500]

penny wise is the perfect name haha

[@AquatikGuru]

Agreed haha

[@Ironwolf-pm7zs]

I did this but I was an idiot and planted them in big clumps, should I risk trying again?

[@AquatikGuru]

If it was fairly recently, yea it should be fine to replant. If it’s been a bit, just grab another bunch of hairgrass and plant that one in small clumps

[@Ironwolf-pm7zs]

@@AquatikGuru Thanks! Also, it came roughly about two inches long, Should I cut it now?

[@AquatikGuru]

No I would leave it til it starts spreading then cut the old stuff after that

[@Ironwolf-pm7zs]

@@AquatikGuru Thanks!

[@AquatikGuru]

You’re welcome!

[@TheDISSHonoredOne]

good video, pretty betta

[@AquatikGuru]

Thank you!

[@alecalvaro7123]

What type of substrate did you used?

[@AquatikGuru]

Fluval stratum

[@alecalvaro7123]

@@AquatikGuru is it okay to use lava bits or pebbles? for dwarf hair grass?

[@AquatikGuru]

You could but the growth will be very patchy. Quality substrate if you want a carpet. Sand, gravel, etc., if you don’t mind patchy growth. But keep in mind as root feeders, they’re going to need lots of additives to grow well without a dirt type substrate

[@coinedartist9893]

HELP!!! My pineapple swordtails keep digging up my mini dwarf hairgrass :( what do I do?

[@AquatikGuru]

I would plant more. A lot more if possible. What are you using for substrate?

[@coinedartist9893]

@@AquatikGuru I use a mix of sand and plant gravel. I have quite a few other plants in there as well, although this is my first live planted tank. I got the hairgrass just a few days ago

[@AquatikGuru]

It could just be floating up on its own. It’s tough to get planted. If you follow my tip in the video it usually works

[@coinedartist9893]

@@AquatikGuru I did follow it, I have watched them picking the plants and uprooting them :(

[@AquatikGuru]

Hmm, in that case you could attempt to tie or lightly glue it to a rock and bury that rock under the substrate so it’s hopefully too heavy for them to move and they give up on it

[@littlecritterspetshop]

Nice! Gotta love the cultures!

[@AquatikGuru]

Always!

[@rayhanuthama1953]

Will pleco eat that grass?

[@AquatikGuru]

To be honest, I’m not sure. I’m sure koi would eat it tho. But the pleco I’m not sure

[@rayhanuthama1953]

@@AquatikGuru yeah, koi probably like to tear leaves if they like certain leaf

[@ThatOutcast]

What kind of fish is that living with the betta @ 6:00?

[@AquatikGuru]

Otocinclis

[@ThatOutcast]

@@AquatikGuru Is it just 1 otocinclus living with your 1 betta?

[@AquatikGuru]

@@ThatOutcast not anymore. He’s in a tank with around 15 of them now. That ones about 5 years old. But I do have cherry shrimp with all my bettas. Along with ramshorn snails. I also have a 75 gallon community tank with massive adult Amano shrimp, dwarf chain loaches, harlequin rasboras, as well as a giant imbellis betta

[@ThatOutcast]

@@AquatikGuru I see. I was planning on adding a tank mate for my betta. I was wondering if i could also put an otocinclus in my betta tank.

[@AquatikGuru]

@@ThatOutcast it’s possible it would work. But it’s possible your betta will kill it too. It’s a trial and error type thing. Not all bettas enjoy tankmates

[@xengyang5597]

I wonder, could you just plant the whole cup instead of breaking it apart? I guess if you want an immediate carpet?

[@AquatikGuru]

Yes you can, me personally, I’ve had it die off when I try it that way so I tried this way and it worked great!

[@xengyang5597]

@@AquatikGuru I just started a dwarf hairgrass dry start, which I know will take forever. But the petcos in my area never seem to have any cultures like that in stock, so if I ever do find some, I'll probably try it like that. PROBABLY

[@AquatikGuru]

Dry starts work great as well. I’m lucky in my area with petcos to be honest. I wish all of them were like mine

[@xengyang5597]

@@AquatikGuru for now I have to get my hairgrass from petsmart, which isnt too bad

[@AquatikGuru]

That stuff works well too

[@elizabeth0701]

How does it look now?

[@AquatikGuru]

This was only recorded a week ago so not much has changed quite yet

[@celticstephenhill]

Should you trim it in the morning before co2/sunlight/hood lights or at night once the lights/co2 cycle is over?

[@AquatikGuru]

I personally do when the lights on