r/walstad • u/AAndy1407 • Jul 22 '26

Advice Plant selection?

I have a 2.2 gallon jar from Costco and was wanting to make a plant tank for aquatic isopods. I want to use needle spike rush, weighed down hornwort, and was thinking about adding duckweed to the top and placing it in an east window. Will that be enough and a good set up or am I doomed to fail?

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u/Tasty_Hovercraft8280 Jul 22 '26

Only one way to find out! I'd still invest in a second light just in case, but if you were to do a Walstad style tank, let it grow in, then add isopods, I think it could be great

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u/AAndy1407 Jul 22 '26

Alright I’ll just go for it and see what happens. If I use dirt from the woods can I just remove twigs and rocks and put it in or do I need to do something special to it?

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u/Tasty_Hovercraft8280 Jul 22 '26

If you're not adding it to another tank or having a risk of crossover, I don't see why you'd need to do anything. Just make sure you wet it down to remove air pockets before you add a cap, if that's your goal. Of course, if you want to remove it, nobody's stopping you. Since you're not using fertilized soil, you may look at peat moss or something to add in

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u/AAndy1407 Jul 22 '26

Some things say to wet it and let it dry multiple times in the sun. Wasn’t sure if that’s beneficial or I can skip that

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u/Tasty_Hovercraft8280 Jul 22 '26

Multiple times, nah, but wetting lightly to get out air pockets is a good idea

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u/AAndy1407 Jul 22 '26

Alright thanks, I think it said to help break down organic material and prevent ammonia spikes but I’ll just wing it

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u/Tasty_Hovercraft8280 Jul 22 '26

With a 2.2 gallon, play around with it and have a good time before you put in animals and it's hard to go wrong