can plants survive in a 2.5 gallon, I have one too little for gfs, and I was wondering if there is a trick, I tried it with a dying plant to see if I could rejuvinate it but it didn't work. The bulb is small, I think it is 15 or 25 watts. I know to take uot the carbon, is there anything else? thanks. It would be so great to stop spending so much $$$ on plants . I think I buy them 2 times a month and honestly , that's pushing my budget! mmy tank is almost bare again, except a sword, that is too big for my babies to eat. I love the way wisteria looks in the tank.Does it need bright light? does the tank need to cycle?

Barbie, if the tank is 2.5 gallon and you think its a 15 watt or so bulb, then you have around 7 watt per gallon, which is pretty high. Low light loving plants like Java fern and moss wouldn't probably do so well in that high light, but you can have any high light loving plant in there.
I don't think Wisteria needs that much light, but I am not sure. You can always have a small piece of floating cork in there to give the plants some shade. I found some of that stuff in the reptile department, and you can break it into smaller pieces.
As for the tank not being cycled, that doesn't matter if its a plant-only tank. The plants would need a tad of fertilizer though, since there isn't any fish in there doing the "fertilizing"...

and for the wisteria it'll need 2-3 watts a gallon.. my wisteria lasted for 2 weeks with 1.4 watts a gallon:P 7 watts:O that's high.. wouldn't plants burn? or fish in there for that matter?(if fish ever lived in it?)

It is pretty high, yes. I am just not sure if they even make a lower wattage bulb for such a small tank. ....

Its weird, the light bulb says 15 watts but it is so dim ,I had a tiny sick fish in there for a day, and I had to hold up another light to examine him. I have 0 plants now, they've all been eaten. If I do get plants in there is it better to leave the light on all day, or maybe keep it by a window and just use sunligth? The light in my main tank is a lot brighter, but it is 30 gal w/ light rocks, so maybe that has an affect on it. 2.5 is bare. Thanks for the response!!!

I have a 2.5 gallon minibow tank with a 15 watt incandescent bulb, I also was wondering if you could grow plants in them. I want some anacharis because they oxygenate the water and I think that they like a lot of light. I also have a spare fluorescent light from an old tank that emits natural light, that I could use for the 2.5 gallon tank. How long would either of the lights need to be on?

I would say to leave the lights on around 10-12 hours per day. You have to experiment as to what amount of time gives you good plant growth, and not too much algae.

As for small tanks and light, I once read an article that said that mini tanks actually need more wattage than larger tanks. I wish I could remember where I read that

Incandescent lights actually put out much less light for the wattage than flourscent ones do. Either use the flourescent light or you can get a screw in mini compact that puts out 10 watts, Drs Foster Smith sell them and so does someone on aquabid ocassionally. I've been told you can find them at nnnnnn as well, but I've never found ones with a small enough base there...

My bulb's also incandescent, I didn't even think about looking until I read Aqua's post. that's probably why it's so dim I'm not sure if a florescent bulb would fit.The bulb is in there so tight and there is much condensation on the bulb splash guard, which doesn't even cover the bulb completely,Do you think it is safe? I heard that if flor. lights get wet they can burst.Do you think that if I put the tank by a window, with the incandescent bulb in it , the plants would grow, or am I better off getting a florescent? The warning says not to exceed 15 watts, are they the same in the different kind of bulbs? Sorry for asking so many questions, I am a very unsure person. Also, thanks for the replies, everyone!!

Some of the newer fluorescent bulbs are very small and I have one that is only 11 watts. Before you buy one, make sure to check to see how big it is, there really is a variation in size. I believe there are some that are made specifically for aquariums, but they are probably more expensive than the generic type.

Fluorescent run much cooler than incandescent, and I have replaced all of my bulbs in my hoods with the new mini compact fluorescents and I haven't had any problems.

thanks>I have some shopping to do and I'll try to remember to bring the bulb for comparison.