the fake plant I think is really cool if you want to go the fake plant route or a mixture of the two like alasse is saying, check out this picture:

http://www.petsolutions.com/Japanese-Ma ... 2+C16.aspx

It's a Japanese Maple. When I first started this hobby I bought 5 of these and crammed the fake plants along the back and side of the tank (comes with suction cups). When the aquarium light was on, people would actually think they were real. Also the fish loved it because they could swim throughout it and even lay fry in the plants.

Maybe if tekneb has his heart set on fake plants, he can order a few of these japanese maple fake plants, I promise you, on fake plants, you will not be let down. You can get real creative.

Outside of this, I am not the fake plant guy. Now I have no fake plants. BUt if you must, check that one out - you won't be let down.

Voila! One black background and a bunch of Anacharis later, and my tank effing pops! I left the blue substrate because although its impossible to tell in the photos, it greatly accentuates the colors on my rainbow fishes. Same story with the fake orange plant and my barbs and redtail. That means the only fake plants I have now are that orange one, and the one that I can't get out of the vase, lol. Oh, and I'm not sure why, but for some reason the substrate shows up as a much lighter blue on photo then it is in real life. My gravel is not actually sky blue, lol.

i like it very nice tank. the blue gravel is very bright