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I am setting up a 55 gallon tank in the near future and I would really like to make my tank look very similar to this one.
http://showcase.aquatic-gardeners.org/2005.cgi?&Scale=3&op=showcase&category=0&vol=0&id=31

Only problem is that I have never really aquascapped a tank before. In the past I had jsut thrown some artificial plants in a tank and some sort of ornament that I thought looked neat from Petsmart. This means I need help!!!

There are a few minor alterations I want to make to this design. I need to know how this perosne got it to do what it did in the first place though before I can even start thinking about altering it!

Thanks for all the help!

Christina

My guess is that the lighter substrate went in first, then the really large rocks and the darker substrate in the back. The driftwood would be next as well as the moss and what I think is hairgrass. The darker substrate is probably laterite or flourite, not sure about the lighter one and the tank is probably 2 wpg at the least and running CO2. It's a pretty square shaped tank, is your 55 long or tall? It would be fun to try to do that in a 55 but it may be tricky to pull off. Having recently started 'scaping my brother's 55 the rocks and dw won't be cheap at that size!

"If you're afraid you'll make a mistake, you won't make anything."
-Family Circus

Wayne Sham did a beautiful job on that tank with decorative sand in the front and ADA Aqua Soil Amazonia as substrate in the planted portion. He probably made a "dam" of plastic to separarte the substrates to keep them from mixing when he created the tank.

Prior to planting the tank or setting the substrate. He undoubtedly worked with different arrangements of the driftwood and rocks in the aquarium. Once he had an impression of how he wanted the hardscape arranged, he chose plants to complement the arrangement.

His design is very evocative of Amano's "Nature" aquariums. Amano's designs attempt to replicate landscapes in the aquarium. One of his works will make you think of a field or pasture punctuated by hills while another may remind you of a mountain pass. Amano has become a contributor to "Tropical Fish Hobbyist" magazine this past year and has published at least two books that show his aquarium designs.

__________
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research."
researched from Steven Wright

Those are some GREAT answers that really helped. Next question though is, how did he get that moss to stay? I have enough trouble getting my plants to stay when I bury them. I can't imagine getting them to stay just squished in there because I want them to.

One more thing... What are some good sites to find the plants I need. I cannot find any Eleocharis parvula or Willow Moss at the petstores around here. I hope I can find it on one of the sites.
I have had SO much trouble finding the supplies and fish for this tank! Just makes it more of a challenge for me I guess lol


Christina

I use cotton embroidery thread and tie the moss to the driftwood and rocks, the floss will breakdown and by the time it's gone the moss has latched on and you have to tug it to get it off. The same goes for java fern and anubias. A trick is to use a colour that matches the moss/surface so it's not so obvious.

"If you're afraid you'll make a mistake, you won't make anything."
-Family Circus

dvmchrissy,

One think worth mentioned on that tank you linked. It's a very small tank (5gallon). If your looking to do the same thing on a 55gallon it's alot different.

The tank has minimal plant mass, but you still need strong light to grow that grass in the back. I could see by looking at the sand, it has somme anaerobic activity in it. Probably too much bacteria because of week biofilter, plant mass, etc. In a 5gallon you could literally vac that front out and suck the sand out with it and put more down and it looks beautiful in minutes. On a 55g that's another story.

Also the lighting as mentioned would have to be strong enough to grow the background grass so that leads to more problems controlling algae in a limited plant mass tank.



Last edited by tetratech at 24-Jan-2006 14:02

My Scapes

I can't help you with the aquascaping because I'm a beginner myself...but I know that http://www.floridadriftwood.com has willow moss. They also have Christmas moss...which I am going to order next week. I am not sure about the other plant though. Good luck with your tank and please post pictures when you are done.

*Kristin*

So Tetra... you pointed out a problem, but not a solution. What coudl I do to help with that? Should I maybe add a totally different type of plant to contrast or something like that? I am glad you pointed that out except I wouldn't know what to do to fix it. I really like how "clean" it looks with just the 2 types of plants. It also looks very simple, not easy simple but "plain" simple. I like that. Please let me know what to do!


Christina

Sorry Chrissy,

I didn't mean to leave you on a down note and I'm not saying it can't be done it's just not as simple as it looks.

My advice would be to replace the grace in the back with something that doesn't require alot of light. High light would be your enemy in a tank like that because of the algae issues. The moss is easy, that grows great in lowlight, so just pick a plant that doesn't require alot of light for the back and will have good constrast, maybe wisteria. Check plant sites for lowlight. Plantgeek.com, etc.

My Scapes

Good call on subbing the background plants. With a little above low light you can use crypt balansae/ spiralis for a similar look. There's always vals as well...

---

Back in the saddle!

Thanks Tetra! I knew you would come through for me! I will look for some low light plants... What types look like the Eleocharis parvula? I really like the way it looks. If I can get something that looks as close to that as possible and is a low light plant that would be great. If I find something I will be sure to let you guys know as soon as I find something.

In the meantime please keep the ideas coming!

Christina

Are there any plants that closely resemble Eleocharis parvula that are lower light plants? I found some Giant Hair Grass that looks like it might work. Only probalem with the Giant Hairgrass is that it says its a medium to high light plant. Any ideas?



Christina

P.S. I think I am going to look for the christmas moss. I really like christmas moss