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Week 12 Update

No full tank shot this week. But I do have a shot of the flower. Unfortunately my camera over exposes the flower no matter what I do. It looks like some divine glowing flower. What is even funnier to me is the tetra to the right sitting their worshiping it.

Flower Shot

I don't want to start using Excel on this tank. I'd just get hooked. I want to keep it simple and keep my attention on getting the 25 running smoothly. Although Excel on the 25 might help me increase my plant mass faster? Hmmm...


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Week 13 Update

Here is this weeks tank shot.
Full Tank

Pretty much the same. I've been using this tank as a grow out to fill the 25 Gallon. I pretty much just thinned out the wisteria.

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Hi Rick

Your tank is looking good. I like how you have the wisteria sloping up to either side of the wood & then how it copies & emphasises the curved shape of the wood. Nice looking flow.

Cheers
TW

Yup Rick,

Pretty nice, but I wonder how much longer you can go without getting bored of the "almost-exclusive" Wisteria setup. You got all this fancy soil in there for an Anubias and Wisteria, come on!

And - what's wrong with adding Excel once or twice a week if you should stick with doing water changes?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

I'm defiantly not against putting any new plants in this tank, but it seems like my options are limited. With only 2 WPG I haven't found many interesting choices for plants.

I would like something low and small that would fill up the foreground, but am unaware of anything that will live in my light.

I also see that the Anubias, Wisteria, and Wendlov all have about the same color and blend together. But don't most plants with more color also require more light or high CO2 levels?

As far as Excel, I just haven't really felt like it. I like the growth rate I have, and Excel can get expensive.

Overall I am really happy with the tank. There are some things I would like to improve upon but I think these low tech tanks suit me.


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Rick,
Sorry for some reason I've been missing this thread. I like the overall layout of the tank and the placement of the DW, but I agree with LF that it's too much wisteria. If your interested in giving the tank better depth and contrast I would get rid of the wisteria about 2" or so past the DW going front to back and cover some stones with java moss. Once they are covered scatter them around the DW and work your way to the sides. You'll have an easy low-light foreground that will constrast nicely with the Wisteria. Just my 2 cents.



My Scapes

Tetratech,

Don't worry, we took good care of him



Rick,

Have you thought about Crypts? Most kinds don't need that much light and they come in various colors from green to brownish red. Although I know that a Crypt Wendtii may grow a little too tall for the foreground, it could spice up the mid to background a little.

And there are other kinds as well that are nice, like Lutea and Lucens (and many others). Go check them out.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Week 14 Update.

Welcome Tetra. Ingo and company have taken good care of me and all my questions , but I am always glad to have new eyes on my thread. I've still got a lot to learn.

I am having a hard time picturing what you are saying. If you look at the top of the tank (I'll try to get a top down pic) the wisteria forms a kind of U. The narrowest part is behind the DW as it holds the wisteria back, but the corner the wisteria grows closer to and sometime touching the front of the tank.

Are you suggesting that I strip the wisteria back so it more or less forms a straight line even with the narrowest part behind the driftwood and fill in that area with the moss rocks?

Am I over thinking this?

BTW
Full Tank Shot

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Are you suggesting that I strip the wisteria back so it more or less forms a straight line even with the narrowest part behind the driftwood and fill in that area with the moss rocks?
Sorry I know it was hard to follow what I was saying, but I think you got it.

Cut the wisteria about 2 inches from the edge of the DW that is toward the front of the tank and plant moss covered rocks in basically a line across the remaining wisteria and wrap it around the edge of the DW. It will give it some good constrast and develop a low-light foreground.




My Scapes

Or:

Add some different plants to create variety in color and shapes, like crypts. I would think that they should take off after a while in your tank. How about at the right side, middle to back?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

If you went with Excel I think you could make e tenellus work for you. As it is you can definetley get away with dwarf sagm though it may grow a little tall for a foreground plant. You could make it work though.

Crypts will like the shade, but they may grow taller in less light.

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Back in the saddle!

Week 15 and 16.

Another double picture post. I gave the wisteria a hair cut. It was doing all right, but I noticed that the bottoms had a lot of dead looking leaves so I topped everything pretty good. I'm thinking this tank could use a regular dose of micros to.

This does however leave me more room to plant. I may try the moss rocks. If anyone has any pictures showing how they prepare moss covered rocks that would be helpful.


If not I'll just give it a try.

Anyway here are the pictures.
Week 15
Week 16

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Hi Rick

Your tank is looking good.

Re: the moss rocks. In the past I have secured it with fishing line, but I am going to try tetratech's method of using a lady's hair net. I'm trying to get hold of some riccia, but that's not easy over here. When I find some, that's when I'll be trying the hair nets.

Cheers
TW

Robyn,

Thanks for the input. Take pictures of you netting the ricca. I'd love to see how it goes.

Well luck would have that one of my co-workers trimmed his Java moss and dropped a nice full bag of Java Moss off in my office. Thanks Chris!

So now I just need to find some rock. Will regular smooth river rocks be OK or should I get a certain type of rock that will allow better adhesion.

Also In the mean time will the Java Moss be OK floating in a bag in one of my tanks? If so for how long. I did fill the bag with tank water.


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

I will if I can actually find riccia. So far, only found it a couple of times on ebay & I've always missed out on winning the bid. Negotiating now for a BIN price with the seller, so I hope to get some soon.

Don't know if it matters what type of rock - just aim for one that is inert & doesn't effect your pH.

Java moss pretty much grows either attached or just floating. I have some free floating in my fry nets since April & it's doing just fine. Therefore, I'd say it would do fine in a plastic bag. I've even kept it for weeks at a time in a cup of water in a darkened garage, when I had too much of it. Never seems to die off, that stuff. However, you might be right about the smooth rocks being harder to adhere to

Cheers
TW

Week 17,

Here is a quick update on the tank.

Full Tank Shot

Not much new. The java moss is still floating in the QTank while I hunt out rocks I like to cover. You'd think that would be easy but I haven't found any I like.

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Rick,

Tank is growing nicely, I see the difference from last weeks shot to this week.

About the rock: It doesn't really matter what you get (as Robyn said), as long as it is inert and has a good overall shape. Your moss will cover it eventually and then there will be no details visible anymore, not even its original shape.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Week 18 Update,

Just a quick pic today.

Full Tank Shot

Not much new here.

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Yup,

You are right Rick, there is not much difference between the last two shots. How come? To me, there is quite a difference between week 16 and 17. Does that mean that the growth is slowing down? I assume that would not be a good sign. Did you do anything special during this week?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Week 19/20 Update

I have some pictures of this tank to. Just some new rocks with the Java moss added in.



Attached Image:

Hairy Rocks

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

And the Full tank shot

Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Looking nice Rick,

Once the rocks are covered with the moss they will look pretty good in the tank. Be carful though to make sure that the moss will not spread from the rocks onto the substrate and beyond as you will find moss in your tank even after you removed the rocks for months and months.

Is that some algae that I see there on top of the wood?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

No not at all. (I'm still hopeing that if I deny its exisitence it will just go away!)

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Week 20 Update

Here is the full shot of the 10 gallon. It is humming right along. I didn't realize when I trimmed it last how flat I made it look.

The java moss is setting right in and starting to cover the rocks. I think its a nice addition.

Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

I didn't realize when I trimmed it last how flat I made it look.

When Amano trims his stems it looks the same way, all even . Don't worry, it will start looking more diverse again by itself as the stems will grow in different directions.

Now that the moss is covering the rocks, try to watch out for strands creeping along the substrate. Remove them as soon as you can.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well it has been almost a month since my last update so here are a few pictures. I did some minor reorganizing of the tank. The java fern was growing nicely and pressing up against the glass. Now it spreads out nicely and provides some interest above the wisteria.

Also if I add Excel to this tank to combat the BBA on the Anubias and the driftwood (now hidden by the fern) would I need to keep treating it indefinatly or once the BBA is gone can I stop?


Attached Image:

Front Shot

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Here is a shot from the side.

Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

And lastly from a top angle.

Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

You've done a great job with this small tank. The plants look very healthy, I'm especially impressed with the fern on the wood, very nice!

Wow Thanks Dr. B. I appreciate the nice comments.

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Rick,

Looking nice, here are a few comments:

- Albeit all plants seem fine, it is a little too green for me. The plants blend too much into each other and I would like to see a different highlight plant in there, maybe a red wendtii or, if you dare, some red stem plant in a small group.
- The Excel: you can stop with it once the BBA is gone, but there is a chance it will come back if the causing components have not changed. In my big tank, I ended up with a bi-monthly 2 weeks excel treatment routine as I could not eliminate the issue, whatever it is.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well the Fish Store was out of Excel. So I will have to stop by again on Wed when they get their shipment.

Will applying the Excel near the Java fern do it any damage?

How about the Java Moss?

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Rick,

About 2 to 3 months ago I released a concentrated stream of Excel into my Xmas Moss in my 29G as I had an outbreak of Staghorn on it. I did not use more than I would have anyway, except that I focussed it onto the moss.

Result: really bad . The Moss disintegrated in the areas where I injected the Excel (go check my 29G log a few pages before the current end). I ended up having to remove the whole moss and to add the best pieces back onto the wood.

And I still have the Staghorn

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Rick,

Looks very nice. I would add another windelov fern to the left of the main one already there, place it so that it fills that void but keeps the overall shape.

Since your tank is a few months old, have you considered gradually replacing the wisteria with some other ground plants perhaps? The only problem I see now is that the windelov fern and the wisteria have very similar leaf shapes, keeps everything a bit uniform looking.

Also, you've been using AS for a few months now, I'm curious if you've noted any observations on how it's changed over the past few months. In my small tank I've noticed that I have to dose ferts a bit mro efrequently now to keep growth good and thick - I attribute that to the AS losing juts a little bit of steam. Overall though I love it, combined with the powersand special it helped the tank settle in nicely from the get-go.

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Back in the saddle!

Ingo,

Thanks for the excel input. I do remember that from your log a while back. I hope that it doesn't do the same to the fern. If it kills my moss I'll live as I can get more from my buddy next time he trims.

I'd just like to get read of that BBA. It isn't taking over but over the weeks it is ever so slowly getting bigger. Hopefully the excel will kill it and then I can stay on top of it and prevent it from coming back.

Nowherman

Thanks for the comments. Ingo has mentioned adding some plants as well to replace some of the wisteria. Its been on the back of my mind when I'm at the LFS. Nothing has jumped out at me yet.

The AS is great stuff. I haven't had to change my dosing (even missed a few here and there) and I haven't noticed any slowdown or change in growth. This tank always amazes me how healthy the plants look. If it weren't such a PITA to switch substrates, I would replace the gravel in the 25 with the AS in a heart beat.

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

even missed a few here and there

Which just may be the reason for your BBA to take hold

About the 25 and switching to AS: hey, nothing is easier then to do a 25G makeover Ingo Style . I would do it in a heartbeat.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Hey Rick

Sorry, I lost track of this thread, so I am late with all my comments. What the heck - better late than never.

little too green for me. The plants blend too much .....like to see a different highlight plant....maybe a red wendtii or....red stem plant in a small group

I sympathise with you. Same in my tank. Low light = limited choice of colour. Like NowherMan6 says, maybe another windelov fern will help. My windelov is darker than my wisteria, so that's a contrasting shade of green. I also try to use red rocks for my mosses & have the wood showing here & there. It's about the only way I can add colour. Nevertheless, I agree with the others - all is looking very nice & healthy.

I agree with you about ADA. It's great stuff. I might give eco complete a try next time (just to try something different) but you really have to go a long way to beat ADA - especially if you're looking for way to keep your pH low in a non C02 tank.

Be careful of spot treating with excel. I had a really healthy anubia growing on a nice piece of wood. No algae issues on the anubia, but weekly I had cotton wool like algae on the wood. Easy to deal with, as the wood is small enough to take out each week & brush it off in old tank water. But I decided to try excel treatment. Thought I was very careful & painted the excel the wood & did not touch the plant at all. Disaster struck. Somehow, the excel must have dripped or run onto the leaves & this once beautiful plant never recovered. I still have it, but 1st problem was leaves lost their gloss, started going brown, developed holes etc. That seems to have stopped, but the general lack of health then allowed a black covering of algae to take hold on the leaves. The algae washes off but the leaves have never regained their former glossy beauty. Be careful if you decide to apply excel directly - rather than just to the water column. I will be very hesitant from now on.


Cheers
TW

Hello Everybody!

Its seems like forever since I posted. I have been killed at work and likely will be swamped until Dec 14 when I start my long vacation!!

Anyway the tank is doing great. My LFS finally got some Excel in stock and it worked miricales. The BBA died off in about two weeks and the plants took off. Right now everything looks a bit overgrown. I'll try to put up pictures soon

No major changes due to my lack of time. I did try to add three cherry shrimp. Unfortunately the betta didn't take to kindly to that and taught me a very important lesson on placing 3 dollar shrimp.

Anyway I'll try to check in and see how everyone else is doing.


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Rick,

Glad to read that the BBA is gone. What are you currently doing with the Excel? Do you keep adding it to prevent a new outbreak, and if so, in what dosage?

I am swamped at work as well, why do they always need everything done at the end of a year?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Not much new with this tank in December since I was swamped at work then out of town.

I'll post a picture tonight.

I did notice that when we got back the Betta was sick. Not sure what is wrong. Check out this thread if you think you have any advise.


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

OK Here is the promised picture of the tank.

Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

And when I was trying to get a close up of the betta for the other thread I have going in the Hospital I got this shot which I liked.

Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Rick,

Nice Anubias flowers. You and LF must be hanging out as you are the only two people on this fourm that seem to have them.

I have been so lucky to have one a while back but nothing since.

Every thing else in the tank looks quite nice too!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Thanks wings. Glad you like. It seems that the Excel really helped the Anubias flower. I had had only one flower on the plant since I set up the tank, but when I got the BBA and started dosing with the Excel, two popped up in close proximity.

I also noticed that not dosing excel for two weeks while I was gone has let a little algae back into the tank. There is a little bit of Staghorn and BBA coming back but it should die off again now that I am using Excel.


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

You and LF must be hanging out as you are the only two people on this fourm that seem to have them

Not true,one of my nana's in the 43.G has them regularly too. They only last a couple of days & then they close up, which LF told me is normal.

Rick, is it the same with yours. I wondered if they last longer in a non C02 tank (on the assumption that C02 speeds growth - maybe it speeds the life cycle of the flower too). Just wondered.

Your tank is looking good. How is your betta doing?

Cheers
TW

I think that LF said that they last longer in his low tech tanks than his hi tech's.

The one that I had in my hi tech was quite quick.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

1.7.2007 Update.

Well here is this weeks update on the tank. Everything looks about the same. The betta still has that lump on its face so I started treating him with Maracyn 2 as recommend on the other thread. Hopefully that knocks it out.

My Anubias flowers seem to last forever but only look nice for a few days. The first shoot is a couple weeks old. The middle of the flower just kind of dwindles away. The stalk however hangs out for a long time. I was never sure if I should trim them or leave them so I left them.

Here is this week's tank shot.

Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

I also have a technique questions regarding the Anubias.

Here are two pictures of the Anubias close up. The first one is lightened to show the end of the wood and the end of the rhizome. When I planted them the end of the rhizome was even with the wood.


Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Here is the top down view. You can see how big it has gotten.

I want to trim it but I have a couple questions.

If I cut the rhizome at the end of the driftwood will it continue to grow from the cut?

Should I pull the whole anubias off the wood and then cut or can I leave it rooted and cut off the excess?

Can I use regular scissors to cut or should I use something sharper like a razor blade?

Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

You can use scissors, as long as they aren't those dinky child proof ones and have a good edge on them. When you make a cut on the rhizome, it should have at least 3-4 leaves with it. The anubias should grow a branch on the rhizome somewhere to continue growing, usually it's very near the end you cut. Oh, I'd leave the anubias attached to the driftwood, tearing it off would cause a lot of damage to the plant I'm sure. Make your cut in the tank, and only pull out the section you want to move, leave the rest attached.

Good luck.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Matty,

Thanks for the tip. I just wanted to make sure before I did anything. I haven't cut it yet as I am thinking of where I want to put the cutting. I certainly have room in the 25 Gallon for new plants but not sure where I would place another anubias.

I'm still a newb enough were I can't stand throwing away plants.

No major changes to the tank this week. I did do any trimming after the water change. This is one of the nice benefits on Non-CO2 tanks.

I am having more algae issues though. First it was the BBA and now some string algae. Yesterday I think I found the cause. The flow on the HOB filter is way down. I think this is leading to stagnant areas in the tank.

Next week I am going to take the whole thing apart and make sure everything is in good working order. I would have done it this week but I am medicating the betta and didn't want to disrupt things.

Also the Betta is doing better (see the Sick Betta thread in the hospital).


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Well, When I went to give the betta his medicine tonight I noticed that the flow was almost still. I took the filter and cleaned it. At first I thought it was still broken but I found a clump of gunk messing up the intake. Its now clean and you can visible see water movement again. Hopefully this will help the betta's health and cut down on the BBA.

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Update 1.23.2007

Here is a small tank update. Things are getting much better now that the filter is working full force again. The algae is receding and fish are all healthy again.

Here is the shot of the tank tonight. I did a little remodeling and will be filling that open foreground with something here soon. It will most likely by HM but it depends on what is available.


Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

The tank is looking really good. The anubias flowers are still hanging in there.

†Aquapickle†

Thanks aquapickle27,

They seem like the will last as long as I let them. The last time I had a flower I cut it off. Not sure if this is normal for Anubias or not.

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Great pics and great looking tank
I really like that anubius. I've got mine to flower a couple of times. The first one appeared like 4 months ago and is still there.

Great pics and great looking tank
I really like that anubius. I've got mine to flower a couple of times. The first one appeared like 4 months ago and is still there.

Well I am redoing this tank. I tore it down today and drained it. My wife and I played around with some new hardscape ideas and this is what we came up with. I'm gonna sleep on it and see if I like it again in the morning. Anyway let me know what you think.

-Rick


Attached Image:


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums