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Look At The Previous Page For Way More Pictures

And the last two shots are in Matty style, aka crazy angles. I usually don't see my tank in this perspective, but it shows the duck weed on the surface. This was after I removed about 50%.


Attached Image:

Duck Weed

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

And an even weirder shot is this one, again showing the duck weed. Don't worry, what seems like loads of algae on the back is just a reflection of the the duck weed on the surface.

That's it,

Have Fun,

Ingo

Attached Image:

Crazy Shot

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Nice pic of your apisto yawning LF. I also like the upward angles on your tank. I can imagine you laying on the floor taking pics . I have to say the larger group of alternanthera is stunning. That should have happened much sooner. Larger groups of plants seem to make a better impact on the viewer IMO. The star grass needs to pop back up a bit, and then the tank will look very nice I think.

I happened to notice the petite nana in the first pic, but I can see why you would say they are pointless there. You don't need them there. That's a very nice little portion in your tank with the NL fern. However, I do need something in that spot in my tank. Otherwise it's an eyesore. Mesh and pvc don't lend themselves to a natural planted tank, like most people would think. I'm just trying to come up with the best possible solution as I can see the glosso doesn't cut the cake....or cheese(maybe that's what those bubbles are ). I need something that isn't large(won't shade out the glosso below it on the substrate which gets plenty of light), grows in lower light, will attach itself to mesh, and doesn't need substrate. Any other ideas?

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

see the glosso doesn't cut the cake....or cheese

Thanks Matty for the input (sparse these days, my tank must be too boring for words)

Yeah, I really way lying on the floor when taking the upwards shots

Also, I agree, the Alternanthera group has never been prettier.

And with regards to your "dark spot", I feel your pain. Moss is no good as it would creep out of control. Anubias Nana Petite cost $$$. How about narrow leaf java fern, grows slow enough to be maintainable?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Scrolled back over an earlier page of pics, where you can only see a hint of your alternanthera. I'm so glad you've given it room to shine. I also like that we can see beyond the plants to the back of the tank. I used to think that all of the back wall of a tank had to be covered in tall stems, but I like this look, where in places you can see the black beyond. More interesting & gives more depth. Hard to maintain that though, as some of these darn stems grow so fast. Always needing trimming to keep them the right height.

Does the floating duckweed block your light & cause shading. I don't think I'd dare try it in my low light tanks, but I guess you guys with better lights, have the wpg to spare?

Cheers
TW

Does the floating duckweed block your light & cause shading

Yes, it does. I currently run an experiment on my 29G with 65W and almost the entire surface covered with duckweed, we will see how that goes. On a positive side, it is a major nitrate sucker upper , as much as I know.

Robyn, thanks also for the overall comments on the tank, and I agree with all of your points. Just last night I looked at the Alternanthera group and thought about its time limited beauty. In not too long of a future I will have to trim that group and it will never look the same again.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Ok,

So I didn't want to make a big deal out of this, but I jst cannot resist. I ordered a few more plants:

- 3 Bunches of Ludwigia peruensis
- 6 Pots of Tenellus
- 3 Crypt Wendtii Green

All entities arrived, although the Wendtiis are way more than 3, but little plants for that. Here is the order:

Attached Image:

Plant Order

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As I will not really plant anything today, I cleaned and "parked" the plants for the time being.

Here are all the individual peruensis stems planted in the 125G:

Attached Image:

All Peruensis

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One thing that this last shot made ovbious is that they appear from the distance very similar to the Alternanthera.

In a closer shot of the main planted group one can appreciate them more:

Attached Image:

Peruensis I

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And here is another look at the peruensis that I lined up in front of the tank, as I said - just parking them for the time being.

Are these the ones that Matty has in his 50? I forgot.

Attached Image:

Peruensis II

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The other plants are parked in the 20G, I didn't even remove the Tenellus from the pots. I guess that is all right, right?

The Crypts are most likely to stay in this tank, but for sure not in that spot. I ordered them because I felt like making the order worthwhile.

Attached Image:

Park Em

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The reason why I ordered potted Tenellus was because the explanation made it appear as if they were grown submersed, and the loose ones where grown emersed.

But the bud endings on some of them make me believe that these were grown emersed as well.

For the "I Spy" fans, there is a baby platy in this picture as well

Attached Image:

Emersed?

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Now,

"What does that all mean?" is probably a question that you all ask yourselves (or not).

Anyway, if I tell you it has to do with me taking Friday off and use it on this tank, I assume you know what it means

So, if you have any suggestions, you have about a day and a half to let me know about them.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well, good luck with your Ingo tank re-do. Is it a major or a minor redo. Anyway, I'm nowhere near enough of a scaper to make useful suggestions - but I hope you have fun.

Have fun with your new plants, they look very nice.

I'm at work, so this is a very quick visit. With only time for a quick glance, I didn't spot your baby platy - only what I thought might have been a snail or two. I will play "I Spy" later when not at work (and won't cheat by looking at any other's answer first)

Cheers
TW

The potted chain swords are definitely emersed grown. They'll do fine anyways.

The ludwigia peruensis aka peruvian ludwigia is usually the false name ludwigia glandulosa is sold under. That is what I've gathered from my searching around. Yours have 2 leaves per node though, and every picture of ludwigia glandulosa I've seen only has one leaf per node. Otherwise yours looks very similar to mine when I bought it, green on top red underneath, real thick stems. If it ends up changing forms from emersed to submersed and only has one leaf per node and turns bright red(top and bottom), you know what you have.

BTW I can't find the platy

Good luck with the makeover

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Thanks for the input and Matty - thanks for the ludwigia glandulosa info.

Yeah, I think I should explain why I am willing to do another major overhaul again. During the last few months I mentioned quite a few time the fact that I am not too happy with the location of the wood and that relocating it would mean that it a) has to be removed first and b) that it has to be cut in managable pieces. Now that I have the 40G, which has its hardscape pretty much in place, I can see how rather easy it is to do small changes to enhance the scape. I would like to lay out this tank so that following changes are managable, but to get to that point a more permanent arrangement of hardscape has to happen first. And unfortunately this means that I have to pretty much remove most of the plants and excisting scape first anyway

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

That's the LF we know!

Hardscape on the left is needed, and go heavy on the hardscape throughout the tank if you can. Plants will grow in around it and you may not notice a bunch of it, but it's important that it's there to give some structure.

The tenellus looks less emersed than when I first got mine - many of the leaves are short and flat as they should be, but there are also some tall stringy ones with the seed pods, and that's a sign of emersed growth. It'll be a little messy in the first few weeks, but they'll shed quickly enough.

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Back in the saddle!

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/photo-album/36681-75-gallon-gallery-56k-warning.html

This tank is pretty impressive. At lest it is to me. The thing I wanted to point out about it the amount of DW in it. Once the tank is planted most of the DW is gone.

My only sugestion would be to keep the plants low in the front and work your way up in the back. I think this makes the tank look much deeper than it is. Right now your NL fern is just too huge up front.

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

Thanks guys for the input

Wings - why do you have to show me this picture and make the stakes so high? . I cannot live up to this by a long shot.

The main concern is to move and cut the driftwood, although I don't have a clear vision on what to put where. Nevertheless, I feel more confident now than ever before as I think my 40G setup worked out pretty well (and don't you guys dare to tell me otherwise now ).

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

To go along with what I previously said, LF, I would check out AF for driftwood options, they have probably the best stock I know of and it's not too pricey. Avoid blocky pieces, look for branchy pieces with long bits sticking out. You can also use smaller pieces together to look like one piece. I would suggest not skimping, as Wings has said.

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Back in the saddle!

Interesting

I was actually not planning to add new wood to the tank and have not even considered this option.

Instead, I plannned on cutting up my big piece and use the branches individually. This should eliminate that big trunk in the front.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

That will work as well, but just in case you pre-plan and find you may want more to work with, give AF atry, they've had some very nice pieces.

How will you make sure the branhces dont float?

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Back in the saddle!

If I get new wood from AF then the color etc will not match (see the critics that I got a while back for my 20 QT). So I would need all new pieces.

The existing wood is in there now at least 6 months, I hope it will stay down by itself. If not, some rocks will have to be either used as weights or I will squeeze some wood between 2 rocks.

Ingo

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So....hmmmm.....where was the platy?

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Forgot all about the platy fry

BTW, currently there are maybe around 8 fry in the tank. And here is the one that was the subject of "I Spy":

Attached Image:

See It?

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And here is a super zoom closeup of the fry, in case you thought I sell you a small leaf in its place:

Attached Image:

Closer

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I can't beleive you guys didn't see that thing! It is only bright white(or yellowish) and happened to be right in the middle!

LF,

Good luck with the redo today! Rock it out my Friend!/:'

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

The big tank is looking pretty good. Good luck with your fish day.

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Thanks guys,

Just a very quick update:

I am almost done, but I have to take a family break before I can finish.

So far: belh

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well,

All done for today, took me only overall 8 hours,

Here are the steps:

First, the tank before the start, this morning:

Attached Image:

Tank Before Change

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Next, I removed all the plants and placed them in tubberware containers, one of which I even quipped with a heater. The water was from the tab, but I used prime.

Then the wood was removed.

Here is the tank right after the messy removal:

Attached Image:

All Nekkid

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The I performed a water change and vacuumed almost the entire substrate. Only one corner was left out as the water level was falling too low already.

Here is the tank after a refill:

Attached Image:

Water Changed

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Once I started working on removing the plants I could for the first time in quite a while account for all of my Otos. After the water change I tried to find them all but was one short. I checked the tank over and over again, but could not find it. I ran to the laundry room (where the sink is with the wood and the python) and sure enough, in the empty and barely wet sink was the missing Oto , still alive. It must have been in there at least an hour and a half as it must have traveled on the wood.

I scooped the Oto out with my hand and immediately returned it to the tank. He wiggled in my hand, then swam off and was still fine an hour later. Ever since the tank is replanted again I cannot see the Otos anyway.

Here is the escaper after release:

Attached Image:

Oto Runaway

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After cleaning the back and one side panel I cut the driftwood into individual branches and scrubbed them all off. The it was time to place them into the tank (they sink by now) to outline the main group.

Here is the first, and almost last attempt:

Attached Image:

Branches Outline Main Group

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After extending the main group a little it was time to place the plants back into the tank. First, I added the ones that surround the main group.

In this stage you can see the main layout of the new tank very well. Once I was finished planting it wasn't all that clear anymore. But the point of this change was to allow me future updates without having to rip the tank apart again.

So keep that in mind, this is the basic setup now:

Attached Image:

Basic Setup

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Then it was time to add the remainder of the plants, without adding the ones back in that I don't like anymore I(don't fit into the layout).

As such, I am short on plants right now

Anyway, here is the tank after I finished, what do you think?

Have fun,

Ingo

Attached Image:

All Done

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Ingo,

The new layout looks very nice. It kind of feels like an island almost. Very neat effect. Plus you can really spot the fish!

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

I found the platy...I found it!!

Ooo...I like it. Looks like it could be a tropical island there in the middle, especially if the wisteria were to grow around the main groupind to form the sea. Lots of different scapes could form around the central group though. Very diverse, very attractive, I like it.

EDIT: well I second rick I guess.

Oh, I can't tell from the pic but did you find a more suitable place for the nana petite?

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Nice work LF! I really like the Anubias work! The nana petite (bottem left in front of the DW?)

Will get back with you more later! I have a marching band show/fish auction/Chicago marithon to watch this weekend....

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

Thanks guys for the input

Yeah, it looks like an island, and I am sure that some plants will change over time. Most important to me was to create a more "styles" overall layout and, based on your comments, I guess that worked out.

The Nana Petites are spread out throughout the main group border from left to the middle. I will take some detail shots of the tank today and I will make sure to include them.

The tank is really short on plants and I may have to add the wisteria from the 20G to fill it up a little.

Oh - interesting side note: I assume that the Espei have made a packt when the tank was empty. Somewhere in the line "if we survive this then we have to strenghten the group". As soon as the main group border was in with the Anubias they went at the reporroduction ritual like mad. The were hushing under the anubias leaves even while I was planting the wisteria right next to them .

The Apistos seem to have been the ones mostly stressed by the replant, the male was hiding for the rest of the day.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Wow, what a change. Looks very nice LF. I like your anubias & nana petites. It's right, it does have the feel of an island & now you can have separate groupings, on both sides.

Good job with the make-over

Cheers
TW

Hi Ingo,
The overhaul looks great!
I like this placement of the driftwood with some of it
a little further into the back of the tank. The placement
along with the use of the ground cover, adds depth to
the tank and enforces the "island" concept.
I'm curious to see what it will mature into.
With the Espei's - in many cases a large water change
will prompt the spawning urge.
It looks like you put in a solid days work. The thing that
never ceases to amaze me is how elaborate a root system
our plants develop over sometimes, a very short time.
When they do it in my flourite, I always have my Vortex,
diatom filter, primed and ready to run.

What did you do with the plants you were no longer
interested in?

Frank

-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Thanks Robyn and Frank, your input is very welcome

Here is a weekly tank update, although there should not be much of a secret on what I have to tell, but it is a tradition

Weekly Tank Update - Week 56

Well, it was time for another major tank overhaul, Ingo Style. I know I am risking all kinds of things with this, but I had to get some more favorable structure into the tank upon which I can build future updates.

I am currently a little short on plants and I hope that this is not coming back to haunt me (except on Halloween, ).

To stir things up a little, I will start with some details. Here is the left side of the tank, the one that got the really short end of the stick. I grouped here all my crypts, except my red wendtiis, on the left back and side. On the right side, bordering the island, is a group of taller Pearl Grass, in between the new tenellus and some wisteria from the 20G:

Attached Image:

Left Side

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Here is the right border of the island. It has some of the reddish lugwigia still hidden in the back, then some NL Java Fern on the wood, then some red Wendtiis in front of it, and some Anubias in front of them. To the right is Wisteria only, I hope tetratech will not call me a copy cat

Attached Image:

Right Side

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Here is a look into the island, without showing all of the borders. I know it is a little on the red side , but that is ok.

You may notice that I use the Star Grass as a border between the red Ludwigia / Alternanthera and the Anubias. I discarded most of the star grass, it is not worth the helluffa maintenance and dying of lower parts. I will try to keep it short, even if it means at least bi-weekly trimming:

Attached Image:

Main Part Of Island

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Here is a look at the front border of the island, containing the 5 nana petites. Can you find them?

The Anubias in general received a major trimming, all kinds of algae infested leaves were cut off, as were old and leaveless parts of rhizomes.

Attached Image:

Anubias Row Coast

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The most worrisome part of the replant (besides the "lost" Oto) was the Apisto pair. They both seemed really scared and hid behind the heaters and filter intakes

By now, almost all seemed fine again, although the female doesn't come out much. The reason may be some egg laying though, as she was defending the right side of the main group with the wood.

Here is the male again:

Attached Image:

Male Apisto Viejita II

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Last but not least, here is a full tank shot from this morning. Compared to the last full shot from Friday there are a few more plant on the left tank side, collected from the 20.

Please make sure to also check on my 20, 29, and 40 logs as all have new entries and in particular the 20 and the 29 have changes a little.

Have fun,

Ingo

Attached Image:

Full Tank Shot - Today

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Well,

There seems to be something going on in the breeding department with the Apistos (while the male in the 40 is doing really bad and may die).

The female has found a spot in the wood on the right hand side of the island and is almost never coming out. If she does then only in the immediate are of the wood.

Just now, the group of Rainbows came pretty close, and here is the male's response:

Attached Image:

Go Away

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Then the female Pearl joined that group, but the male Apisto even challenged her, although she is for sure number two in the tank (after the male Pearl).

Here he shows her the way as well.

That's it, we will see.

Ingo

Attached Image:

And you better leave as well

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

LF,

Very

I like the structure of the middle-right section. Defintetly the right direction. I can see the island thing, I can also see moving more in that direction if you see fit, using glosso or HC or something to make a "sea" around the left side.

Well done, and nice little story about the oto

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Back in the saddle!

Thanks NowherMan6,

I wish I could have the red plants on the island grow some more and the freeze the entire island and just keep on working on the surrounding "sea".

Unfortunately, that is only a dream as all will grow eventually out of shape and then it will be time for a redo . But I think I can handle the island for quite a while, with all kinds of options.

The one thing I am considering is to replace the Star Grass border with maybe didiplis diandra, which I believe is not as messy as the star grass and also grows on stronger stems. The star grass is blowing slightly sidewards.

About Glosso or HC, I may try first to surround the island with wisteria, in good old tetratech fashion . If the tenellus ever settles then I may use any runners to "refresh" the culture in the 29.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well I'm sneaking this one out

I like the makeover much better as you said it's more "styled". I think it's more managable and something you could have fun fine-tuning as you go along. It's very tough to create a "bensaf-like" tank in a 125g without being "semi-retired"

About the didiplis diandra:
I had this plant way back when I purchased my aromatica and blyxa. It's the only plant that didn't make it. It's very fragile and light sensitive. It's also going to be a big pain when trimming. You know Blyxa might work in that spot and is not a fast grower.

About the Wisteria:
Go ahead knock yourself, but be prepared to see Jersey vs New York wisteria comparisons. Since I've seen about 5 FP tanks with creeping wisteria, maybe the Mods will give me a special contributor award.

Ingo Style Makeover in regards to Algae:
Most important if you haven't done so aready, reduce your lighting cylce to 7.5 to 8 hours tops and gradually increase as the tank matures and is stable. Same goes for ferts reduce to lower EI range and increase with mass.

I think by this weekend I'll be back to some tank updates and responses to Matty and other threads.

My Scapes

Most important if you haven't done so aready, reduce your lighting cylce to 7.5 to 8 hours tops and gradually increase as the tank matures and is stable. Same goes for ferts reduce to lower EI range and increase with mass.

Shouldn't that go without saying at this point?!?

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Back in the saddle!

Shouldn't that go without saying at this point?!?

We can only hope!



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

Well,

First of all, glad to have been able to get a response from tetratech, just for that the makeover was already worthwhile. If I only could get one from Bensaf as well, although he hasn't been on in a few days now

Thanks tetratech, I forgot about the issues with the diandra. I don't think the Blyxa would work as it seems to take forever until it even reaches any height (meaning, it is too short and would not even be seen. The plants I need there would have to be about 5 to 6 inches tall (above the substrate).

Next:

Shouldn't that go without saying at this point?!?

Actually, I did reduce the ferts a little, but not the light. I begin to have my doubts about my philosophy regarding light duration and intensity. I maintain my 10h and actually increased the "high light" about a week back to 3.5 hours.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

I begin to have my doubts about my philosophy regarding light duration and intensity.

and your philospohy would be???

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

and your philospohy would be?

Well, I stated that I have doubts about my philospohy, which is in sink with you guys.

The "new" thoughts are not well formed (yet), but there is of course the notion that the plants actually do not get enough lights to perform at their best. 1.5wpg is not quite much for almost all day (except the one hour I used to beef up the lighting).

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

The new structure is looking good & it seems the change may have prompted your apistos to mate. That should be very interesting, although any fry would probably struggle to survive in the community tank with the plant mass lower. But then, I'm talking about my tanks - where my adults are all notorious fry eaters. You have had success with platy & espei - so fingers crossed for you.

Cheers
TW

Thanks Robyn,

Nah, there will be no fry, not even my Espei fry has a chance now, and they are going at it like mad all the time .

There are simply enough fish in the tank to extremely limit the chances of any fry not to be detected.

As a side note, and unrelated to the upcoming loss of an Apisto in the 40G, this tank is seeing its first Espei death rather sooner than later. Given the signs on the fish (fading coloration and less transparency in the fins, combined with holding a static position in the water column rather than swimming all over the place) makes me strongly believe it is a case of old age. It for sure, by its size, is one of my original batch purchased over a year ago, which then was already in mating age. Nothing to worry about, just the way of life.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well,

Given that the Apisto in the 40G is gone and given that I placed an image of it in that log, I thought I owe you an image from the Espei mentioned in the last thread.

Here you see the "old" Espei, and I am rather certain that he/she is suffering from old age only (please tell me otherwise if you should identify an illness). I thought I owe this picture as it completes my Espei life cycle of images, from small fry over juveniles to adults and seniors.

As you can see, the body coloration is fading away, in particular in the front body section. Also, the fins are less clear and have mostly a whitish base color.

Ingo

Attached Image:

Old Espei

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Ingo: Good Job on your new tank overhaul i see how you have a lot more room for future development. I hope you're algae problem will be a lot less then in your previous layout. I cant wait to see how it will look in the next few months to come.

Cheers

Shawn

Thanks Shawn, I appreciate the comment

Just like you said, I am also happy that this layout will allow me to change things from now on a little more slowly rather than having to perform 10 hour makeover sessions every few months. And like you, I am very curious as to what it will become in the next few months.

Thanks again,

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

hey there lf -

great work on the tank - i can't believe how much work you do on your tank!! i love watching it progress from stage to stage. i just did a big clean out, thinning out all my swords, and propogating some tiger lotus pups - not a bad sunday arvo at all.

hope you are well,

justin

Thanks Justin

I appreciate your input and compliments, keep em coming

Anyway:

Weekly Tank Update - Week 57

The tank has been doig quite ok during this week, I was hoping not to see a major outbreak in algae (from the redo) and so far I have been lucky. The duck weed on top grew rather dense and needed some major thinning out as the two spray bars on each end concentrated the weed in the middle of the tank and that led to shading of the main group, not so good.

I have quite a few shots to show, so here is the first set, taken during the water change.

This is the diffuser at low tide, as you can see there is some algae on it. I have not cleaned it in months and the green part is the one where the diffuser never let out any bubbles (ever). My cleaning consists of dripping Excel on top of the plate (after drying it off with a tissue) when the water gets below the rim. That is all I do since months.

Attached Image:

Diffuser

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Here is a look at the main group from almost above, a little from the side. I cannot really get a straight down shot as I would have to make a hole in the ceeling of the room and take a shot from the first floor .

I am always surprised to see how bright blue the background of the tank actually is. It seems so much darker when there is water in the tank.

This reminds me, maybe I should play with the background for a few weeks.

Attached Image:

Low Tide Main Group

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Here is a look at most of the fish that are in the tank, almost all shots were taken during low tide. Usually, most fish are hiding in the plants during water change, but this weekend they were parading around.

Here are the Espei swimming along the island perimiter, supervised by the male Apisto:

Attached Image:

Espei School

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Here is the female Apisto, above the Wisteria. I assume her "fry" from last was either non-existent or had been eaten/abandoned/died.

Attached Image:

Female Apisto

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Just for completion of the Apisto pair, here is a shot of the male, taken a few hours after the water change. Besides showing him, I would like to point out the little bubbles in the water which are finely diffused CO2 bubbles. And that is on the other side of the tank from the diffuser.

Attached Image:

Male Apisto

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On to some other fish of the tank, here is a neon dwarf rainbow looking into the camera. I wonder if they wonder what it is that I am doing there. But I guess I give them too much credit

Anyway, it is very nice of him to give me this pose:

Attached Image:

Rainbow I

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And here are two of the rainbows, side by side. I would assume that the one with the larger hump is superior to the one in the back, right?

These fish (the rainbows) are the most active in the tank and are constantly busy chasing each other and showing off to each other.

Attached Image:

Rainbow II

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Here is my female Pearl Gourami. She holds the number two spot in the tank, at least when it comes to respect by the other fish. She is also less shy then her mate.

You can also see a few of the very healthy duck weed with roots on the left.

Attached Image:

Female Pearl

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And here is the king of the castle, the male Pearl. Nobody questions his authority and I am sure that his size alone gives him this respect. He is pretty much at least 3 times the lenght of most Espei. If the other fish would take a closer look when he behaves like a chicken (for example during water change) then they may change their mind and try to take dominance in their own hand .

Attached Image:

Male Pearl

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Enough about the fish in the tank, let's move on to the plants and the tank overall.

Here is a look at the Wisteria on the right after the water change. I was very tempted to thin it out already and use the clippings on the left side, but I rather wait one more week to have a fuller and healthier growth first.

Attached Image:

Wisteria Lawn

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And here is a look at the left side of the tank, the one that needs improvement/filling the most. I had no chance this week to go to the LFS and see if they have any Wisteria that I could plant there to fill in the empty gravel, maybe this week will be better.

Attached Image:

Left Side

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Many, Many More Pictures Are At The Bottom Of The Previous Page

As we all know, my tank is not known for pearling

But this weekend, after the water change, the tank pearled for hours. I know, I know, that is not something all that special, but even this has not happend in this tank for quite some time (many months).

Must be the Jersey water that has changed, .

Here is the Star Grass with its pearls:

Attached Image:

Pearling

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Here is a closer look at the tops of the Alternanthera Group. I had to trim away a few leaves that had a rim of BBA on them, still from the previous setup. In the past, most of these stems were spread out throughout the tank and actually did not receive the light (and respect) they need to shine:

Attached Image:

Alternanthera

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Right next to them (actually on the left),completing the center group of the island, are the Ludwigia peruensis's. So far, all stems still develop new leaves at the double per node.

Matty - If I understand the statement that you made about this plant a while back, then this should either change to single leaf per node or I actually have Ludwigia peruensis, which - by your statement - is not an aquatic plant.

Attached Image:

Ludwigia peruensis

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Ok,

The last 4 shots are of the full tank and/or the full island.

Here again is the tank from last week, shortly after the Little_Fish style makeover:

Attached Image:

Last Week

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And here is the tank this weekend.

The plants that I noticed as having grown the most are the Wisteria on the right, the Pearl Grass in the back left off the island, and the Star Grass ring on the island border.

What a surprise

Attached Image:

Week 57 - Now

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Here is a closer look just at the main island. I have to admit that this so far is my favorite setup of this tank and I hope that I will not regret the recent makeover and ligthing duration changes. So far, so good, I will keep my thumbs crossed.

Attached Image:

Island I

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And here is (already) the last shot, the main island in a more Matty-Style angle. Matty - I hope you are proud of yourself as you most certainly can take all the credit for any shot taken in these angles

I have to say that in this angle the island looks almost like a bird's nest

I am looking forward to the red plants growing just a little more to really fill in, in particular in height.

That's it for now,

Have fun,

Ingo

Attached Image:

Island - Matty Style

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LF,

Your tank looks pretty nice! I like the lay out with all the Anubias on the DW. That works really well for me. Things seem to be filling out quite well. The left side is a bit thin but you will soon have plenty of westeria to fill in the gaps.

Your rainbows are looking really good. I really love mine when I had them but for some reason they didn't do well. I am glad you have had pretty good luck with yours.



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
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Matty - If I understand the statement that you made about this plant a while back, then this should either change to single leaf per node or I actually have Ludwigia peruensis, which - by your statement - is not an aquatic plant.

If it doesn't end up with one leaf per node, then I have no idea what it is. The terrestrial plant I've seen in pics is very large and looks nothing like our aquatic plant. Sorry if I wasn't clear on that. I just meant to say that ludwigia peruensis is usually a false name for ludwigia glandulosa - but a name which is correct for a terrestrial plant.

Matty - I hope you are proud of yourself as you most certainly can take all the credit for any shot taken in these angles

I can't take credit, I didn't take the pic!. I'm glad I could make an impact on the angles you take your pics though. It's rare when people actually look at a tank from that dead on angle, so it's hard to get a feel for what your tank really looks like. Nice pics

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Thanks guys for the input and comments on tank and pictures.

Wings - none of my anubias are planted/tied on the driftwood, they are are stuck into the substrate. Of course I made sure the rhizome is above the substrate, so don't worry
The Mother Barteri is shooting out about 3 new leaves every 2 to 3 weeks, I hope that it doesn't grow too big too soon.

Matty - Of course you can take credit, you made me do it In the same way, NowherMan6 can take credit for my pictures as he was my lens consultant

Ingo

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Hah,

I am glad that I am able to post the following picture. As you may know, one Oto went MIA during last weekend's makeover and spent about at least 1.5h in an empty sink (where I placed the DW before cutting it).

So, given that I overall had 6 Otos before, and that I added him/her back in and he/she swam away, and that I have not been able to count them all any time since, here they are

Ingo

Attached Image:

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Man look at how clean that filter intake is. Makes me want to take mine out and bleach it or something.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Your Alternanthera Group is just stunning & I'm really liking the island setup.

Great shot of your otos - pretty cool to get them altogether like that.

Cheers
TW

Thanks, you two

Matty - This is the intake of the newer filter, the one I added rather recently (maybe 6 weeks back, I don't remember). I will try to get a shot of the other one which is more in line with yours, I guess

Robyn - Yeah, it took me two hours until I had all 6 of them herded onto the clean filter intake and heater

Ingo

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It's a classic case of "less is more" your no longer concerned with the confines of the tank where your putting a tall plant in the corner to cover the filter tubes, heater. etc. The Island looks even more impressive close-up. Nice tight groups, good constrast and manageable. If I had to nitpick (some things never change) it would be the anubias in the front is too lined up.

Are you considering changing the tubes, heater to all black so they fade into the background? With two filters on the tank that powerhead is also an unnecessary distraction IMO.

My Scapes

I think tetratech went colorblind during his absence. LF's background is blue and his heaters are black.

I think LF is also using that powerhead to throw CO2 bubbles out to the other side of the tank and get more saturation.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

If I had to nitpick ...

Of course you have to

And it is always welcome, tetratech. Does that mean your bet is over and you won, or what? What are you getting out of this again? Ah yeah, a new tank

Anyway - Just a few posts earlier (or a few pages earlier) I mentioned that I may play with the background for a while. This means that any colors of heater and what not will have to wait. Also, yes - as Matty said - the powerhead is for the CO2. My way of dispersal in a 6 foot tank.

I have to see about the Anubias and a few other plants in the future, for now I am just glad that I got an environment that allows me to play with it without having to do a major overhaul.

Ingo

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I went to the LFS after work and bought 3 bunches of Wisteria, each having 3 stems and being about 6 to 10 inches long (they also has a pair of Apist Cacs "Double Red", but I resisted).

Once home, I proceeded to trim the stems. For one thing, I would like to keep the growth low, so 6 inches is not good. I made two sections out of each stem, the top and the next element down, which gave me 18 pieces overall. That was enough to cover the part of the left side that was still open.

Here is that area:

Attached Image:

New Wisteria

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This shot, of the female Apisto exploring if there is any food in the wistera, shows the very finely structured leaves of this growth:

Attached Image:

Apisto Looking For Food

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In comparison, here is my Wisteria from the right side of the tank. As you can see, most leaves are much broader that the new ones. Is that because of less light intensity? I need to consult the Wisteria Whipper

Attached Image:

Existing Wisteria On Right Tank Side

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And just for completion, here is the whole tank again. Now it is getting harder to avoid any glare in the pictures as the Wisteria is highl reflective of the tank light.

That's it for now,

Have Fun,

Ingo

Attached Image:

Full Tank

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As you can see, most leaves are much broader that the new ones. Is that because of less light intensity?

I think it has to do with light. More light the thinner the leaves. Less light the wider they get.

The wisteria in the last picture sure is bright. You should ask tetra how he does it!



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
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Since you just bought it, I'd tend to think the thin leaves might be an emersed growth form(as most plants are grown emersed at farms to avoid the algae problem and to max light and growth using sunlight). I've also seen very large leaves come into the store too.

I guess that's why they call it hygro difformis. Very tough to tell what does what to this plant.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Ah, I have never thought of the possibility that Wisteria is grown emersed. The stems seem way to fragile to support the plant weight out of the water. Not because they are so thin but because they seem to easily break when bent (at least the main stem of an upright growing plant).

Interesting, so much still to learn,

Ingo

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Weekly Tank Update - Week 58

The week was rather eventless, with the exception of the addition of more Wisteria on Monday.

So here is a quick look at some stuff

The morning before the water change, when the tank was still dark, I had a chance to take a peek as the light on 29G next to it goes on first. I know that plants close shop when they have enough light and at night as well, but I did not know that this applies to Wisteria as well:

Attached Image:

Wisteria Closed At Night

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Here is the Pearl Grass before trimming. It has grown very nicely and I could use the extra plants for the 40G. It is now pretty much as tall as it was two weeks ago and I was able to harvest 9 smaller bunches:

Attached Image:

Pearl Grass

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Also, for the very first time ever I really cleaned the filter (the bigger older one). I removed even the content of the individual trays and rinsed them in tank water as can be seen here.

Left is the bio layers and right the mech stuff:

Attached Image:

Cleaning Time

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And, for comparison, here is the tank two weeks ago after this setup had been created. As you can see, it is still quite empty:

Attached Image:

Two Weeks Ago

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And here is the tank earlier today. Not only does one notice the addition of the wisteria, but also some healthy growth in the Star Grass, Alternanthera, and Ludwigia groups. Also, the mother barteri developed quite a few new leaves.

Attached Image:

Tank Now

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Nevertheless, not all is rosy. There is again some BBA, in particular on some leaves of the Alternanthera, Java Fern, and Anubias (just some leaves on that whole group). I am considering an Excel treatment.

Here is a closer look at the island:

Attached Image:

Island

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Here is a closer look at the Wisteria group on the left side of the tank. The front section is the addition from last Monday. That should be rather obvious though as I never had this growth form in any of my tanks:

Attached Image:

Wisteria

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The Tenellus field behind it is still pretty messy, but I clearly see the development of submersed leaves and a few runners. I will give it some more time and then decide what to do with it in the first place. I am considering to replace the star grass with the crypts from the way left and make the whole area around the island wisteria (a la tetratech).

Attached Image:

Tenellus

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And here is an add-on:

I went to the LFS this afternoon and got some fishies (see 40G Log ). While I was there I picked up another 6 bunches of Wisteria. It wasn't in super shape, so I only could use the top most section of each stem (unlike last Monday when I divided each stem into two reusable pieces).

I planted then in front of the Island and now have to left almost connected to the right. Almost there

That's it, have fun,

Ingo

Attached Image:

New Wisteria From Today

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Tank looks amazing Ingo. I was a bit surprised when you chose to steer clear of the Amano style. When you mentioned an "island" setup, I was expecting exactly what you have in the middle, but a clear cut line surrounding it of bare gravel. Hell, I would have bet sand would have made an appearance with this layour, at least in the foreground. But it looks killer either way. I'm thoroughly impressed!


Nice seeing you today, btw.

Well thanks Mike,

I appreciate the compliment

Yeah, it was nice seeing you today at the LFS and I am glad it motivated you to peek into my logs (responsive that is, as I know you do it as a reader only anyway).

Yeah, anything more than I did in this current redo would basically have meant to start all over again as I would have had to get rid of my well bacterialized gravel. So, that's as good as it gets

Ingo

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Looks good LF, especially the tenellus(gosh I like that plant). It looks as if you're getting pretty good growth overall, should be fun to watch the tank continue to grow in. How's the ludwigia turning out? I'm really curious to see if that turns out to be the same as mine, or what else it could be if it doesn't.

I don't really have anything to nit-pick about. I like the setup, just needs time to fill in.

That's some nasty media BTW.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

I don't really have anything to nit-pick about.

Well I do! That last pic is really beautiful!

My Scapes

So - where is the nitpicking, tetratech ? I know there is much that can be done better, but I had to start somewhere. I think that this setup will allow me to play around with much less ecological interference. Thanks for the compliment on the last shot.

Matty - You sure like tenellus, don't you . The ludwigia is still growing in the same style, aka two leaves per node. Maybe the grand master of plants, aka Bensaf, could take a look and let us know what he thinks . And yes, the media was really . Maybe in about two weeks I should have the other filter undergoing the same treatment.

Ingo

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LF,

If you are doing major up rooting fairly often then you are probobly releasing tons of junk from the gravel. This stuff ends up right in your filter. Therefore its probably a good idea to keep them cleaned more often.

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Ingo,

Looking at those nice pics, I forgot to ask. Are you seeing an abatement of your algae issues. I didn't see any "real" issues even from the closeup shot.

My Scapes

Thanks guys for input and question,

Tetratech - right now I don't have a huge algae issue to report, but I see a ring of BBA around sicklish leaves on the Anubias and Alternanthera, and on the edges of leaves on the NL Fern, but they may have gotten damaged during the redo as well. Otherwise, only a little hair algae is growing on the glass, but not bad at all. I will try to give you an even closer look so one can see the problem

Wings - you, that's it, the redo will do that. But I decided to not mess with the filters right when I did the redo as I had upset the biofilter enough as it was. That's why I am doing it now, one filter at a time.

Ingo

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that's it, the redo will do that. But I decided to not mess with the filters right when I did the redo as I had upset the biofilter enough as it was. That's why I am doing it now, one filter at a time.

I am with you.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
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