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Journal of our five tanks

Hi all,
What do you think, would it be good idea to let the java moss grow up (->emersed) first (dam it so slow!) and then plant the HC on it or get some other moss, some local for example, and plant the HC just on it and then let the java grow over the moss/HC-mess do what ever it likes to do?
I think either of those options will do, I'd probably try "or get some other moss, some local for example". If the local moss dies in won't matter, as it will still provide a mat for the Hemianthus to root into, and eventually the Java moss and HC will meet, so it will save time. When I had a HMF it reached above the water level, and the Hemianthus grew on top emersed.

cheers Darrel
 
Hey Darrel, thats a good idea with HMF, too! How did you start with HC?

I met my hobbyist fellow yesterday and shes having Hydrocotyle tripartita, wich I happen to love, growing on wood emersed, theres nothing under it, just the wood. Bingo! I ask her some Hydro and plant it half under waterlevel as she did too at first with it.

This way:
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The Hydro wasnt very pleased to become removed but dont worry, everything is going to be fine (isn`t it?). At first I was worried Hydro will dry off but as you can see, it "sucks" water, the wood above it is wet.

I gave my huge Aponpgeton longiplumosus to my friend since shes having tall tank. Now the corner in my tank is empty and I should get an idea what to grow there. Might be boring but I asked some Water wisteria from a friend of mine. I like it (never had it) and she recommended it as nearly-pleco-proof since this plecofella L-333 of mine has started to eat my beautiful Narrow leaf giant hygros. Leds seems to have quite strong light but the problem with such a mount of woods is that they shadow the bottom of the tank strongly so some more light demanding plants will throw away their underleaves messing the tank. Giant hygro has done pretty well though it is needed to prune from the lower part from time to time.
 
Hi all,
everything is going to be fine (isn`t it?)
Yes, Hydrocotyle tripartita should be fine. Plants don't need a substrate, even strictly terrestrial plants can only take up ions (NO3-, K+ etc) from solution, although often this role is actually performed by their mycorrhizal symbionts, which may have much more exacting requirements.
How did you start with HC?
I bought a pot, but quickly realised that it is the least suitable plant possible for my tanks. Some of the decaying remnants washed up onto the the HMF, where they proceeded to grow happily for several years. All the growth was emersed on top, with any bits ending up in the water failing to root into the sponge, unless the foliage was emersed.
but the problem with such a mount of woods is that they shadow the bottom of the tank strongly so some more light demanding plants will throw away their underleaves messing the tank. Giant hygro has done pretty well though it is needed to prune from the lower part from time to time.
I hate a gap, but what ever I do the bottom of all my tanks always ends up as a gloomy basement full of wood and dead leaves <Anubias surgery? | UK Aquatic Plant Society>.
I'll try and get a photo, but some H. corymbosa has escaped from stygian underworld of its tank and is flowering at the moment.

cheers Darrel
 
yeah, I go for fish, but make it into a short holiday and see the places I go to. It is otherwise too expensive.

I think even good wholesalers can get their supply wrong sometimes. I have never used Glaser, but the name crops up occasionally on rainbowfish forums. The best place to get rainbowfish is direct from reputable breeders though.
 
Hi Darrel and hi sanj!

sanj: By accident I just got a possibility to order from Glaser. There were some interesting bow, like M maccullochi, and blue-eye species but unfortunately the minimum order is 10 fish. No way now. I asked the prize of Danio erythromicron (for 65l-tank) since its also mid-hard water species too but so far I havent got the answer. As far as I know, there`s nobody growing bows here, they are not very famous. I think they have bit poor glory not being so hard fish. IMO it just because we still dont understand the meaning of clean water what I have found the key to keep bows with succes. They dont tolerate dirty (=a lot of organic waste) water very well though they tolerate many kind of water parameters as long as water is clean enough. They used to promoted here as hard fish, many hobbyista have take it as a recommendation not to do their WCs regularly...

Darrel: Sounds good with HC, thanks for advices. As soon as I got it I will give it a try on my HMF. Dam, I was going to buy one enormous bogwood from my LFS in target to plant some other submersed plants on it, but I told about it to a friend of mine. She was faster than me. Stupid me! Yes, I`d like to see a photo of your flowering H corymbosa...and get some salt into my wounds since the pleco is progressing with his disasters. Everytime my H corymbosa reaches surface, it starts drying. I wonder why.
 
Hi all!

After some small rearrangements 250-l looks like this. Its just a poor start, but The Plan is strong and believe me, I have a vision! At the end of April I will order some small orchid species from here Startseite Bens Jungle Onlineshop. I already have Leptotes bicolor and Bulpophyllym variegatum growing there along two Nepenthes-species, Peperomia prostrata and some (hopefully) emersed and submersed aquatic plants. Im planning to order Isabelia pulcella, Ostradella centadenia, Pleurothalis sp. maybe some Angraecum and Tillandsia but some of these are going to be grown 600-l. The water is tealike because of new bogwoods. I also should buy some more cork, it was a totally new thing to me but seems to do well as a background (can`t be seen in a pic thou). On the left side I try to put some bigger species, there is plenty of room for them available as you can see. Some moss, but wich, is also under construction....??? I got some unknown climbing tiny fern at the same time with orchids from Mr. Falck also. I really must thank Daniel of his great and gratuitous help with sooo many things!! I hope I wont kill his plants!

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Most of the plants seems to be doing fine after three weeks, but the other Nepenthes doesn`t look very happy thou its still making new leaves. Inhabitants: Sakura and Bumble-Bee shrimps, 6 Leopard cories and 20 Celestial Pearl Danios wich seems to love their new woody and shady enviroment! Submersed plants are lowlights: anubias, java ferns, java and willow moss and cryptos. Oh man, its really hard take photos of this tank with my photographer skills ("skills")! IRL it looks a bit more lushious! Some plants are hiding behind that tall wood on the right, sorry for it.

600-l is ready to receive some orchids and other epiphytes too:

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...plus the existing third wood with Hydrocotyle tripartita (see earlier pics above), wich is doing great BTW!! Acorus gramineus looks fine and is pushing new leaves, but we`ll see. A friend of mine has have a great succes with it this way, so Im hopefull. I just bought couple of days ago Cyperus helferi for emersed trying, now its growing just on the wood wich is supposed to be OK...? Iv seen it growing that way too...The colour of the plant is still poor, so light. Unfortunately the light of my Leds seems to be a bit strong at the surface level, hopefully not too for it?!



This tank also got, FINALLY, a new HMF
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Nice colour, isn`t it. Happily it will turn black sooooon?!!

My son was so exited about this emersed culture mess with other tanks that he started his own minimersed with his 45-l: He is planning to plant some small orchid there too, maybe Pleurothalis would work when lifted up enough from water level?

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300-l is doing pretty fine but still under progress with stem plants after Big Pruning:

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Dam plecos has eaten young growth of Bacopas but then I started to give them more veggiefood and I think they have left Bacopas alone now. In 600-l Water wisteria has been left alone by plecos but Im still missing my beautiful Giants wich I throw away couple of weeks ago when I received Ww.

Iv spent hours of watching different palundariums and vivariums, oh man there is some soooooo awsome ones not to mention some purely emersed culture tanks!! T-h-a-t is what I call inspiring!
 
Hello again!

Just some quick details this time:

250-l

H micranthemoides has just started to grow emersed tips, it surely looked a bit unhappy for a short while!

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Sorry, no underwater pics now!


600-l


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Kitchen 65-l after some `Windelov`pruning, it was a huge bush! Poor looking Blyxa (the one I got...) is new, it has just started to push new nice coloured leaves. This tank has now settled nicely. Everything grows well and all algaes are at bay finally, there was slight signs of them after the rescape.

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A new tiny emersed project started yesterday, this time on the new HMF. In a picture just Staurogyne repens, then I add some C helferi and H micranthemoides too. Now they are growing under plastic bag, not a glas lid!

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The target is cover the whole top of the HMF with plants.

Cheers,

Maria
 
Just some quick updates...

600-l
I got some small species Anthurium, wich is now growing in hydro (also in 250-l). A blooming orchid, Ludisia discolor

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250-l

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I found fry, it must be CPDs. Sooooo happy! Everything seems to be just fine with plants too. A friend of mine is selling her T5s (2x39w), Im considering to buy them but worried if they are too much light for staying away from gas type CO2. They are actually my old lights wich I sold with the tank to her, so Im familiar with them. Shrimps seems to be fine thou EC is around 500uS but no sign of shrimp babies so far.

Kitchen 65-l tank is having new inhabitants. Five remaining Beckfords are joining bigger shoal of some other small Nannostomus-species shoal tonight and gouramis are leaving tomorrow, Dwarf cories are staying. I will take thermometer away from the tank and there will move a group of Emerald dwarf danios (Danio erythromicron) after tomorrows wholesaler visit. There is also Empire Gudgeons Hypseleotris compressa for sale, thinking to add them to the bow tank. We`ll see.
 
Surprisingly... just some updates:

Got few new plants... and trying to get some more for hydro growing. The 250-l is now fully planted...eeeeh...yes it is...erh...it is.

600-l

Small Spathiphyllym-species is growing hydro. Phaleonopsis is some tiny species one. Im not a big friend of Phales, but this was just called after me buying it and wont overgrow for my purposes so I took it with.

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250-l went throw a rescape since I had a problematic big BW in 600-l wich I wanted away from there. So it moved to 250-l. Leopard cories started spawn like maniacs, new eggs every day around the tank! CPDs ate their fry, but thats what I expected to happen with such a bare tank.

I found Polystichum tsus-simense, Korean rock fern, wich will propably grow too big but I was told it can be cut back then. So, we`ll see.

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The fern with couple of wild species orchids and Peperomia prostrata This ^ was my headache, its really a cave like, CPDs practically live in it


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Hydrocotyle verticillata grows just with some java moss Micranthemum (left corner) and Hydrocolyle tripartita didn`t like moving but doing fine after few days again.

Shrimps are doing fine, they are active, but no, no sign of babies. Anyway I will order them more from Germany as soon as weather will warm up a bit. EC in 250-l is litter less than from tap, tap ~620Us, tank ~580uS without any RO-water, I guess I cant do much more without RO-water or peat filtration wich both are out of question. Id like to grow java moss mersed (for CPDs to lay eggs), but the water part is really, really dark so Im nor sure will it thrive there? So far plants (above and under), fish and shrimps seems to do fine and nothing bad (algae, sick/dead fish or shrimps etc) has happend since I started this project so Im pretty happy with it.Now its time to see it just grow, and it certainly has done it already!Im pretty sure Im going to loose a plant or two, but this is a project of trial and error when it comes to plants.

The next thing to do is to try to take some pics from water parts of the tanks, you know... what are called aquariums..... Its been a bit difficult because of dramatically increasing northern light in our rooms. The target is to do it today. So see you, my dear reader, hopefully soon.

Cheers, Maria
Korean rock fern
 
Ookkey, heres some shots I promised of 600-l after moving the huge BW to 250l. After this there is plenty of empty room, hopefully not long. Looks too messy for my taste but before I touch the tank, I will let plants settle and grow a bit. Unfotunately the water is ugly tealike because a new BW is leaking tannins. I should have taken pics right after WC so it would be clearer and a bit more blue-like as it really is. Leds above the tank are 6500K, not 3000K.... In the last pic the new BW with new decorations

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300-l is doing pretty well, thou Bacopa has been ruined by plecos and therefore has growned toooooo sloooooooooowly, as you can see the other side of the tank is full, the other..eh,,,.maybe some other hobbyits tank...? Pogo should be trimmed but we love it that way!

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Sorry the poor pic quality but my son wanted me to take a pic of him, he just loves em. We have a pack of 6 these, they are wild caught and spawn regularly. Really nice fish!

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Kitchen 65-litre where lives now new 12 Emerald Dwarf Rasboras, 9 pygmy cories with six Vietnamese Multi Banded Zebra Loach (whoaaa what a long english name!). Rasboras (actually Danios) are very, very shy, I wonder if they are always? They do keep playing and teasing eachother when you stand still for a long time (very active and atractive fish, BTW!) but as soos as you move your eyelash, they are gone. Nothing new with plants or the scape, but Java ferns and anubias are growing nicely, Im happy with them. Hmmm. funnily `Windelov` wich grown on the top of the BW on the left, grows differently were water flows throw it, you can see long "arms" but on the left side of the "arms" (where you can see light "touching" the plant) where is no water movement that much if all, it grows more bushy. Those long leaves under flow are... welll... a bit ugly I think. They lool like plastic! There is small Eheim PickUp hided behind that "lighty spot". That small Cryptocoryne on the left hate its life for some reason, otherones are growing nicely, making nwe leaves and spreading.

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There is really nothing new when it comes to maintenance routines with tanks but I add bit more EC for 600- and 300-litres now, just beacause to keep increasing plant mass happy. I also try addin KH2PO4 just in order to see if I can see some improvements. Or nothing at all. I have tried it few times before with no succes but I want give it a try once again (why, one may ask. Good question!)

Cheers and have a nice day, my friends!

Maria
 
Hi Tim and thx for your reply and kind words! These Emeralds of mine usually play mid-waters, they especially love swim around and through fernbushes. When not, they really stay lower levels. It seems they are becoming bolder, thou slowly, now they come and eat when we are in the kitchen so far there is no noise or sudden movements neat the tank. Earlier they refused to eat at daytime, only nights, now every time is OK. In 250l we have 20+ school of CPDs, they are really bold fish, thou I noticed that every time they move (wich has now happend three times) they refuse to eat for couple of days, after that they are OK and eat like little bigs. Tim, have you got any Emerald fry? I hope to get but I guess these little predators will eat them so not-very-high-hopes....CPSs has spawned but they have eaten the fry so far. I guess they have also eaten our leopardcory fry, too. We just sold away our fry tank so there is no place to grow any fry till we get a new tank. Oh these awesome ideas!!

Cheers, Maria
 
Hello all!

Photobucket is not working now, so no pics, sorry. Just have to tell the good news: Sakura shrimps have finally got babies! This is quite exciting and maybe even unbelieveble since EC is pretty high in all out tanks. This babyshrimp tank (45l) has around 500uS. We found babies about a week ago and they seems to be doing fine, growing from day to day so we are hopefull they will thrive.

Cheers, Maria
 
Really awesome set of tanks Maria. I'm a sucker for emersed stuff but have been neglecting mine a bit. Watch out for the Anthurium and Spathiphyllum, mine went beserk.

Hi BigTom! Anthurium (some unknown small species) actually grows hydroponics, not emersed, Spathiphyllum (`Chopin`=small) grows emersed but there is a pot hiding behind the BW. Acorus and Hydrocotyles are growing on the BWs, "true emersed" so to say. I have red a lot horror stories of too invasive plants so Im very carefull with all emersed/vivplants. It would be very interesting to see your emersed/hydroponic cultures, Im hooked on this after I start this. I had a small vivarium over a year ago but after some air circulation problems while I wasnt at home, they all rot...great. Some of plants by water grow hydro, some traditionally in pots (soil).
Well, 250l is more likely a patrimony of that ancient destroyed project but it... krhm...escalated to this...

Well well...heres some updates. Everything seems to be fine, all plants are growing like crazy. I threw Pogo `Octopus` away :( , wich can not be seen, and the tank is bit less messy I think. The only problem is to find something nice on its place. I replanted some water wisteria there but since Im already having it so (too?) much, it would be cool to get something different, something straight growing or with straight leaves. Actually theres some valls growing now but Im not sure how it will do with EasyCarbo. Earlier I havent had any problems with that combo, but we`ll see how its gonna work this time. Aponogeton longiplumosus is also one possible plant. I used to have huuuuge A crispus, but I got rid of it since it really was enormous and tried to fill the whole 600l! After I increased the amount of daily EC, the growth of all (submersed) plants has been significantly better. The tank looks still tealike but I have a slight feeling that leaking of tannins is decreasing a bit. ....Or not. That BW on the right is huge, you can`t see its going all the way from the visible part to the right where it ends just before the pic ends on the right (and where oh-so-lovely coloured HMF starts...). The African fern grows on it there between WWs and cryptos.

LOL, THE target, when I did the big rescape last autumn, was to get rid of plats (except some anubias, cryptos and java ferns), does this look like that??? Where on earth they all are coming from????

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you could try a Restrepia as a wet growing orchid. .

Hi dw and thanks for you plant suggestions! Definetly need to try to find Restrepia somewhere from Europe and give it a try, just fantastic looking orchid, woooow! Have you grown it? Does it prefer how high humidity?

There are probably some Gesneriads that are a possibility as well. An Episcia or Chirita tamiana might do.

Guess what? I already have C tamiana . Unfortunately I tried it in viv at first where it rotted badly. Now its growing by 600l and trying to heal herself....Really sweet plant! In general Im not a big fan on Gesneriads but there are few exceptions, like Chirita and similar wild species. Its almost impossible to find here any special plants, all have to be ordered from Europe. Or from other hobbyits. The weather here is still quite cold, so have to hold horses for a while!

Its amazing how well plants seems to do since I dont find those Leds particularly strong and plants by tank grow mainly shaded. We installed them at the end of September and so far Im very pleased with them. They were pretty cheap so well see how long they will work...knockin on wood!
 
Nice emergent growth in those tanks.

Thanks mate! I always enjoy seeing your tanks and they have been been great inspiration to me! This hydro/emersed way of growing plants extends this hobby a lot as we can see from your experiences too. It definetly provides a larger supply of species to grow and the number of plants too. It is a different world so to say!
 
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