Recent content by micmath

I've noticed lately that the plants in my tank seem to be starving for nutrients, meanwhile I'm pulling handfuls of thriving Salvinia natans off the surface every week. Then it occurred to me that the Salvinia is on the surface so it has essentially unlimited light and CO2, and therefore can...

Update: week 1, week 2 The substrate I am using is TMC Nutrasoil, which is designed to leach ammonia into the water column for the first two weeks. I added floating plants (Phyllanthus) and several bunches of Common Hornwort (Ceratophyllum) to help mop up the extra ammonia and hopefully avoid...

I wondered about that too. The study that was cited says this about the type of algae affected: So it looks like they only showed an affect on one specific kind of algae, but that was only because they were only looking at Closterium (for practical reasons). I would assume that if a company...

That's very interesting reading. In particular... Thanks for the reference!

I noticed that a couple of products that advertise as being algae cures have listed ingredients that seem strange to me. One lists only "salicylic acid", and another lists, more vaguely, "acidifier and buffer". I can find no reference to salicylic acid being effective against algae, and I'm...

Like a tiny underwater Christmas tree... Java moss, pearling oxygen bubbles.

I bought it because it looked nice, the fact that it was Sumatran wasn't important. However, a description for the same product on an online aquarium retailer says this...

Tigers in the aquarium I wasn't sure why the variety name of my Vallisneria was "Tiger" -- it just looked like a bunch of green ribbons when I bought it. Now that new leaves have started growing in, I think I see: they are striated with lovely reddish brown stripes.

Thanks for all the positive words. I'm still learning so the encouragement is greatly appreciated.

Dwarf Hairgrass added I added about a dozen sprigs of Dwarf Hairgrass (Elocharis acicularis) around the base of the wood, to soften the transition a bit. That with the mossy wood, gives it a sylvan impression in my opinion. Plants are starting to pearl, some quite vigorously, when all the...

Plants in Added substrate: about 8 or 9 liters of nutraSoil black, sloped from a depth of about 3 cm to 8 cm. Added plants: Staurogyne repens, Sagittaria subulata, Vallisneria spiralis "Tiger"

Day One of my attempt to create a naturalistic planted aquarium. The plan that it should have some root-like branches and grassy river plants, along with some open space, possibly suggesting a SE Asian biotope. This will be a habitat for female Betta fish and shrimp. The tank itself is a plain...