Andyh's 60L kitchen tank

[Garuf]

I've always been under the impression that they can't, I think in the grand scheme of things the plant just cuts its loses retracts what nutrients it can and allows the leaf to rot. This is just an assumption though so don't quote me but I'd always figured that's the reason for cutting out dead/poor growth.

 

[Mawgan]

Andy,

Thanks for your thoughts. I'm going to attempt to justify my existence at some length in the New Joiners' topic, and ask all sorts of idiotic questions there. Your opinion does seem to bear out an impression being formed in my mind, though, that 'keeping it simple' is not a bad start for a beginner!

Great shots...

David

 

[chilled84]

Thats looking much improved! Well done mate.

 

[andyh]

I've always been under the impression that they can't, I think in the grand scheme of things the plant just cuts its loses retracts what nutrients it can and allows the leaf to rot. This is just an assumption though so don't quote me but I'd always figured that's the reason for cutting out dead/poor growth.

Never thought about it like that, wonder if any of the gurus on here can comment?

Andy,

Thanks for your thoughts. I'm going to attempt to justify my existence at some length in the New Joiners' topic, and ask all sorts of idiotic questions there. Your opinion does seem to bear out an impression being formed in my mind, though, that 'keeping it simple' is not a bad start for a beginner!

Great shots...

David

Good luck, keeping it simple is always good, but i am sure it will get complicated at some point Good luck!

Thats looking much improved! Well done mate.

Thanks

So not much changed on the tank at the moment, although i have just treated myself to some more ADA bits:
I have now got ADA Green Gain (based on feedback from Viktor) and ADA Green Brighty Special Lights. (bascially Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potassium trace elements)
Started dosing the Green Gain once a week with water changes and the Special lights daily but have started by under dosing and slowly building it up.

Be interesting to see their impact.

 

[hydrophyte]

I love this setup and look forward to seing another photo-update.

I agree with garuf's idea about leaf disintegration. It seems that this is a good explanation for "crypt melt". I imagine that the plant just responds to changes that might (in nature) result in wholesale loss of foliage by withdrawing nutrients while the leaves are still intact.

 

[gratts]

Tank is looking great mate!
My CO2 atomizer came the other day, it's a great little thing, rate of CO2 dissolving must be close to 100%, and I'm already seeing the benefits! Great stuff

 

[aaronnorth]

very nice, I like the overgrown look to it

when you say the leaves are damaged, are they unable to recover on their own?

Meristem cells required for mitosis are found in the stem & roots.
If the xylem/ phloem vessels are damaged then the leaf doesn't have a source of water & nutrients so it cannot be repaired.
The xylem is actually made up of dead tissue too.

Thanks, Aaron

 

[andyh]

I love this setup and look forward to seing another photo-update.

I agree with garuf's idea about leaf disintegration. It seems that this is a good explanation for "crypt melt". I imagine that the plant just responds to changes that might (in nature) result in wholesale loss of foliage by withdrawing nutrients while the leaves are still intact.

Thanks for your kind words! Photo update soon!

I have to agree that i am coming round to the idea as well.

Tank is looking great mate!
My CO2 atomizer came the other day, it's a great little thing, rate of CO2 dissolving must be close to 100%, and I'm already seeing the benefits! Great stuff

Thanks very much, totally agree that the CO2 is nearly completly disolved when it enters my tank. Just waiting for another one to fit to my other tank.

very nice, I like the overgrown look to it

when you say the leaves are damaged, are they unable to recover on their own?

Meristem cells required for mitosis are found in the stem & roots.
If the xylem/ phloem vessels are damaged then the leaf doesn't have a source of water & nutrients so it cannot be repaired.
The xylem is actually made up of dead tissue too.

Thanks, Aaron

Aaron

Thanks for your comments and Thankyou for your detailed response and using words that i simply cant pronouce! But i think i understand what your saying

 

[aaronnorth]

I am one of the worst for pronunciation of words

If you have ever picked a leaf apart and you are left with the 'vein' that runs down the centre, or a rotted leaf that just has the main structure left, that is actually the phloem & xylem vessels

 

[andyh]

I am one of the worst for pronunciation of words

If you have ever picked a leaf apart and you are left with the 'vein' that runs down the centre, or a rotted leaf that just has the main structure left, that is actually the phloem & xylem vessels

Arron

Thanks for the excellent biology lesson, i can honestly say i have learnt something

 

[aaronnorth]

I am one of the worst for pronunciation of words

If you have ever picked a leaf apart and you are left with the 'vein' that runs down the centre, or a rotted leaf that just has the main structure left, that is actually the phloem & xylem vessels

Arron

Thanks for the excellent biology lesson, i can honestly say i have learnt something

good, its keeping my brain ticking over these holidays for the Biology exam I have next week

 

[andyh]

So the tank is 5 months old today! I started it in August 2009......madness! Cant believe i have run the scape that long.
This post is a little photo heavy!! (sorry!)

I decided to have the largest prune of the tank to date, i also removed lots of hydrocotyle and Echinodorus Tenellus to thin things out a little.

So here it is before!

As you can see the plants had got a little dense, to say the least..................................

The big prune!

The tank looks so different, and its good to see the rocks again. Its good to get some of the features of the scape again, and also some of the plants back in view. I was stunned by some of the growth on the plants, the roots were very deep indeed. So i combined the pruning with a large water change to eliminate the risk of an ammonia spike and plan to do another water change in a few days.

I plan to do further work on the tank over the next few months with a few subtle changes, new hardscape and plants. So watch this space

Thanks for looking as always!
Andyh

 

[hydrophyte]

This is one of my favorite tanks of all right now. You have a very good eye and your plants are happy and beautiful. I love those tetras too.

These latest photos are a bit oversaturated.

 

[Garuf]

Rasboras*

Lovely!
What's the filter again? How do you find the eheim fish tail? I'm scouring possible outlets I could custom make in clear acrylic if you have any input.

 

[flygja]

The massive trim definitely improved the look of your tank. I've been running my tank in its current scape for about 8 months and it doesn't look even half as good as yours.

 

[andyh]

This is one of my favorite tanks of all right now. You have a very good eye and your plants are happy and beautiful. I love those tetras too.

These latest photos are a bit oversaturated.

Cheers dude! that means a lot especially with all the amazing tanks on UKAPS at the moment! The fish are not tetras there are two different types of Rasboras, the big shoal being emerald eye's.

sorry the photos aren't up to the usual standard but time was against me! No excuse i know, note to self "must try harder"

Rasboras*

Lovely!
What's the filter again? How do you find the eheim fish tail? I'm scouring possible outlets I could custom make in clear acrylic if you have any input.

Garuf, Thanks! i am running a eheim 2324, with built in heater doing 700lph. I like the eheim fish tail as it gives good current. down the middle of the tank, this combined with the Koraila creates great flow. I think it would be worth a try, i have heard of people making their by simply heating a standard one and using a pair of pliers to flatten it.

The massive trim definitely improved the look of your tank. I've been running my tank in its current scape for about 8 months and it doesn't look even half as good as yours.

Thankyou i agree, i loved the natural look but eventually it looks to messy. This trim has really changed the look. I can now see parts that require a further prune, to further enhance the scape. One thing with this scape is its a real high energy setup. By that i mean, lots of light, CO2 and nutrients, so the growth is significant. It does require a fair amount of attention, but I love it!

 

[John Starkey]

Hi andy,I too love this 60cm of yours,I think you will see some lovely growth after the big prune,I
nice clean healthy plants ,
regards,
john.

 

[andyh]

Hi andy,I too love this 60cm of yours,I think you will see some lovely growth after the big prune,I
nice clean healthy plants ,
regards,
john.

hey john, thanks for your kind words, if it's half as good as yours I will be happy!

Plan to do a little more tweaking later!

 

[NeilW]

I still love this tank, its just so lush and green! Lots of interest in it too with lots of different things to look at.

 

[rawr]

This is one of the most beautiful and more importantly natural aquascapes on here, well done you should be proud!