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Green Pekoe Pond - 40 litres

Nothing really to report in my journal this week, the only 'event’ being a big trim of the rotala rotundifolia in the back right corner. Oh yeah, and one of my shrimp met a grisly end - he ended up half in, half out of the intake... hence my new shrimp guard!

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Starting to think of which fish to put in my little tank. Front running (and a firm favorite with my little girl): green neon tetras. How many? Having only kept a single huge goldfish for the past 15 years (the original Mr. teapot) , I haven't a clue and could do with advice on stocking levels. These tricky little topical fish are all a mystery to me.
 
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This looks spotless!

Strange, isn't it? I really don't know where my algae went. It was slowly getting better week by week but at about three weeks ago, it all just disappeared. The brown diatoms, green thread, green smeary stuff. Maybe the snails and shrimps polished it all off?
 
Cheers Faizal, I've been really enjoying your new low-tec journal.

Clean I don't mind and healthy plants make me feel I'm finally achieving something. Although I do wonder if I want it all to be a bit wilder - maybe more plants growing out of the water or some ferns on the wood sticking out the top. Less garden and more pond. Trimmed the HC tonight and it's looking a bit too.... Lawn like. May try some hairgrass randomly planted in there to rough it up a bit.
 
..... I want it all to be a bit wilder - maybe more plants growing out of the water or some ferns on the wood sticking out the top. Less garden and more pond. Trimmed the HC tonight and it's looking a bit too.... Lawn like. May try some hairgrass randomly planted in there to rough it up a bit.

Sounds like a great idea. Can't wait to see more pictures. It's going to look nothing short of awesome,....:)
 
I initially set my tank up about a year ago after the death of my dear old goldfish friend, Mr. Teapot. My plants seem to be growing, algae has been subdued (for now) and I'm starting to structure the tank into the beginnings of some sort of an aquascape. It's perhaps about time I turned my thoughts to giving it all a name.

My two option so far:
1. "Green Pekoe Pond"
2. "Oolong Garden"

What do you think? Any other suggestions?
 
Hey Alexander, you noticed my tea theme;) SR Tips!

Quite agree with first one being a little more towards the direction I want the tank to go.
 
Cheers guys!

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Had a little dig around outside and found this lovely fern (Asplenium trichomanes). I think it's worth seeing if it takes - it was free so worth a punt. There's a lot of other mosses and liverworts out there also - I think I'm also going to give some of them a go.

Also, I now have shrimplets! :)

Quick update (3PM Sunday) just read up on my fern... it hates being waterlogged. Opps. I'm going to have to rethink this one! looks like I'm going to have to go down the indoor maidenhair fern route.
 
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I bought a nice healthy pot of 1-2-Grow mini hairgrass today. Hopefully plant over the weekend to give the lawn more of a meadow look. Ludwigia sp. had a big haircut yesterday. Musing about adding a few extra twigs here and there.
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I had some recent issues with the Staurogyne and the HC after I had to temporally reduced my injection rate to gently acclimatise my new fish. Leaves tuned yellow and fell apart on the Staurogyne and some melt on the HC - classic CO2 deficiency! On the recovery now the gas is back up to its original setting with lots of nice new healthy growth. My fern is still holding in there and even putting out some new growth. I know eventually I'll have to find a new home for it. The emersed terrestrial moss found in the garden is doing really well and has taken hold of the wood.

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Looking good Mr Teapot, nice and green. Any chance of a close-up of the emersed moss at some point? I need to try a piece on mine.

Cheers
 
Hi James, I'll get a close up of the main mossy twig with the really nice new moss growth tonight. This is the smaller bit of sticky-out-wood, the moss and fern had some soil on the roots which was great as it stuck nicely onto the wood. I also secured it with some black cotton just in case. Everything keeps nice and moist due to the water being drawn upwards.

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Found it, this is the twig with the moss fully attached. Haven't a clue what type it is.
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Main mossy twig as promised.
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