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saintlys opti white take 2

Mark Evans

Expert
Joined
13 Jun 2008
Messages
6,483
Location
newark notts.
here we go folks,

you know what kit i got so i wont say agian. i got bored tonight and stripped the henge down. i didnt even take any realy good pics of it. i could of carried on with the scape, but i got WATY too much to learn to play catch up to the dan's and georges of this world.

going, going.....
5b488073.jpg


gone...

eeae9a51.jpg




any way ive had this bit of wood since way back when (march of this year) :lol: when i first started getting in to aquascaping properly. i just didnt know how to use it.
ive played around with it and come up with the following.....

now trust me ive had this thing upside down and every which way you could imagine....it only worked this way.
ca8d22e5.jpg


i do plan on tarting around with the grading of the pebbles, sand etc. but for me, its nearly there.

i'm having stems in the back, which i'll try to make bushy, e tennelus, moss some crypts maybe some v nana or c helferi. yet to decide.

feel free to pull it apart.
 
And so another monster journal begins....

I really like the hardscape. It's not too cliche either with the wood selection and composition. I've been a fan of the mixed grains in open foregrounds for a while now and it's good to see it put to use so well here.

A very promising start. Well done, Mark!
 
George Farmer said:
And so another monster journal begins....

nahh...i wont inflict it on everyone. im not that nasty. :D

thanks for the early praises guys. it really did fall together quite easy TBH. im thinking long and hard about the planting now.

Joecoral said:
looks a bit like a beach or a riverside tree.
Look forward to seeing this progress

a tree did spring to mind joe when i was scaping.

i sooo cant wait for my 120cm optiwhite to be ordered.
 
I really like the idea of having a distinct "wood barrier" between the pebbles and the plants. Assuming that you won't use any FG plants to cover the horizontal wood branches...

What did you with your old filter? Did you wipe that clean too and start cycling it again when this one is ready?
 
It's the different grades of gravel that does it for me :) The wood is great, but something about it doesn't quite sit right for me. Can't put my finger on it. Either way, it's gonna look great when it's planted up!
 
Ill be watching this very closely.

That bit of wood is so nice, ive never seen any like it before to be honest, but maybe thats just me :p

Richie
 
wow, thanks guys. i didnt expect such a response. :wideyed: i think i fell lucky again with the scape.

anyway ive planted up now. i dont know if its right or not. even if the plants go together or not. to be honest i dont mind if they do or dont.

for sure there will be parts of the scape that work and parts that dont. this is why i wanted to start again...to get practising!

planting the e tennelus and a thin line of HC that should creep over the edge of the wood. (thats the idea anyway :? )

741affea.jpg


Cryptocoryne parva, Cryptocoryne beckettii and Cryptocoryne crispatula var. balansae.

d8d0d15b.jpg


ive also added some stems right behind the wood which i dont know the names of. lost the tickets. :oops:

added some moss to the wood. and i was thinking of adding Anubias barteri var. nana which i have in the big tank. its on a stone so i can put it in at anytime. also theres some vallis nana in there.

da2d5716.jpg


i right mixed bunch really. im not to fust as to how they grow neither. i want i wild look.

heres directly after filling.

b797267f.jpg


the filter has been running on the other set up so it's mature. which will be a big help. ive also used some of the old AS. more pics in a few days.

thanks everyone.go easy on the planting criticisms ;) alot of plants ive never used before.
 
You didn't waste no time!

I think a low-maint setup is the way to go here and I love the fact that you're going for a jungle feel, you've got the right plants for that. I would definately say yes to the Anubias and maybe a couple of Ferns, Bolbitis etc.
 
the crypts look good for now
bt to avoid mess later
in previous experience i trimmed all the leaves off the crypts and planted the stalks they grew back after about 2 weeks
and you avoid the mess of melting

just an idea..

looks good
 
I find all of this melting business a mystery. I know it does happen but I had crypts in a tank for a couple of months or so before ripping it down but they didn't melt at all! It was quite lucky because i didn't trim any of the leaves or anything.

I know it does happen though, just don't know why it didn't to me.
 
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