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South America Riparium

hydrophyte

Member
Joined
22 Aug 2009
Messages
1,038
This thread might work like a journal in reverse--I have had this tank set up for some time.

It has taken a while to develop, but I finally have the layout in pretty good shape for pictures.

11-ix-09-tank-i-m.jpg


I was originally shooting for a South America biotope theme, but plants and fish from Southeast Asia and other places have crept in there.
 
Hiya,

i really really like that.

Riparium is a new word on me. I thought these type of above and below water tanks were named something beginning with P that i couldnt hope to spell. :D

Best Regards,
John
 
hijac said:
Riparium is a new word on me. I thought these type of above and below water tanks were named something beginning with P that i couldnt hope to spell. :D

I think the difference is that a Riparium just has plants above the waterline, whereas a Paludarium has a bit of land, for amphibious creatures... I might be wrong though!

Great tank hydrophyte!
 
Thanks very much. I have this tank in the living room of our home and I like it a lot.

A number of the plants in there have flowered. The Echinodorus cordifolius has very attractive white blooms and I noticed it has another new flower spike developing.

Yep, ripariums just have plants above the water line supported by hanging and floating planters, whereas paludariums have built-up terrestrial areas.
 
hydrophyte said:
Thanks very much. I have this tank in the living room of our home and I like it a lot.

A number of the plants in there have flowered. The Echinodorus cordifolius has very attractive white blooms and I noticed it has another new flower spike developing.

Yep, ripariums just have plants above the water line supported by hanging and floating planters, whereas paludariums have built-up terrestrial areas.

I'll post my moss jar next week to show my accidental riparium :)

How are you supporting the plants above the water line? or are they self supporting as they are pretty chucky.
 
I have a couple other quick shots showing the Colocasia fallax dwarf taro that I have in here. I really like this plant.

scratch-colocasia-ii.jpg


Here's a view down the lenght of the tank.

scratch-colocasia-i.jpg


This plant is at its peak right now. I suspect that it will pretty soon stop growth and start flowering. After blooming for a while the leaves will then start to yellow and die as it goes into winter/dry season dormancy. Last winter I kept these taros in a cool and moist spot for several months. By March they started to grow again.
 
i just typed in riparium and it lead me to your blog, well done on the site, it is a good write, the thing that excites me most is that i can have a river style in the water, and still have plants above the water line :p i dont really have rrom for 2 tanks so combining both is great hehe.

the other good thing is i currently have a load of crypts & echindorous in my tank which i can grow in emmersed :shh: i will be waiting a while though, as this tank is new and i dont think my parents would be too happy me changing it at such an early stage with all the money invested :?

oh well, more time to get some crypts growing hehe.

how much light do you reccomend using? or does it not matter seeing as they are above the waters surface?
and do you have to keep a certain humidity?

Thanks,
Aaron
 
Hi everybody. There are several questions above I have not forgotten about them I have just been slammed with a great deal of work. I hope that I can return early next week to post some responses.

Cheers,
 
Hi everybody...I still need to address those questions...but while I am here I should quick post a quick update from this tank. The blooms on the ladies' tresses orchid (Spiranthes cernua var. odorata) began to open last week. Here is a shot of the whole flowerhead:

23-ix-09-spiranthes-cernua-i-m.jpg


The spike had been developing for more than two months. I don't know what the "odorata" variety name means. I detect no scent at all from the flowers.
 
aaronnorth said:
all your tanks look amazing, a real inspiration :thumbup:

do you have any pics of the setting up process? i would like to see how you attach objects to the glass and the positioning etc. or any pictures of the products you use.

Thanks, Aaron

Aaron,

I quote myself with something that I wrote a while back:

hydrophyte said:
OK, here is an image that helps to demonstrate how this display is put together. This picture was shot over the top rim of one side of the aquarium. Notice that the emergent plants more or less cover the water over the rear 2/3 of its surface. The water surface in the front portion is mostly open.

3451291827_65d98c1c26_o.jpg


Here plants are numbered to reference the distinct foliage elements of the composition. Rather erect, tall background plants, including an Acorus sp. (1) and an Echinodorus sp. are rooted in hanging planters and fill much of the space in front of the rear panel of glass. Their leaves reach forward into the midground, which is also occupied by Lippia nodiflora (2) and other plants supported by rafts. A floating leaf plant, Nymphoides sp. (3), resides between the midground and open water and softens the transition between the two areas. An underwater plant, Hygrophila angustifolia (4), grows in the underwater foreground, taking advantage of the relatively bright conditions there.

3451291907_49fecbb0f3_o.jpg


Notice that the front aquarium panel (5) is very clean. Water spots and chalk lines show up prominently on this area of glass, more so than for a tank filled to the top with water, so I wipe the glass here with a vinegar and distilled water solution every time that I service the riparium display.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have a couple more pictures to explain how to assemble the foliage elements in a riparium composition. The shot below also shows a view from the side, but I removed several plants in order to capture a cross-section view.

3453162919_df463a4e01_o.jpg


The next image is the same photograph with some reference numbers added. A hanging planter (2) hung form the rear pane of aquarium glass (1) holds a Bacopa monnieri plant that grows forward into the composition midground with support provided by a raft. A Hemigraphis 'Red Equator' (3) also grows in the midground, supported by a raft (4). While the Bacopa is rooted in planter gravell, the roots of the Hemigraphis grow directly in the water.

3453977288_a41decb15b_o.jpg


The next figure is a CAD drawing, also depicting a vining stem plant (60), raft (40) and hanging planter (30).

3454001164_8c2b01e153_o.jpg


Yet another figure, this one with the Hemigraphis plant removed, better shows the Bacopa "lawn" (5), supported by a raft, which is only barely visible (6). The carpeting effect created by the floating mat of Bacopa contrast well with the vertical growth of the background plant, an Echinodorus (7), and obscures the hanging planter that supports that large specimen. Notice that area of water in the front of the composition (8) is mostly open.

3453163193_9158ea17af_o.jpg
 
aaronnorth said:
how much light do you reccomend using? or does it not matter seeing as they are above the waters surface?
and do you have to keep a certain humidity?

Thanks,
Aaron

This tank is lit up with two 39-watt HO T5 lamps. That's only somewhat more than 1-watt/gallon of water, but this Giesemann fixture has real nice polished reflectors, so the output is quite efficient.

Desired humidity levels depend greatly upon plant variety selection. This setup has plants that grow best with good air circulation, so I have maintained it as an open-top display. I have another tank with emersed ferns, Cryptocryne and Anubias, plants which require much higher relative humidity. I maintain high humidity in that one with a glass canopy that nearly covers the top.
 
hydrophyte said:
aaronnorth said:
how much light do you reccomend using? or does it not matter seeing as they are above the waters surface?
and do you have to keep a certain humidity?

Thanks,
Aaron

This tank is lit up with two 39-watt HO T5 lamps. That's only somewhat more than 1-watt/gallon of water, but this Giesemann fixture has real nice polished reflectors, so the output is quite efficient.

Desired humidity levels depend greatly upon plant variety selection. This setup has plants that grow best with good air circulation, so I have maintained it as an open-top display. I have another tank with emersed ferns, Cryptocryne and Anubias, plants which require much higher relative humidity. I maintain high humidity in that one with a glass canopy that nearly covers the top.

thanks for answering my questions, really helpful, :thumbup:

one last one... if you have a glass canopy/ high humidity do you get condensation on the front glass?
if the water line is lower than normal in my fish tank i get condensation, so i can only presume it is the same... yours always look perfect but i am not sure if you wipe the glass before a picture

Thanks, Aaron
 
aaronnorth said:
one last one... if you have a glass canopy/ high humidity do you get condensation on the front glass?
if the water line is lower than normal in my fish tank i get condensation, so i can only presume it is the same... yours always look perfect but i am not sure if you wipe the glass before a picture

Thanks, Aaron

Aaron,

This tank is open-topped, so I don't ever get any trouble with with condensation on glass. I have another tank planted with crypts and Anubias (I think I have that one journaled here?) that I keep covered to retain humidity. Whenever the heater runs in that setup the glass does get quite a bit of fogging. This summer is just ran at room temperature, so that other tank did not have any condensation.

Here is a new shot of this tank from tonight.

26-ix-09-tank-montage-i-m.jpg


This image is a montage made with photos at three different exposures to correct for the glare and shadow that my camera sees much more of than I do. This edited picture gives a good idea of what the tank really looks like.
 
Thanks!. It is looking pretty good right now. It too a while to grow in.
 
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