Tank update: Jan 27 '08
Thanks everyone for your comments. This is a keeper aquascape I think. I modified it a little bit today and took a vast number of photos. I will only be posting key ones, but if you'd like to see more then click on one of the photos here and it will take you to my pictures on putfile.com.
Two FTS
Here are some shots of the empty ugly places visible when looking from up close. They are there with the assumption that they will get filled in in the future with growth from the plants near them. Notice all of the empty gravel and the gaps between plants?
Here is one of my anubias plants and my shrimp.
My Rotala which is LOVING my tank I think
Here is a shot from the righthand side
I noticed how once I put my nana petite on the driftwood th algae form it's leaves disappeared and it sent up a new leaf tout suite, so I thought I would do the same for my nana
So the reason I posted these pictures is to show the lesson I have learned. My tank has lots of gravel showing and lots of gaps and such. Well this is undesirable for me as I like the look of the tanks that are very grown in and lots of greens and pinks of plants for the fish to swim through. I am also on a budget however, and spending $50 on plants is not possible for me, so I cannot buy the plants needed to attain that look. So I have to wait for the plants to grow, and instead of having a scape that will need to be changed as plants grow, you should plan for that growth so you don't need to disturb the plants all the time.
I took this knowledge and scaped accordingly, leaving room for my rotala to spread (at the rate it is going I will have a good sized bunch in no time, and I love it so I want a big group of it in that corner), and lots of room for runners to grow for the vals, and then the bacopa to fill in the center. I used the Windelov as my midground plant and the java moss and anubias plants on the driftwood for foreground. I placed the driftwood in its new position for the sole reason of stability- it was very easy to tip over in it's previous position.
So there you have it. This is the result of looking at other peoples' tanks (a great many here, and at plantedtank.net) and then learning from them. However, in about 3 months or so I may have to tear it all down to move back home from school. If this happens I will be adding another bag of flourite to the tank as I have much to shallow of a bed (<1" in some places) and then be scaping it exactly like this again. I think I have finally attained the patience needed to work a planted tank lol. I am very excited to see it full and lush (especially my vals that have been dying ever since I bought them) but I am able to wait until that point.
Thanks everyone for your comments. This is a keeper aquascape I think. I modified it a little bit today and took a vast number of photos. I will only be posting key ones, but if you'd like to see more then click on one of the photos here and it will take you to my pictures on putfile.com.
Two FTS
Here are some shots of the empty ugly places visible when looking from up close. They are there with the assumption that they will get filled in in the future with growth from the plants near them. Notice all of the empty gravel and the gaps between plants?
Here is one of my anubias plants and my shrimp.
My Rotala which is LOVING my tank I think
Here is a shot from the righthand side
I noticed how once I put my nana petite on the driftwood th algae form it's leaves disappeared and it sent up a new leaf tout suite, so I thought I would do the same for my nana
So the reason I posted these pictures is to show the lesson I have learned. My tank has lots of gravel showing and lots of gaps and such. Well this is undesirable for me as I like the look of the tanks that are very grown in and lots of greens and pinks of plants for the fish to swim through. I am also on a budget however, and spending $50 on plants is not possible for me, so I cannot buy the plants needed to attain that look. So I have to wait for the plants to grow, and instead of having a scape that will need to be changed as plants grow, you should plan for that growth so you don't need to disturb the plants all the time.
I took this knowledge and scaped accordingly, leaving room for my rotala to spread (at the rate it is going I will have a good sized bunch in no time, and I love it so I want a big group of it in that corner), and lots of room for runners to grow for the vals, and then the bacopa to fill in the center. I used the Windelov as my midground plant and the java moss and anubias plants on the driftwood for foreground. I placed the driftwood in its new position for the sole reason of stability- it was very easy to tip over in it's previous position.
So there you have it. This is the result of looking at other peoples' tanks (a great many here, and at plantedtank.net) and then learning from them. However, in about 3 months or so I may have to tear it all down to move back home from school. If this happens I will be adding another bag of flourite to the tank as I have much to shallow of a bed (<1" in some places) and then be scaping it exactly like this again. I think I have finally attained the patience needed to work a planted tank lol. I am very excited to see it full and lush (especially my vals that have been dying ever since I bought them) but I am able to wait until that point.
Last edited: