A
Anonymous
Guest
This is a complete rescape of my 15 gallon planted tank, previously chronicled in my last thread. It’s entitled ‘Keep off the Flesh-Eating Grass’ because the main plant in this layout, Utricularia graminifolia, is carnivorous.
Specs:
15 gallon AGA tank
4 x 24w t5 lighting
ADA System 72 Co2 supply
ADA Powersand and Aquasoil for substrate
Eheim 2213 canister
Hydor In-Line heater
Flora:
Utricularia graminifolia
Phyllanthus fluitans
HC
lobelia cardinalis var. 'small form'
Fauna:
1 pair nothobranchius guentheri ‘Zanzibar’
1 pair aphyosemion australe
9 harlequin rasboras
Right now the tank is at the just beginning phase of things. The UG, HC and phyllanthus are in (coverage of all three is light thus far, though), but the lobelia won't be delivered until next week.
This set up was inspired by photos of a tank Oliver Knott set up for Interzoo 2006, which can be seen at: http://www.pbase.com/plantella/utricularia2006
That tank was approximately 50 gallons, so the biggest challenge was scaling the design down for use in a 15 gallon tank without losing the overall feeling of the original.
The Interzoo 2006 tank appealed to me for a number of reasons besides the obvious one, aesthetics. For one, it uses no stem plants whatsoever. I’d come to the conclusion that stem plants in a 12” tall, 15 gallon tank are just too much work, and I had planned to move away from them in any case. For another, it requires absolutely minimal maintenance. The UG only grows 2” tall so it can be pretty much left entirely to it’s own devices.
After deciding that this was the direction I wanted to move in, the hardest part was in actually getting a supply of Utricularia. While readily available in both Europe and Asia, I couldn’t find a single US nursery that was growing it. Nor were any of the aquatic specialty shops in the hobby. Occasionally hobbyists would offer golf ball size portions at $20 each, but even if I’d wanted to spend the cash I’d be lucky to find a half dozen small portions in a six month time period. However, Aquaspot World in Singapore carries UG so I decided to give them a try, even though the shipping process of plants traveling internationally is convoluted. I ordered 25 pots worth of UG from them. Three and a half weeks later, after being in the mail for eight days, I finally received my order.
To put it bluntly, it was a mess.
First, the actual portions sent were about the size of a postage stamp; it would take at least six of them to equal the pot sized portions they advertise. Second, after eight days in transit all but nine of the 25 were completely dead and decayed. Of those nine, six were in good enough shape to put in the tank. A few weeks later they are finally beginning to spread.
I'd planned to use downoi in this tank, similar to how it's used in Oliver Knott's tank in the link above. The downoi I was able to acquire did not transition well to my tank and melted away to nothing within just a few days of it's introduction - a problem a lot of people seem to have with it. After some brainstorming, and my girlfriend telling me she hated how the downoi looked anyway, I decided on lobelia cardinalis 'small form' as a substitute.
Also included in my tank is phyllanthus fluitans, a floating plant with a nice pinkish red color. I included this for a few reasons. First, nutrient control – floaters suck up nutrients like nothing else. Second, it’s a security blanket for the fish. Without any stem plants or even much in the way of anything taller than ground cover, I was concerned that the fish would stick pretty much to the bottom layer of the tank. By giving them top cover, they behave much more comfortably.
I also decided to use some HC to plant as a stopgap ground cover. If the UG does well it will take over the lawn and I’ll gradually remove the HC, but until then at least I have a foreground that consists of more than just bare soil.
I think that about covers it. I’d hoped that the ‘scape would be in a more ‘complete’ state at this point, but the delays encountered in getting the Utricularia and the lobelia really pushed the timetable back a bit. Still, one of the goals of this design (besides looking good, of course) was to create an absolutely minimal maintenance tank that could be maintained without a rescape for years. That being the case, I don’t mind being patient during this stage as it takes it’s time to establish itself.
Tank photos will go up once the lobelia arrives. For now, consider this a discussion thread
Specs:
15 gallon AGA tank
4 x 24w t5 lighting
ADA System 72 Co2 supply
ADA Powersand and Aquasoil for substrate
Eheim 2213 canister
Hydor In-Line heater
Flora:
Utricularia graminifolia
Phyllanthus fluitans
HC
lobelia cardinalis var. 'small form'
Fauna:
1 pair nothobranchius guentheri ‘Zanzibar’
1 pair aphyosemion australe
9 harlequin rasboras
Right now the tank is at the just beginning phase of things. The UG, HC and phyllanthus are in (coverage of all three is light thus far, though), but the lobelia won't be delivered until next week.
This set up was inspired by photos of a tank Oliver Knott set up for Interzoo 2006, which can be seen at: http://www.pbase.com/plantella/utricularia2006
That tank was approximately 50 gallons, so the biggest challenge was scaling the design down for use in a 15 gallon tank without losing the overall feeling of the original.
The Interzoo 2006 tank appealed to me for a number of reasons besides the obvious one, aesthetics. For one, it uses no stem plants whatsoever. I’d come to the conclusion that stem plants in a 12” tall, 15 gallon tank are just too much work, and I had planned to move away from them in any case. For another, it requires absolutely minimal maintenance. The UG only grows 2” tall so it can be pretty much left entirely to it’s own devices.
After deciding that this was the direction I wanted to move in, the hardest part was in actually getting a supply of Utricularia. While readily available in both Europe and Asia, I couldn’t find a single US nursery that was growing it. Nor were any of the aquatic specialty shops in the hobby. Occasionally hobbyists would offer golf ball size portions at $20 each, but even if I’d wanted to spend the cash I’d be lucky to find a half dozen small portions in a six month time period. However, Aquaspot World in Singapore carries UG so I decided to give them a try, even though the shipping process of plants traveling internationally is convoluted. I ordered 25 pots worth of UG from them. Three and a half weeks later, after being in the mail for eight days, I finally received my order.
To put it bluntly, it was a mess.
First, the actual portions sent were about the size of a postage stamp; it would take at least six of them to equal the pot sized portions they advertise. Second, after eight days in transit all but nine of the 25 were completely dead and decayed. Of those nine, six were in good enough shape to put in the tank. A few weeks later they are finally beginning to spread.
I'd planned to use downoi in this tank, similar to how it's used in Oliver Knott's tank in the link above. The downoi I was able to acquire did not transition well to my tank and melted away to nothing within just a few days of it's introduction - a problem a lot of people seem to have with it. After some brainstorming, and my girlfriend telling me she hated how the downoi looked anyway, I decided on lobelia cardinalis 'small form' as a substitute.
Also included in my tank is phyllanthus fluitans, a floating plant with a nice pinkish red color. I included this for a few reasons. First, nutrient control – floaters suck up nutrients like nothing else. Second, it’s a security blanket for the fish. Without any stem plants or even much in the way of anything taller than ground cover, I was concerned that the fish would stick pretty much to the bottom layer of the tank. By giving them top cover, they behave much more comfortably.
I also decided to use some HC to plant as a stopgap ground cover. If the UG does well it will take over the lawn and I’ll gradually remove the HC, but until then at least I have a foreground that consists of more than just bare soil.
I think that about covers it. I’d hoped that the ‘scape would be in a more ‘complete’ state at this point, but the delays encountered in getting the Utricularia and the lobelia really pushed the timetable back a bit. Still, one of the goals of this design (besides looking good, of course) was to create an absolutely minimal maintenance tank that could be maintained without a rescape for years. That being the case, I don’t mind being patient during this stage as it takes it’s time to establish itself.
Tank photos will go up once the lobelia arrives. For now, consider this a discussion thread
