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2.5G - [UPDATE 3.12.12 photo on last post]

13K views 57 replies 24 participants last post by  hecto33 
#1 · (Edited)
Finally! Putting up my 1st journal.

Specs
2.5G
Fluval Shrimp Stratum
Glosso
Rocks from Treetom (Thanks!)
23W 5600K bulb (100w equivalent) roughly 8-9 inches from substrate pointing directly down.
DIY co2

This journal is titled "revive" for the last minute change of heart I had for this journal. I originally was going to plant m. minuta but last minute changed my mind. I ran to the LFS and saw some really poorly planted glosso (see below). I decided not to let that stop me, and spend time hand picking out the few strands to plant.

I came home, set up my scape, and began picking through the glosso. While I was pruning the dead roots and leaves, I decided to title this journal "revive" - as I felt that I was reviving the near dead glossos :D

Corny, I know but better than "gnod's 1st journal"

Let me know your thoughts and suggestions, etc. Thanks!

oh yea, PICTURES!

this was the first scape i had in mind but didn't really like the big rock to the left. felt... out of scape

i like this much better :D

what i was working with..

after it's all planted! i noticed the substrate is probably going to take some time before it gets all the air pockets out... didn't know the stratum is so light. but i like it, pretty easy to plant imo
 
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#2 ·
Hey,

I got your PM and was interested to take a look...

So far so good. This is a proper planting of glosso.... and I suspect it will grow in quite nicely. Good job at reviving that original mess of glosso. Most people don't realize that you need very little of the plant tip when planting. I ususally plant exactly as you have done here but with 2-3 times the density... It can take MANY hours bending over your tank to do this! But in this way, it will turn into a carpet much faster. However, I realize that you may have not had that much glosso to start with.

At any rate, great start and I hope the lighting works out.

Cheers!
 
#7 ·
update - added slightly bigger rock and replanted everything. i decided i want to put glosso upfront, and m. minuta in the back...although they're both foreground plants, we'll see how it turns out!

pictures!

new scape - added the 3rd rock as the main focus. the other 2 are more for support although they look pretty nice as it is right now.


closer shot of the rocks

sorry for the dirty water, moving the fluval stratum definitely makes it cloudy fast. and my filter is not here yet so.. yea

let me know ur thoughts! :D
 
#9 ·
Kudos to you for managing to plant all those plants with the Fluval Stratum. I nearly pulled all my hair out trying to do the same with my HC carpet (link to journal in signature). It was so light that nothing would stay planted. I went from Aquasoil which was very dense and a breeze to plant in (especially the powder type).

You should add more rocks to the left side. It looks a little sparce right now.
 
#10 ·
^wow thanks! it was your journals that really tipped me over to finally do a nano tank. :D

i found that the fluval stratum is pretty delicate. but it wasn't terrible planting, although the constant dust particles are annoying.

i was debating on how else i can scape the tank to make it look less like a nano, and more like a real, depth filled scape. does that make sense? haha i've seen so many amazing tanks that are tiny, but look huge!
 
#11 ·
a little update.

i took out one of the small stones, added a small left over anubias petite and some dwarf hair grass


anyone know what the name of this plant is? i really like it.. it's unhealthy at the moment because the lighting situation wasn't that good in my 20L - hence i moved it to this one


close up of the right side


couple of takeaways:
1) fluval stratum is not too bad planting
2) fluval stratum is TERRIBLE when you want to replant
3) fluval stratum is TERRIBLE when you try to place the rocks on a slope..

i actually added some more substrate to the right side.. don't know if you can tell but i decided not to bury the rocks but to just place it on top of the substrate. Tried... and failed. it doesn't stay 'up' on the slope like i need it to.. keeps falling down slowly. so i buried it.

i haven't tested the ph level yet, but i will sometime this week. my 20L is actually more acidic than my 5.5G right now which i find odd... we'll see how this one turns out.
 
#14 ·
Those m. minute looks huge. I think it's abit too late for the tank to be de-rimmed, unless Gnod is willing to take everything out. Then again, I think the plants aren't done settling in yet, so now would be a good time to do so.
 
#15 ·
naw, not derimming it. I cracked my first 2.5G derimming it... ahahh i know klutz of me! i was doing a good job of it, but didn't realize how fragile the 2.5G is. I may do it with my new 5.5G soon... :D i just need to break down the 20L!
 
#16 ·
quick update:

i feel like in the last 3 days i've had more visible growth then the last 2 weeks or so.

fts:


i can't tell if the m. minuta is rooting or not... small nodes have browned and died, others are still green. :X



right side


left side


the red plant im not sure about - in only 3 or so days, i already see growth! :D



this is anubias petite that i had left over. i cut the original portion smaller but had trouble growing this one... once i moved it into this tank however, i think i've seen new leaves every other day so far. amazing how light is so important.. i know the position of the anubias may not be the best, and i sorta feel that way too. so if you have a suggestion, please share with me. :D

finally - i can't tell if my glosso is rooting and spreading runners.. i know that usually, they grow upwards and i have to trim them. do i have to do this now so that they send out runners? i'm almost tempted to go co2 with this tank... i want my glosso carpet! :p


thanks ya'll!
 
#18 ·
quick update:
fts


glosso is growing well, but more vertical than horizontal.



i added a mystery snail to see if it'll help with the dusty/fungus sheet on top of parts of my substrate. i cleaned most of them out but they're still there.

should i trim and replant the glossos' that have the longer, taller stem?
 
#22 ·
haha i am using red sea nano filter and no co2 yet. i initially didn't want to use any co2 but i may try DIY co2, and reactor - looks fun

I like your snail. Shrimps keeps your sub clean.
yea i think that snail was the only option i had of putting anything in there. it's too warm still to put anything else in there :X

my glosso is still growing upwards... :( i guess i have to trim and replant those
 
#23 ·
quick update:
trimmed the red plant i still don't know the name of, lol
glosso is growing well but i can't tell if it's spreading its runners yet
the m. minuta is somewhat stagnant? some of them have been browning a bit

some photos:



why does my m. minuta have 3 leaf clovers? haha

one other note - i think i'm going to stay away from fluval stratum. as someone who enjoys slightly tweaking the scape here and there, the substrate is too volatile in terms of cloudiness. ill stick with eco or something else. :p

i'm feeling impatient as i want to see some signs that glosso is spreading... and also because i want to rescape my tank. i got some awesome new driftwood ill be adding to my new 5.5G but... any suggestions for this one is welcomed. :D
 
#24 ·
hmm something just came across my mind but, do i not have enough light on this tank?
i had a 23W (100w equivalent) on this tank 2 inches from the top. i figured it was super high light so i just increased the distance by another few inches.. or do i have too much light?
 
#25 ·
what's the lumens on the light?

23w for a 2.5 gallons, at only 2 inches from the water surface seems like it would be high-light. I would certainly raise the light a few inches, 8" - 10" above the waterline... maybe even 12".

I'm not familiar with glosso or minuta to help much there but keep it up... I like your tank is evolving and look forward to seeing more.
 
#26 ·
thanks for ur comment!

i believe it's 1600lm based on home depot's specification info available on their website. i raised it because i realized that too much high light can actually be adverse for their growth, although i've got no scientific data like some experts have here. :D
 
#27 ·
I like the red plant by the rocks. Do you know what that is? The marsilea wont kick off for a few months so dont worry about it not doing much right now. When I started with my marsilea I had half of my portion die off. Took 2 1/2 months for it to start spreading and I ended up filling my whole 15 gallon with it. Very easy plant once its rooted in.
 
#29 ·
haha i still have no idea! i just picked one up from my LFS a while ago, and it's turned out to be awesome. :D and i think the plant i have isn't m. minuta but m. quad-something or another.. it gave out 4 leaf, (not 3 like i said in above posts)

Hey, if we're still hatin' on shrimp stratum, lemme just say, it clouds like nobody's business. When I rescaped, it looked like muddy swamp water and killed my shrimp. Terrible.
seriously.. i think it's ok if it's used just for shrimps with little to no rescaping but... i'm a bit finicky with my scapes and like scaping so... i think ill be going back to eco complete. :D


quick update: i sold off the RCS colony in my other tank and still found couple hiding in my mosses even though i thought i got everything out. put them in the 2.5G and one is berried again. -___- put 3 otos in here too to clean with some micro bugs i found on the glass :D

fts soon hopefully.. hehe
 
#30 ·
BEFORE:

AFTER:


I took out all the m.m. or m.q. or whatever it was because.. i dont know, felt out of place to me.
i added a tree branch (preview of what i have for the 5.5G) and trimmed and replanted the glosso. i can't be sure if my glosso is carpeting but.. i feel like it's taking a while.. am i doing something wrong?

close up of the right:

i still don't know what that red plant is, but i think that may be my favorite. :D
 
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