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Johnson18's Emersed Tanks

31K views 145 replies 21 participants last post by  johnson18 
#1 · (Edited)
Welcome to my emersed journey!

I'm working to update this first post to include the current specs: tanks, lights/bulbs, etc., my plant list and such as everything has changed in the last year since I began setting up my first emersed tank. I am also in the process of packing my house up to move cross country to Tucson, AZ in May 2014. Once there, I will be building my rack set up for my emersed tanks, at which point I hope to make all my emersed tanks identical sizes(probably 40G Breeders) and expand to have several more tanks than my current two.

Complete(mostly) and Updated Plant Species List in Post #14!!!

Emersed Rack plans are in Post #91 on page #7! Hoping for 6-8 tanks total! Input Welcome!

I am almost always looking for new Cryptocoryne species to add to my collection! If you have a species that you don't see here, shoot me a PM, I'm probably interested in adding it to my collection!!


Original 1st post!
I posted this in the general discussion earlier, since I've gone ahead and started the tank I thoughts a I'd want to update the thread, seemed like a good start for a journal!

Here is my post from earlier:


I've become pretty interested in growing plants emersed, mostly crypts, but I want to try several plants. I've done a bit of reading on the subject. I decided to give it a go using a 20 long I've got sitting around.



My plan is to use some basic plastic tupper ware containers to start. I plan on drilling wholes in the bottom of each container. I am wondering if I should drill some on the lower half of the sides too? If drilling doesn't work for some reason, like plastic cracking, I saw somewhere on a cryptocoryne website where a person used a blow torch and a nail to melt wholes in the containers. I've got the tools to do that if needed.



For lighting I've got either a dual lamp t5ho 24" or 48". I believe both have one 6700 and one 10k bulb...



I'm planning on using some MG top soil I have around the house. Wondering if I should mix anything in with it... Sand, peat moss, osmocote+, or...??



Water will probably be filled below the substrate level, though if some plants need it higher I can always add a taller lever to part of the tank using crates or something.



I will probably start out with plastic wrap as a top. Eventually getting some plex as a cover.



Now for the fun part....Plants!

I've got some random plants hanging around in a couple tanks that aren't part if the aquascape...

A couple anubias, I think a coffee and a nana. Maybe a few types of java fern? A few random stems that are still surviving in my 20L PFR riparium. I was thinking about also using a few of the basic crypts that I've already got: several types of wendtii, lucens, beckettii, lutea, balansae. I've also got some bacopa on the way.



So that's where I'm at now, as far as my plan! I'm starting to clean up the tank and drill wholes this afternoon. I will probably try to get started planting this evening.



Any thoughts, suggestions, ideas or even "hey dummy, you're doin' it wrong" would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks!
 
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#2 ·
Johnson18's 20L Emersed Tank. Help!

So I made my own substrate mixture, Miracle Grow top soil, black onyx sand & some riparium planter gravel with some Osmocote plus mixed in. I figured the mixture would allow for a little more aeration/water flow.

I used a variety or clay/terra cotta pots as well as plastic containers that I drilled 1/4" holes in.



 
#3 ·
Johnson18's 20L Emersed Tank. Help!

So I've added some stem plants and such, now it's time to start looking for some sweet crypts! Here are some pics!

Bacopa Caroliniana



Crypt lucens



Alt. Reineckii, B. colorata, Rotala Indica rotundifolia-added about a week ago, just starting to show growth, was previously submerged

You can kind of see the Vietnamese Coriander on the left also just added.

Cardamine

Glosso!


If anyone has suggestions based on my set up & pics on how to better grow any of these plants in this set up PLEASE share them with me! This is my first attempt at an emersed set up! I would love some feedback on this! Thanks!
 
#4 ·
So I started this project back in March, I'm really enjoying growing plants emersed. I've become extremely interested in different cryptocoryne species! I've done a ton of reading online. While I've not started getting any of the less common crypts yet, I've been picking up supplies here and there. I think I'm going to switch most of the plants in this 20L into a spare 55 I've got. I've still gotta pick up some small pots of a uniform size so that I can maximize the number of plants I will be able to fit into the 55. Here are a few pictures of the 20L in its current set up. I've recently started misting it with RO water once every other day or so.

Bacopa Caroliniana






 
#5 ·
So I've got a few more crypt species and an anubias barteri nana true petite on the way for this tank & hopefully a few Bucephalandra species!
I have yet to find the square pots in the size I want(& not 100 or 200 qty) but I did pick up a few 3" round pots. I will probably pick up a few more of these pots.

I do have a 50L bag of hydroton & about 40 3" net pots on the way as well!! These are mostly going to be used for an aquaponics system I am gathering items for. I will document this build here as well. I do plan to use the hydroton as a substrate for any emersed anubias or buce too!
 
#10 ·
I've transitioned most of my crypts from submersed. They look pretty pitiful for a while but the growth seems to have sped up.
I've mostly transitioned plants from emersed to submersed when purchasing plants. These also have a ton of stress from shipping most of the time added into the mix too. I know some plants suffer from the transition more then others. I recently planted emersed Bacopa caroliniana into my 2.5 gallon vase. It made the transition to submersed smoothly with no issues at all.
I'm expanding my set up with the hopes of keeping a large variety of Cryptocoryne species. The real goal for me is to get the plants to flower! :)
 
#11 ·
Last night I added several Cryptocoryne species: spiralis, parva, wendtii 'Florida Sunset', lingua, becketii, lutea. A few I moved from my 20L pfr tank & most were new. I also added two true Anubias barteri var nana petite that were imported from Singapore. This came from Gordon as did the parva for the 20L.

I finally set up the 55 last night as well! Which can of course be seen in the picture. Lol. I've got a few more crypt species arriving this week: C. nurii, C. hudoroi & C. griffithii! Along with three unknown species of Bucephalandra! I think that's it for the moment. Although I'm also looking to add several other Cryptocoryne species over the next few weeks. I'm talking to a guy on apc about six or seven other species.

OVT ~ WHAT ADDICTION?!? ;)
 
#12 ·
The C. nurii & three Buce species arrived today! My mail man has realized that if I get a package, it's probably live plants so he dropped them off first! I've gotta run pick up more pots still! I opened the package & checked out the plants. I then repacked them until I've got the pots in a bit.



Well, the C. nurii is amazing! First time I've seen it in person! Three Buce species showed up with a fourth extra! :)



Well, time to head to the store to get some pots!
 
#14 · (Edited)
So, for my own sanity or perhaps due to my insanity, I'm going to create a master list of the plants I'm growing emersed. I will keep the list in this post updated when I receive new plants. Since I'm planning on keeping some species that are considered by some to be difficult to cultivate, I will also include plants I've not been able to successfully grow.

Currently keeping:
Cryptocoryne wendtii 'Florida Sunset', 'green gecko', green, red/brown, other random "hybrids"
Cryptocoryne crispatula var. balansae
Cryptocoryne beckettii
Cryptocoryne walkeri 'lutea'
Cryptocoryne x willisii 'lucens'
Cryptocoryne lingua
Cryptocoryne parva
Cryptocoryne nurii
Cryptocoryne Nurii 'Pahang Mutated'
Cryptocoryne spiralis
Cryptocoryne griffithi
Cryptocoryne pontederiifolia
Cryptocoryne albida
Cryptocoryne ciliata
Cryptocoryne undulata version 2, its from a big crypt guy in the US and its not very common. slender waxy green leaves with red underside.
Cryptocoryne usteriana x walkeri
Cryptocoryne sp. 'Flamingo'
Cryptocoryne noritoi "Wongso"
Cryptocoryne affinis 'Metallic Red'
Cryptocoryne affinis "Metallic Red" 'Pahang Barat'
Cryptocoryne cordata var. cordata 'Blassii' (super red variant)
Cryptocoryne longicauda 'Seri Aman'"Rosanervig"
Cryptocoryne ideii

Failed:
Cryptocoryne hudoroi-slowly faded away, my guess is that it's a hardwater species which didn't like life in my soft, acidic tank.
Cryptocoryne moehlmanii- Never recovered after shipping.

Crypts on the way as of:


Bucephalandra unknown species 1
Bucephalandra unknown species 2
Bucephalandra unknown species 3
Bucephalandra unknown species 4

Anubias barteri var coffeefolia
Anubias barteri var nana
Anubias barteri var nana true petite

Radican Mable Queen Sword- Echinodorus cordifolius 'Tropica Marble Queen'
Red Rubin Sword - Echinodorus "Rubin"


Bacopa caroliniana
Bacopa colorata
Bacopa salzmannii
Glosso
DHG
Alternanthera Reineckii
Rotala Indica rotundifolia
Cardamine
Riccia fluitans
Hygro. sp. 'Brown'
Hygro. pinnatifida
Hygro. sp. 'Araguaia'
S. repens
Hydrocotyle sp. 'japan'
Ludwigia sp. 'Rubin'
 
#15 ·
Here are a few pics of the tanks today. It'll be interesting to see how it fills in. I hope the crypts adjust well with out tons of melting, though I doubt I'll be that lucky. I've still gotta find a heater for the 55. I dug out an old air pump and set up an air stone in the 55.







There are still two more packages of crypts on the way. One is all C. nurii about half of which will go into my 20L the rest will grow here. The second package is the hudoroi & griffithii.

The plan is to also add the following plants in the next week or so but they've not been ordered yet.
C. pontenderiifolia
C. moehlmanii
C. albida
C. ciliata
C. undulata
C. usteriana x walkeri

Suggestions, thoughts or comments are welcome! I'm just getting started trying to grow crypts emersed. I know there are many people on here with tons of experience, I hope to learn from y'all!
 
#17 ·
I'm receiving my 50L bag of hydroton today! :) This means that the Anubias and Bucephalandra will be getting a thin layer of hydroton on the top of their pots. I will be leaving the soil mixture under the top layer so that the plants roots will reach down into the nutrient rich mixture! I'm also going to be moving a few more Anubias species into this system from two different submerged tanks.

The last two crypts I've got on the way are shipping out tomorrow! I will have them Monday! Hopefully by then the next batch of plants will have been ordered!

While there is a little bit of melting occurring with the recently planted crypts, it doesn't seem like it is going to be as bad as I was expecting. Hopefully, I've not jinxed myself by saying that. :) A couple of plants even look like they're perking up!
 
#18 ·
The Crypt. hudoroi & griffithii arrived today. They both look pretty good!



Overall the plants are looking decent. There is some melting here and there but not too bad. I added a 50w heater today, hopefully that'll help increase the humidity. Here are a couple shots from today, sadly I forgot to take them prior to resealing the top. ;) whoops!






 
#25 ·
Well, the plants I was looking at last week will be on the way Saturday. The seller hooked me up with a really good deal. I'm pretty excited to add these plants to the mix.

Here is the list of what I'm getting.

C. pontenderiifolia
C. moehlmanii
C. albida
C. ciliata
C. undulata version 2, its from a big crypt guy in the US and its not very common. slender waxy green leaves with red underside. <---seller's description.
C. usteriana x walkeri

This will round out the collection for now. I'm sure as time goes on I will be adding more species, but it certainly won't be as frequent as it has been for the last few weeks.
 
#26 ·
Great collection. Started a much more modest setup myself not too long ago. Look forward to watching your progress. Especially on those buces and anubias in the hydroton. I'm having a hard time deciding if I should give some a try or not.

What do you think the benefits of hydroton are over say...just a rock? I'd assume the roots would be easier to free from the hydroton than a rock but thats the only real difference as far as my unexperienced self goes.
 
#27 ·
You've got a nice little collection started too. I thought about using the plastic totes like that but didn't have any that were quite the right shape for the area. I went for these two tanks mostly because that's what I had sitting around. Heck, the 55 I got for free just by posting an ad on CL asking about larger tanks(55-150 gallon) for free or cheap. I had to sort through many emails from people who thought they were offering their empty tanks for "cheap".... lol... I don't know how many offers I got for a 55 gallon tank by itself for $100-$250.

As far as hydroton goes, this is really my first time using it. It is very light and porous, it actually floats when first placed in water. I could see where this could be nice, as it might retain a little moisture. I've got no experience removing attached roots from it, I don't expect this to be a problem though. The main reason I am using it in this set up is because I was purchasing some for my aquaponics set up, keeping me from having to buy two substrates. I think you could easily achieve the same growth with plain old lava rock. Unfortunately, I was unable to find any locally that had not been dyed/colored that I didn't have to have the bed of my truck filled by front loader to purchase. ;) Actually the Anubias in my 20L is in a substrate mixture rather then rock. It's currently putting out new leaves from three place at a rate of maybe one every few weeks.
 
#28 ·
Most of the plants seem to have adjusted to their new environment. Many are already putting out a new leaf or maybe two. The last order of crypts will be here tomorrow! :)





I swapped out the heater between the 20 & 55, putting the adjustable heater in the 55. It's already more humid in the 55. I will monitor the humidity level in the 20L over the next day or so to see where it ends up with the new heater.
 
#30 ·
I put the adjustable heater into the 55 so I could crank it up which will create more humidity. The non-adjustable heater wasn't keeping the temp up high enough to create the humidity I want in this tank.
I think the non adjustable heater will be fine in the 20 as there might only be 3-4 gallons of water max. From what I've read about the non adjustable Tetra heater is that in under five gallons it keeps the water too warm, mid to high 80's, for a normal tank. That should be just fine to keep the humidity up in the smaller tank.

How is your set up coming along? I see you used those same cheap green pots from lowes.
 
#31 ·
I did. And after looking at this thread again it appears I copied u. Hahaha. Considering using 3" mesh pots with coco tek liners and soil would cost me around $20 for 20 pots and I could fit more in my 10 gallon. I'm gonna get a piece of glass cut for the top of the tank to so I can set a 10" dome light set on it and not worry about warping. This is the plan though so ill but what I need this week and set it up when I get back from my trip. I'm pretty psyched
 
#32 ·
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