I stink at aquascaping, please help

[librarygirl]

Hi everyone, I need better eyes and aquascaping talent than mine to help me out. I have a 40 breeder with a mish-mash of plants. I'm really just getting started into planted tanks; many of these plants are new purchases (within the last few weeks) so I'm expecting some die off, etc. My tank is pretty low-tech. No CO2; I dose micros and macros (liquid made from dry) and some iron a few days per week (still adjusting the forumulas and trying to figure out what works best), I also dose Excel every day or two.

I've tried 4 times now to get this scape into something I can live with so I can let the plants do their thing but I hate the way it looks each time. It looks messy. I'm not sure if i should scrap some of what I have and just stick to a few kinds of plants or if there's a way to work what I have into something that looks more presentable. And seeing some of the awesome aquascaping techniques and tanks on this forum and on the net just makes me hate my tank more lol

I have two pieces of DW; not sure if I should keep them or toss one or toss both and try rocks. I'm really at a loss here. I don't like the triangular scapes; I tend to like the sloping scapes with some open areas and shady hidden areas. I also don't have any small grasses which I think might look nice to form some grassy areas and define some paths but I don't think any grasses would work with my setup. I currently have 1.5 wpg total (a dual T5NO fixture with 21 watts on each bulb and a T8 florescent with 18 watts in a single bulb).

Here's some of what I have for plants I'm sure I'm missing a few):
echinodorus tenellus (narrow leaf chain sword)
water sprite
water wisteria
hygrophilia corymbosa siamensis
hygrophilia corymbosa
red tiger lotus
brazilian pennywort
ludwigia ovalis
bacopa australis
echniodorus augustifolia vesuvius
L repens
flame moss mat
Anubias
Java fern


Pics below. The first is a full tank shot, followed by shots of the left, center and right.

Help? Thanks!

[Diana]

I think you have some nice driftwood.

You have too many species of plants.
You can try grouping them better, so all the plants of one species are in a clump. Put the taller growing plants on the back and ends, and the shortest ones in the front middle. You can also pair up the plants so that there are combinations with a contrast. For example, in a clump of grassy/narrow leaf plants, include the Pennywort (Hydrocotyle).
Java Fern and Anubias should be tied or glued to the branches; since you have 2 branches use one for each species.

Really, though, I would get at least one more tank and split the plants so there are fewer species in each tank. That way each species can grow into a larger clump and really look like something.

[ony]

Definitely group the plants together like Diana said. The driftwood is nice but the right piece is almost totally hidden and the left piece looks awkward, its kind of drawing my eye straight to the center. Maybe if it moved just a bit to the left so that it ends about a third down the tank?

TBH I would just take the wood out altogether, mark the outline of the tank on the floor and just keep moving them until the composition felt right. Once you have the wood in place it will provide you with a framework to plant around.

[DogFish]

Originally Posted by Diana

I think you have some nice driftwood.

You have too many species of plants....

I suggest you pick the 3-4 sp, that grow best for you TODAY, in your current tank/system without spending any $$$ on equipment, frets ir any water chemistry science projects. You want plants that like what you have to offer . This is a hobby and should always be fun, 1st!!!

Next, sell or trade all the other plants for more of the 3-4 you decided to aquascape with.

In nature to seldom see several varieties of the same sp. growing together. U think we are wise to learn from that observation. A stem, a rooted, and a floater tends to work well.


Once you narrow your selections, have plenty of plants to work with, consider the needs of your fish/inversts. i.e.. swimming space and/or hiding spaces

Then off to Google SEach you go. There are pages of
planted aquaeium' pics to look atr. Find one that you like and go from there.

You'll have a freat tank that you created.

[Kathyy]

Try keeping species of plants together, either in a bunch or a line depending on how dense the plant grows. Play the nice variety of textures you have going off one another.

The Hygrophilia corymbosa sp., Anubias and java fern are the calm plants, play the super frilly tank swallowing wisteria and water sprite off them. Water sprite behind one, wisteria in front. Letting those pretties have their way isn't going to help grow a nice scape! I cannot find your lily, the large leaves would be calm, put a busy plant behind.

If you could find large stones of some sort or get a log the lower growing plants like e. vesuvius and tennellus look great in front of such things. If you do that then plan the hardscape and plant around it rather than just plunking a pretty rock behind the vesuvius.

If you are comfortable pruning then L. ovalis, L. repens and Bacopa australis can be bushes of varying heights.

Pennywort can be a background plant, a bush or stuck in the side to grow gracefully over part of the surface as a frame.

As you ponder your new scape do have fun looking for plants that work/don't work together right now, you will find some inspiration just doing that. For example I really dislike the way the rosette plant [sword?] looks in front of the H. corymbosa, the lines of the stems/leaves are going different directions but the leaf size and shape are similar. If that rosette was in front of water sprite or wisteria its nice form would show up and its bolder texture would enhance the filigree of the sprite/wisteria. Then I like the way the pennywort looks with the wisteria. The colors are similar but the textures are very different. The wood on the right with Anubias and fern looks good but the plants to the right have similar leaf sizes, perhaps sprite would be better around that wood.

And you can blame a messy scape on healthy growing plants. This isn't a flower arrangement that stays put!

[librarygirl]

Thanks everyone, just the specific feedback I was hoping for! I may need to pull some out I guess for a neater look. The only other tank I have is a 5 gal betta tank with very little light; I'm going to upgrade the betta tank soon so I could get some better lights and try some of the plants in there if need be.

I'll get a sketchpad tonight and sit in front of the tank with your suggestions and try to work something out. I'll update pics on my next attempt.

Does anyone know of a good carpeting plant for the light I have (probably not from what I'm reading). I don't want to bother with moss as it 1) takes forever to grow in and 2) for some reason I have horrible luck with mosses; they tend to die off on me but maybe I'm planting them too densely, I tried some attached to the DW branches but I had to remove it all because it turned brown). I've seen people opening Marimo balls and laying them as a carpet but not sure if this would work and if it did, $8 per ball to form a carpet seems rather $$. I just don't think I have enough light for Glosso or HC though, any thoughts? I've also tried dwarf hairgrass in the past but it looked too messy, I like the look of a low carpeting plant better.

Thanks again

[Colorful]

You could try one of the marsilea species. I'm planning on purchasing some marsilea next week to make a carpet. I heard that they can survive in low light, but they might grow slower.

[Vermino]

well everyone already said group up the plants and probably cut down that huge variety of them. I think you should rework with that driftwood a bit, maybe tilt the big left one over so it flows from left to right (like a fallen tree) maybe even bring that other one and interweave it so you have a huge focal point that draw the eye to it then pans around it. Maybe even suggest adding some stones (river maybe?) to give it that natural effect. Really seeing too much substrate (is that blue or black?) then looking up i just see a mess of plants.

You can make that tank into a dream, just get some inspiration at others with driftwood and plants.

[librarygirl]

@Colorful : Thanks for the Marsilea suggestion, I think it might work out great (if I can find some lol)

@ Vermino: That's a great idea tipping the DW over. It's on a base though (I bought it that way; I don't think it's screwed on either, I think it's glued somehow) so the base would look horrible sticking up unless I can saw the DW just above the base but then if the DW doesn't sink I'll be upset lol I think it should sink on its own but I'm not sure; I can try cutting off a small piece to see if it sinks. I would actually like to lay at least one of them down. The sand is black (the camera isn't that great and the light in the room was bad). Great suggestions everyone, thanks!

[librarygirl]

Here is attempt #476

I did remove one or two types of plants (siamensis and some swords); I think I may need to remove more or clump them better or something? I'd just hate to get rid of too many of them as it would be wasted money.

I laid the right driftwood down which looked better before I put the plants in, I think it's too hidden so I'll have to thin out some of that area to let the wood show through more.

Left rear is the larger vals and grass (narrow leaf chain sword I think).
Then in the rear comes some L repens I think and some L. ovalis, maybe those could be pushed toward the left more, near the grasses?

Then the wisteria toward the middle; that higher piece should go to the left. In my other tank shot I had it coming down across in a diagonal and sort of liked that slope look but for some reason it didn't come off that same way here. Three pieces of pennywort are mixed in with the wisteria but they're hard to see in this shot, I might have to move them too.

Then in the rear toward the right is a mix of some reddish ones (I honestly forget what those are) and to the far right is the water sprite.

On the DW piece on the left is a clump of anubias; I just stuck it into the branches for now; I didn't want to secure them until I know for sure where they're going to be. I considered not using them at all.

In front of the left driftwood is some Nevilli that I'd hate to get rid of.

Toward the right middle is the shorter pieces of wisteria with the tiger lilys in front (hard to see in the pic). Next to that is two pices of java fern stuck in the driftwood (unsure about whether to keep those either). Then toward the right is a clump of echinodorus angustifolia vesuvius and some shorter pieces of L. repens and I think L ovalis. Maybe I should clump those with the others even though they are shorter. Then more grass to the right.

I also just ordered some M. minuta for a carpeting plant in the front. Once the scape is set i'd like to outline everything with the carpeting plant and go forward, leaving some open areas and paths.

I also ordered some Rotala sp. green (I know, I can't help myself) so I'm not sure how that will fit in either.

More criticisms and suggestions please? I think I'm making progress but it still looks messy and I'd like that piece of DW on the right to show more. Also maybe the piece on the left should be turned toward the back more so that large branch isn't so prominent?

Updated pics below: full tank shot, left, middle, right.

Thank you!!

[Kathyy]

Much tidier!

You need to be firm with the wisteria. I would cut that longest stem down to a couple healthy nodes from the gravel and replant it. That lets the water sprite be the tallest fluffy plant in the tank but wisteria gets to have more mass and show off those huge flower like growing points.

Whether it carpets or not Marsilea is a very cute little creeping plant. Not sure I would have bought Rotala 'Green', it is more small scale light green stuff and you really need deep green broader leaves more.

Last time I rescaped I failed but the time before I got the front edge of the substrate nice and neat and the tank looked so much better. See if you can get it more even.

[Vermino]

Originally Posted by librarygirl

@ Vermino: That's a great idea tipping the DW over. It's on a base though (I bought it that way; I don't think it's screwed on either, I think it's glued somehow) so the base would look horrible sticking up unless I can saw the DW just above the base but then if the DW doesn't sink I'll be upset lol I think it should sink on its own but I'm not sure; I can try cutting off a small piece to see if it sinks. I would actually like to lay at least one of them down. The sand is black (the camera isn't that great and the light in the room was bad). Great suggestions everyone, thanks!

Well you can still get away with tipping the DW over.. just cover it with your substrate so it's like a hill. Just have an imagination of what you like. I understand when you spend money on something and it goes to waste (i bought some petco crap plants,driftwood that is "low quality" and standard pebble substrate)

Yeah last resort is to maybe cut off piece of the DW but make sure they will sink and stick into the substrate (either superglue or tie to a rock if DW is too buoyant)

here's some inspiration http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2vLJ...eature=related (this has about 5 variety of plants) and DW only.

[librarygirl]

Ok how's this? Pic below.

Much better I think. I pulled all the "grass;" it made things too busy and messy. The water sprite to the left might have to go or be trimmed and moved? I still think it looks uncoordinated but I''m getting there. Not sure if I should toss anything else, or work with what I have, or just choose a few types and get more of those and move the rest out? Most of these plants are very new too so it's possible they won't last long-term and I'll have to replace them anyway. I'm just not sure. Better/other plant suggestions that would work with my setup would be great, I'm not averse to moving what I have and starting over with something better.

Thanks for all of your suggestions so far (keep them coming!). It looks a lot better then when I started. Still not happy with it though.

Of course it didn't help I came across this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgpMv...ure=plpp_video Makes my tank look so messy!

[Kathyy]

You need to leave it alone so the stems and leaves can orient themselves properly. You need to leave it alone to see which plants interest you, which ones you can deal with easiest and grow best in your tank. Maybe the water sprite is gone, maybe not.

I wouldn't toss out any healthy plants at this stage of the game. You never know what is going to develop into something that inspires you.

Use a microscope at this stage, don't look at the overall tank. Look at the plants themselves and enjoy their development. Once you see plants you really like and see combinations you want to emphasize then work on removing plants that aren't working for you.

[shrimp pliskin]

Water sprite will grow into a giant bush that will take over your tank with little plantlets breaking off and floating around. It's an insanely hardy plant.