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37g Discus, planted, harscaped "Appalachian Allure"

15K views 87 replies 26 participants last post by  bsmith 
#1 ·
I am very excited about this layout. This tank has gone through a few different iterations but I believe this will be the final, most natural and ultimately the scape that I transfer to the large rimless aquarim that will centerpiece my collection when I am able do it.

As I type I am in the midst of speaking with Rod Salyers who is the owner/operator/harbinger of hardscape for thedriftwoodstore.com. We have spoken about this scape on a few different occasions because both he and I are very particular about setting things up correctly from the start with the design goal, rock shape/size/texture/feel and ensuring that I (the customer) am going to get exactly the right rock/wood for the job. This includes verbal and photo sharing through our phones. I will post up some pics of this efforts below. Its quite refreshing in this day and age of "pay me then we can talk mentality"! Wonderful service and I suggest ANYONE who is thinking about hardscaping their tank give them a shot.

The landscape from which the hardscape was born.


Currently the tank has 3 discus and 4 or so Ottocinclus. The plants are Syngonanthus madiera, Ludwigia Pantanal, Echinodorus Aflame, Eriocaulon Austraila II and Polygonum Sao Paulo.

The hardscape will entail North Fork Stones and Appalachian Root Wood which has a contorted shape due to the rocky terrain and a dark reddish brown color given from the high Iron content of the soils, neither of which I have ever seen implemented in a tank before. They were harvested in their entirety, legally and with all proper permits from the watersheds in the higher elevations of the Southern Appalachian mountains and from the streams/rivers of Eastern Tennessee with Rod's own hands. I wish I could have been there!

Everything should be arriving mid week but here are some shots he sent of a very nice mock up of the tank that were done with the dimensions I sent him.


A few sample pics of the materials/


 
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#70 ·
Got some fresh shots of this beautiful algae free tank with crystal clear water!!!

I just wanted to proclaim how happy I am that I finally figured out how to use the manual focus on my camera. It is an absolute necessity when taking close ups/macro shots in a tank. Also I know that there are a few similar angle shots but the first ones are with the filter pump/koralia/UVS on then I turned it off. I had never done this in the past and I see the wonderful benefit to it now.

Enjoy!






















 
#72 ·
Thanks but its not so beautiful anymore. After a series of co2 issues and going on a small trip I lost my Pantanal and the other plants took a big hit. Everything is on the mend now and I acquired some Pantanal (thanks Chris!) and am growing it out in my 60-p at work.

I also got a really nice Lagenandra meeboldii 'pink' from Chad320 as I am thinking that the pink undersides of this plant will accent the purple leaves of my E.Aflame very nicely. I trimmed all but two leaves and another that is in the process of growing in. The rhizome also split when I was cleaning it up so its planted as well and hopefully doesn't die and starts to grow.

Im also trying to think if another mid/background plant would look good on the right side along with the Pantanal whenever I can bring some home to put in this tank? Im open to suggestions.






















 
#79 ·
Your tank looks really nice and I love the rocks, I gotta go back to post one and see where you got them.

I just read an article this morning on gas prices and the MO. as the 2nd least expensive state to live in, this explains all these nice tank and the middle of the night install while Momma is sleeping, nice.
 
#81 ·
Took some fresh pics. I added a sweet new plant for a centerpiece, Lagenandra Meeboldi 'pink'. Its like a mix of an anubis and a crypt. When I got it there were some leaves that were a bit desheveld so I trimmed all but two and thinking that since it has a rhizome like an anubis I could maybe cut it with a razor to help promote new rhizome growths at the cuts. I cut too deeply in one spot and cut about 2.5" off. So I just planted it next to the main plant hoping that it will be okay and its actually growing something out of it so I think it'll be just fine. It grows very quickly. I have only had it about two weeks and its already about done sending out its second leaf. I hope that it gets even more deep pink but the pale pink is nice enough as it is.
















Cut rhizome growth











 
#84 ·
Beauty tank you got there bsmith! Love the lime green staurogyne "forest". And as for my 2 cents in the "discus debate", in my very humble opinion, 3 discus should be fine in your tank, as long as you change around 50% of your water every week religiously and maintain an efficient filtration system (as you have been doing so far). You wont be "stunting" them per say, but they will never be able to reach there full potential in size, and they might become increasingly aggressive when they get older (they do like to have private space just like us). :hihi:

The discus pros on here do like to lecture people on proper discus care, but they mean well. Sometimes you just have to bear with them:) Also, if you ever have any extra staurogyne and you're ok with shipping to Canada, let me know.
 
#88 ·
Thanks the s.Tropica 049 is one of my favorite foreground plants because it grows much slower then any other ones I have kept and also it seems to me able to keep BBA off of it again, unlike most other fore plants I have used in the past.

As far as the Discus thing. I clearly stated that they will never be dinner plate sized fish and be anything close to a ribbon winner. What I did also say was that with good WC schedule they will live just fine and be happy. Again, faced with the alternative to what they were faced with in the FS I got them from this is like the garden of Eden!

Its just not correct for people to say that they cannot live happy healthy lives in a tank this size. I have been doing it for years! ;) (I know you did not say that Kooka so im just agreeing with you).

LOL, every time I look at this, I see yet another comment about the discus. ;)

Bsmith! The algae is gone and the tank is SPARKLING! Everything is looking fantastic. Have you had anymore trouble with the dreaded Green Paint Algae? Doesn't appear to be the case. :D
Nope, there is no algae at all other then the normal stuff that is unavoidable in a tank with a bright of lighting as I( have. Thanks to you!!! :D

yea i have to bite my tongue every time.
I have no problem with free speech and personal expression in my threads. Come on down!

Don't bite your tongue, it hurts...
Yeah, tell me about it. Not my tongue per se but last Thurs I believe I bit the Eff out of the right side corner of my mouth (where my top/bottom lip meet) with my K9s and actually herd it being cut! Then yesterday I did the exact same thing in the exact same spot! Sucks hard!
 
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