ADA 60P Fun (2007)

[styxx]

So here are a few introductory shots of my new ADA tank. It isn't fully planted yet, since the water is just becoming clear. Any suggestions are appreciated and please excuse the tubing in the tank. I have some glass lily pipes on order...I had HC but it all died, well apparently not all of it since I have a few strands thriving here and there...apart from that one change, what other planting suggestions do you have? I was thinking about some blyxa in front of the rotala sp. green and rotala indica...any ideas?? I have to admit this is the first time using Aquasoil but it is awesome. I can literally grow anything in it...and look at the growth that I have with the giant hair grass! Before I had this plant in another tank and after about 3 weeks it just turned brown and died!

[styxx]

I think you might like these as well...its always so exciting to see the beginning of a tank take shape and then months later look back and see the progress one has made...please forgive my photography, my skills aren't that good so please bear with me...hopefully in the near future I will get a decent digital camera (this one is only 5MP)!

[epicfish]

How quickly does that dwarf hairgrass grow?

Great start!

[styxx]

Originally Posted by epicfish

How quickly does that dwarf hairgrass grow?

Great start!

Well I'll tell you it it growing so fast that I might actually have to start trimming the roots. Every day I see new shoots coming out of the substrate. It is really awesome but that just goes to show you what extra light and Aquasoil can do for you. Before I used Fluorite, I'll never go back to that again!

[Jason Baliban]

I would try to get that piece of wood out of the direct center of the tank. The rule of thirds will help you here. The wood is quite stout and demands the eye It took me two or three views to see anything but the wood. Try moving it to the left or right and place it at the 2/3rds mark.

Also, it looks like your anubias rhizomes are burried? You will have to get them out of the substrate or they may rot. Try attaching them to small pebbles, that will keep them in place whiles still above the substrate.

Hope this helps

jB

[styxx]

Originally Posted by Jason Baliban

I would try to get that piece of wood out of the direct center of the tank. The rule of thirds will help you here. The wood is quite stout and demands the eye It took me two or three views to see anything but the wood. Try moving it to the left or right and place it at the 2/3rds mark.

Also, it looks like your anubias rhizomes are burried? You will have to get them out of the substrate or they may rot. Try attaching them to small pebbles, that will keep them in place whiles still above the substrate.

Hope this helps

jB

Jason,
Thanks for the suggestions! I'm thinking of moving it towards the left. The anubias actually are tied to the bottom of the driftwood that has a hollow center in it but at this point the roots actually are growing through the hole and are now into the substrate...any ideas about how to hide this CO2 diffusor? Do you think the rotalia will eventually hid it? Check out the algae pearling...

[Jason Baliban]

Looks like you could have gone with a smaller diffuser for that tank. I really wouldnt try to hide it. Its important to allow the flow of the filters to grab the bubbles and move them around the tank. If the rotala is hiding the diffuser from us, it is surely hiding it from the flow as well

I see what you are saying with the anubias. I wasnt sure, so i just thought i would throw out the tip.....but it looks like you already knew

Hope move the wood creates a nice perspective for you

jB

[styxx]

Originally Posted by Jason Baliban

Looks like you could have gone with a smaller diffuser for that tank. I really wouldnt try to hide it. Its important to allow the flow of the filters to grab the bubbles and move them around the tank. If the rotala is hiding the diffuser from us, it is surely hiding it from the flow as well

I see what you are saying with the anubias. I wasnt sure, so i just thought i would throw out the tip.....but it looks like you already knew

Hope move the wood creates a nice perspective for you

jB

I had thought about buying the smaller size diffusor but I wanted to be able to upgrade at a later date. So far I have removed the tubing and I'm currently using the Ehiem in/outflow devices while waiting on my glass lilly tubes. I've moved the rotala completely so that it is all together and it grows great...with each trim I'm replanting and now I've got a serious bush growing on one side and the hairgrass is exceeding all my expectations. I thought I might have to buy another two pots but give the growth of this plant, I think in a month the entire back wall of my tank will be covered by it. I'm thinking of totally removing the driftwood or getting a smaller piece, possibly replacing with some ADA rock. Mabye some Riccia as well...today I bought 10 Ottocinclus and 10 rasboras. I'm thinking of getting a few black neons too but I'm not sure...anyway, the plants are growing really well although I'm having some brown diatom algea issues, but nothing else is out of control. What experience have you had with anubias? Mine are shaded but they seem to be suffering from chlorosis and developing yellowing at the edges of the leaves. I suspect it is an iron deficiency given my parameters:

Ammonia 0ppm
KH 120ppm
GH 300ppm
Nitrates 0ppm
Nitrites 20ppm
Ph 6.2

I EI dose N once weekly, P x2 weekly and K x2 weekly with x2 Excel and once micros (Flourish). Any ideas? All the other stem plants are growing ridiculously and I'm having some slight algae on them but not like on the anubias...any suggestions? Everything else is healthy and my HC has finally started to spread out! YEAH!!

[styxx]

So here are a few updated pics...as you can see I have gotten rid of my plastic tubing only to use the Eheim intake and out-take tubing...unfortunately my custom glass lily pipes are still being manufactured. I hope to have them by the 1st! Of course with the removal of the driftwood I now am going to add some stone and plant the anubias nana petite and a. coffefolia around it...my experience with HC didn't go well since my past post and became infected with hair algae so I will soon start with glosso...





You'll note that despite my best efforts the anubias nana doesn't seem to want to turn any deeper shade of green, despite my cautious dosing of Fe. Nevertheless, it still it producing many smaller baby leaves on the rhizome...go figure...and here you see my success with the hairgrass that is spreading out roots across the tank and grows well above the height of the rim...I've also started to trim my rotalia sp. when it reaches the surface of the tank and replant it (it seems to turn red whenever it reaches this height due to light intensity)





Dane, I bet you are shocked at the forest of Rotalia sp. that I have growing here, in no small part to your help, thanks! It really has taken off and I'm quite proud of it! I think that if I had some more light intensity, much more of it would be red than what I can currently achieve with my present level of lighting...





If you have any suggestions or comments, please don't hesitate...I'm looking forward to starting my glosso soon!

[danepatrick]

when i first gazed at the rotala, i thought to myself, "wow, that rotala is mighty thick. i wish mine would keep large leaves like that." then i scroll down and read, "Dane, I bet you are shocked at the forest of Rotalia sp..." HAHA! it's sad when people can read your mind. the tank looks great mike. i have more rotala if you want it.

[styxx]

Originally Posted by danepatrick

when i first gazed at the rotala, i thought to myself, "wow, that rotala is mighty thick. i wish mine would keep large leaves like that." then i scroll down and read, "Dane, I bet you are shocked at the forest of Rotalia sp..." HAHA! it's sad when people can read your mind. the tank looks great mike. i have more rotala if you want it.

Good God, no. I have to trim it twice a week as it is, which explains why it is so thick! Now if only I could start on the Glosso we'll see how that goes...

[danepatrick]

the glosso hasn't been doing so bad for me chief. not sure how much you are looking to get started with, but i would maybe send you 2-3 little stalks. HAHA!

[mrbelvedere]

Will you be keeping the AS slope or smoothing it out? I'm not feeling the rolling hill thing. Will there be any hardscape? I know you are putting in glosso but will there be any other plants?

BTW, that Eleocharis is going to be sweet when it grows in.

[styxx]

Originally Posted by mrbelvedere

Will you be keeping the AS slope or smoothing it out? I'm not feeling the rolling hill thing. Will there be any hardscape? I know you are putting in glosso but will there be any other plants?

BTW, that Eleocharis is going to be sweet when it grows in.

I know that Eleocharis is a PITA, because sometimes it grows like crazy and then sometimes it wants to die off , believe it or not I think it actually would do better with higher light but I've already got 130W over this 20G, I mean really! I think I'm going to keep the rolling hill look. I think it might grow on you after I have the glosso covering it. I am going to get rid of the anubias that I have (except the a.coffefolia and the a. nana petites) and replant them around some "Menton stone" that Amano likes to use...

[mrbelvedere]

I don't think more light is the way to go, lol.

Why do you think the Eleocharis is dying off? Perhaps it's still adjusting?

It would look better with glosso, or even better, Elatine.