Dan's 10G Planted Tank: Inclination *New Scape on Page 11*

[hydrophyte]

This is really great--so much to see and so much dimension in such a little tank--reminds me of Bhushan's 10-gallon.

[ryan_p]

[quote=dj2005;889446]Decently sized update today (8-8-09):



/quote]

I like your tank especially this tank shot, love those red roots on top.

[CL]

I love that RRF! I could never keep mine red.

[Kayen]

I'm loving that HM bush!

[dj2005]

Thanks for the comments. I'll be removing much of the Wisteria once they begin to get too big. I'm thinking a stem or two in the back of my tank and that is all.




Edit: Another update!
Trimmed many of my plants, and I've taken all but one Wisteria out of the tank.

[ZooTycoonMaster]

Great tank! It looks much better than mine

[dj2005]

Originally Posted by ZooTycoonMaster

Great tank! It looks much better than mine

Lies.

8-17-09 Update:
After the big trim from the last update, everything seems to have slowed down in growing compared to the growth rate I was getting. I do not dose ferts other than Flourish, and I have been noticing deficiencies that come with no macro fert dosing (small, crinkled leaves with dark veins), so I assume having almost no ferts is what is limiting these plants. I've spent time browsing around gathering information about EI dosing, but since I only do 30% weekly water changes and only have Excel as a carbon source, I don't think dosing ferts would be a wise decision. Am I wrong?

Pictures:

[dj2005]

A tip to keep RRF' roots red is to not disturb the plant, at all. For the past week I've been trying to eliminate the damned duckweed, unsuccessfully I might add, and this caused the roots of the RRF to revert back to their green stage. The good news is that I've given up trying to eliminate the duckweed, and because of this, the roots are returning to their reddened stage. I may move all but a select few duckweed-free RRF and hope that they rebuild their population.

8-20-09:



8-21-09:

[dj2005]

Transferred most of my RRF to a smaller planted tank. Of the handful I currently have in this tank, there is no duckweed present. Needless to say, it is much brighter in my tank.

[sewingalot]

This is such a happy little tank. I say that because I am always smiling when I view your journal. It really is an inspiration to the beauty of low-tech. Thanks for giving me inspiration.

[Tex Gal]

I can't imagine that you will be able to get away with not fertilizing forever. I think you will see deficiencies multiply. You can dose on the limited side.

[legomaniac89]

Originally Posted by Tex Gal

I can't imagine that you will be able to get away with not fertilizing forever. I think you will see deficiencies multiply. You can dose on the limited side.

I have a soil substrate in my 20H, following Diana Walstad's example and I've never fertilized the tank at all. It's been up for almost 2 years without any kind of deficiencies.

BTW, nice looking tank Dan. This is one of the better 10g low tech's I've seen.

[dj2005]

Originally Posted by sewingalot

This is such a happy little tank. I say that because I am always smiling when I view your journal. It really is an inspiration to the beauty of low-tech. Thanks for giving me inspiration.

Glad you enjoy my journal. I've been following yours for several months as it is always a pleasure to see what is happening inside it.

Originally Posted by Tex Gal

I can't imagine that you will be able to get away with not fertilizing forever. I think you will see deficiencies multiply. You can dose on the limited side.

True, limited dosing of ferts is an option. Perhaps down the road I will do that.

Originally Posted by legomaniac89

I have a soil substrate in my 20H, following Diana Walstad's example and I've never fertilized the tank at all. It's been up for almost 2 years without any kind of deficiencies.

BTW, nice looking tank Dan. This is one of the better 10g low tech's I've seen.

A good substrate is another option, as you stated. Right now I am just using play sand so the plants aren't extracting any nutrients from that. I'll have to look into the Diana Walstad's soil substrate in the future to see what it entails. Thanks for the complement.

Tank update:
I wanted to wait until I received my new plants before making an update. FYI: If you ever see tranr posting a FS thread concerning plant trimmings over at APC forums, then hop on that deal. This is my second package from her and it is amazing how good her plant packages are. The packages were also only $7 shipped each (shipped in that nice regular Priority box rather than those tiny $5 flat rate boxes). In this package I received:
-Heteranthera zosterifolia (4-5)
-Myriophyllum mattogrossense (clump)
-Rotala rotundifolia (2-3)
-Rotala macrandra (2)
-Blyxa japonica (2)
-Najas guadalupensis (4-5)
-Vallisneria sp. with runners (4-5)
-Pistia (handful amount)
-I think another type of plant or two.

Finally, to top it off, she has excellent communication and offers helpful, in-depth advice on the plants, and even double bags and labels each plant bundle. An example:


Now for the actual tank pictures:
8-24-09:



8-29-09:
- This is after receiving the plant package, but I couldn't fit nearly all the plants, even after removing the small piece of driftwood. I would have preferred leaving the driftwood in, as I think the tank looked better with it than without, but I have no other place to stick these plants. I'll see how everything does in the following month. The Rotala macrandra will likely not make it as my tank is low-tech, while that plant is more of a high-tech plant.

[ryan_p]

your tank gets better and better. I cant still imagine its a low tech setup. This is one of the coolest low tech tank ive ever seen. keep up the good work .

[dj2005]

Originally Posted by ryan_p

your tank gets better and better. I cant still imagine its a low tech setup. This is one of the coolest low tech tank ive ever seen. keep up the good work .

Thanks!

9-1-09:
I removed the Anubias Nana as the leaves are just too large for the spot I had it in. Been getting some good plant growth over the last couple of days. Will be trimming the Pearlweed to even it out some soon.