[amphirion]

started with this hardscape:

thought things were going well...
then realized that akadama is an amazing phosphate binder, effective at sucking P right out of the water column. even with my attempts to massively dose with P, and before you know it, see all that wonderful nana petite in the photos above? all reduced to green rhizomes now....

realizing that the akadama had to be removed, got some of the tried and true magic dirt, and took advantage of the opportunity to remake the tank.
here's the result of that:


the blyxa had a moderate blow against it while in akadama...the newest leaves look ridiculously promising though. i guess there isnt a lack of iron...


trying to get multiple stems in a relatively short period of time by laying stems of H. pinnatifida and B. sp. japan horizontally instead of vertically. this theoretically activates nodes along the stem to make stems and roots systems of there own. it looks like it's working...but i lack patience.


as many of you might know, the low phosphate levels allows green spot algae to run rampant on almost everything--rocks, older leaves, etc. i had purchased some otos that looked slightly scrawny but otherwise healthy. very happy to see them producing tons of green poop and having full bellies...

 

[Bserve]

:O No more Nana?

 

[Axelrod12]

Too bad all that nana petite melted back. That was an impressive collection of it. I like the new scape though.

 

[amphirion]

Nana took a really hard hit. New leaves are currently growing again. Some of the smaller rhizomes didn't make it though. Hopefully the bare rhizomes will be stimulated to make more growth points. Anyone know how to induce this?

 

[amphirion]

quick update:


same blyxa posted before:

 

[Jalopy]

That Blyxa looks awesome, what are you dosing?

 

[Axelrod12]

That Blyxa looks awesome, what are you dosing?

This. That blyxa has some serious color to it. What lighting are you using as well?

 

[Ebichua]

I didnt even know blyxa could get that red. Wow!

 

[MrAlmostWrong]

I've had Blyxa get reddish tips, but nothing like the whole plant turning purple. That's beautiful.

 

[amphirion]

Thanks very much guys. Im a big fan of the blyxa as well, definitely the show of the tank! if you notice in the far right bottom corner, there's a mound of blyxa there too, no where near as crazy as the other one, but im okay with that.

Dosing is EI, high CO2, temps are @ 75F.

It's growing in close proximity if not on my lava rock, so it could be taking advantage of the iron found in it, as well as the iron fertilizer added in daily.

Lighting is made up of 2 65W PCFs, 1 @ 6400K and the other @ 10000K.

also it's in the path of the water outflow if that has something to do with it.

I didnt even know blyxa could get that red. Wow!

To be honest, I didnt think it could get that red either! originally I wanted only plants that were green/blue, but decided to hell with it after seeing it grow so well!

 

[sleepingdeep]

just out of curiosity, where did you get the rock for your hardscape. it looks like lava rock, but i love that its long pieces rather than round. any help would be so appreciated. love your tank!

 

[amphirion]

just out of curiosity, where did you get the rock for your hardscape. it looks like lava rock, but i love that its long pieces rather than round. any help would be so appreciated. love your tank!

They were found outside the front of a friend's apartment. Became friends with the landlord through small talk and originally asked where she purchased them, she replied that they were found when they were redoing the front of the apartment. Then she told me that I was welcome to take any pieces I found interesting. So your guess is as good as mine--but if I were to guess, they were probably from a landscape vendor.

 

[amphirion]

progression picture:

a tank highlight:

 

[Jalopy]

Looks awesome. Did you glue the rocks together? How do you clean in between the rocks?

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[amphirion]

Looks awesome. Did you glue the rocks together? How do you clean in between the rocks?

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No glue was used on the rocks-- they were just strategically placed. Whenever I actually clean the rocks, I use a watercolor brush which does the job pretty well. Otherwise the Pygmy cories and Otos do a good job.

 

[amphirion]

moved a few things around, added a few more things...

how the tank stands today:

stumbled upon for the first time: the undersides of H. pinnatifida. metallic pink!

not sure on the exact id on this one... best guess is Rotala macrandra, but cant settle on the variant. any guesses?

as always, thanks for taking a look!

 

[samee]

That is some really nice scaping. I think if you can fill out the bottom and the nooks and crannies in the rocks it would multiply the height factor.

 

[amphirion]

That is some really nice scaping. I think if you can fill out the bottom and the nooks and crannies in the rocks it would multiply the height factor.

i agree. but it's all a waiting game from here on out. pretty much can only prune to encourage multinodal growth at this point. thanks for taking a look!

 

[Jalopy]

Looks boss as is. How did you manage to plant everything between the rocks?

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[Dantrasy]

wow. only just found this thread. very nice indeed. going to put any more red on the right?