[Duboisi]

Hi All!

Wanted to share my evolving tank/journal here! Rather thin and narrow tank, but it has a nice length to work with.

Was a project that started in Dec 2019 so the tank has gone through a few phases, so lets catch up with some photos.

30x12x8 (12.5g)

The very beginning!

Here's the set up, was quite proud of the custom stand/shoe rank that fits right next to my front door.

Started out as a Iwagumi inspired tank

The Helanthium tenellum grew too quickly for my liking so I ended up switching it up with some Hygrophila Pinnatifida with some Rotala H'ra

Not sure if it was the heat or I was trimming too quickly but eventually the rotala stopped growing and stunted, then the tank kind of deteriorated.

So here I am with another refresh, this time hopefully with some easier plants, Java Ferns and Crypts. (I had some Bolbitis in there earlier but all the leaves melted away so hoping it'll recover)

Have plenty of more photos to add but figured this is a good primer/first post. Was quite fun to see the evolution side by side like this in a post also.
(Also footnote: I ended up returning some of the rummynose to my LFS so the decline in fish number was controlled, just wanted to point that out 😅)

 

[Duboisi]

Tiny update, but wow look at the coloring of these new Cryptocornye Petchii leaves! Thinking to add a few other crypt species to add more layers but also want to let the tank establish itself first.

 

[Duboisi]

Adding some more crypts around the driftwood to hopefully create a more dense feeling.

Some melt as expected, hoping they will bounce back after! Java fern barely moving too, been about a month with very little growth

Plant list so far:
Java fern
Bolbitis
C. Petchii
C. Lucens
C. Wendtii green
Eleocharis Parvula

Side view:

 

[mourip]

Nice tank. I often wonder why plexi is not more popular among our group. The rimless tanks are so expensive in larger sizes. Boy those early photos looked great. Sorry for the later struggle.

What kind of fertilization are you doing? I have a similar set of plants and found that going to a dosing system with a high quality AIO fertilizer has given me good results. I think that even low light slow growing plants like the consistency of daily automated dosing.

 

[Duboisi]

Nice tank. I often wonder why plexi is not more popular among our group. The rimless tanks are so expensive in larger sizes. Boy those early photos looked great. Sorry for the later struggle.

What kind of fertilization are you doing? I have a similar set of plants and found that going to a dosing system with a high quality AIO fertilizer has given me good results. I think that even low light slow growing plants like the consistency of daily automated dosing.

Thanks for the comments! Yes I enjoyed the first few scapes too. It's all good. Still fun to rescape and change things up too =)

For ferts I've been dosing Apt zero daily from 2hr aquarist/Dennis Wong - according to website :
total per week adds up to:
15.2ppm Potassium (K),
0.2ppm Iron (Fe),
1.6ppm Magnesium (Mg)
and additional amounts of Boron (B), Copper (Cu), Manganese (Mn), Molybdenum (Mo) and Zinc (Zn).

co2 around 3bps (any more the fish will start to breathe heavily/and be lethargic)
Chihiros RGB plus light plus running just above 50% power
70% weekly WC

The Cryptocornye and hairgrass are growing. Java Fern and bolbitis not so much. I'm assuming they are still adjusting from emersed growth? been a month so perhaps it just needs a bit more time.

About to add some nitrates/phosphates in a week or so as I just adjusted my brightness of lights so giving it two weeks to see if it changes anything first.

 

[Duboisi]

Increased my lights to hopefully grow the java fern but started to get some GSA. I'm assuming it's because of the previous lean dosing (no phosphates).

Java fern still not growing also points to nutrient limitation? Crypts and Hairgrass growing.

Tissue culture plants have mostly melted away, potted plants are doing well.

Light: Chihiros RGB A601 plus (PAR rated 43umols/s according to manufacturer)
Running at ~70-80% power)
Lighting period 8 hrs total (30 mins ramp up and down, so 7 hrs)

Currently increased weekly dosing (as of last week) to:
10 nitrates
6.7 phosphates
21 potassium
micros, 0.28 fe, 2.2mg

CO2 drop checker lime green at bottom right corner of tank. Slowly turned up until fish are gasping, now reduced so they are ok.

Hoping the new dosing of phosphates will stop the GSA and grow the Java fern. I'm guessing next steps from here is to slowly reduce light intensity?

Here's a FTS so far

Some photos showing GSA/general condition of plants

More detail pic of Java fern problem:

Also just to show how they are attached to wood (rhizomes not buried and still green)

The one healthy spot of the tank so far (newer plants so no algae yet)