Planted 52

I dived in with both feet when setting up my Fluval Roma 200 this last month. Luckily, I've held back on stocking the tank with a haphazard selection of fish, as it stands, I have 12 x peppered corydora and basic selection of plants.

Since re-joining this wonderful forum 10 years on from leaving the hobby, where I had a 125 litre community tank, I have been inspired by a number of members' setups, notably @Russjw and @seangee and guided by some sound advice, notably @Colin_T , @Lajos_Detari , @ArmchairAquariest, @Retired Viking, @PheonixKingZ .

Just before "lock-down", I got my hands on a 2nd hand Fluval Roma 200 , the 1 metre length complimented a space I have in the back room perfectly. The tank came with a Fluval E-series 300w heater and an APS 1400 EH+ canister filter (the previous owner had a salt water setup). Hardware wise, I've added a Nicrew LED light and the notorious DIY co2 paraphernalia (citric acid and bicarb).

At this point, I had no 'aqua-scape' in mind, all I knew is that I wanted a planted tank and I wanted corys. My partner insisted that I should get goldfish, some quick reading steered me away from this - I couldn't be bothered with the inevitable rehoming of them once they outgrew the tank.

One month on I have sand substrate, a couple of pieces of driftwood, and rocks from the beach. Java Fern, Anacharis, Vals and 3 x Anubias. Other than some GHA, the tank and its inhabitants appear to be thriving (Colin_T walked me through medicating (salt) one cory which looked to have bacterial infection).

Current layout:


A: Vals, B: Anacharis, C: Anubias, D: Java Fern,
E: Rocks, F: Filter Inlet G: Leaf litter (almond),
H: Heater (22C), I: Driftwood


I recently trawled through images of aquascapes and worked out a design that I'd be content with if I can pull it off. I'll need a couple more pieces of wood and a handful of plants (which I've ordered: Ludwigia palustris, Hygrophila Siamensis, Eleocharis parvula, Echinodorus bleheri, Alternanthera reineckii)

Planned layout would resemble:

A: Vals, B: Anacharis, C: Anubias, D: Java Fern,
E: Rocks, F: Filter Inlet G: Leaf litter (almond),
H: Heater (22C), I: Driftwood
J: Echinodorus bleheri, K: Hygrophila Siamensis,
L: Ludwigia palustris, M: Alternanthera reineckii,
N: Eleocharis parvula


I'd be removing a large amount of anacharis in order to achieve this - would it be wise to do this gradually given its efficiency at nitrate removal?
The aim here, and with what @seangee had mentioned concerning low light plants - anubias and java fern in mind, the Vals (A) would create a canopy over the anubias (C) and Java fern (D) on the right. And once the Echinodorus bleheri gets to a good height, this should perform the same task for the two plants on the left. Additional plants K, L and M are to add some focal points and will provide me with more of a challenge and hopefully do well from the co2.

Hindsight is the devil and I'd love to have planned this a little better before adding the fish... ah well. Once I'm satisfied, I can crack on and get the corys some tank mates

Good luck !!
I love that Anubias. So bigg compared to mine. mine only growing leaf everyday.

Lovely natural scape , the will be happy. If you're worried about losing the anacharis's benefits cut it back to the amount you want and leave the excess floating. You can see the full effect of the rescape but still have the plant removing ammonia and providing shelter for the fish. Then remove it easily once the vals form a canopy.

Tank looks very nice. I would suggest not to leave that many Anacharis growing floating, as they tend to grow in a weird thin way. Other than that, there is really nothing else I could recommend.

Once the Vals grow in, they will cover that intake for the filter nicely.

Plants have arrived. Anacharis jungle going strong on the right... I may keep more of it than expected, it will provide good cover until the vals do their bit.
I'm also thinking I should get a spray bar as the the outlet currently 'blows' everything from right to left

Looking great!

This is coming along very nicely. Concerning the filter flow, this certainly could/should be lessened from the plants perspective, but the real factor is the intended fish. Cories will be fine with less strong flow, and you can aim it down the end wall using a spraybar, so the water then travels along the lower level of the tank to the opposite end wall and back up. This lessens the direct current. If you have fish needing more, somewhere in between. But most fish prefer less rather than more water flow.

I have just one thing to add. Enter your awesome tank in the August Tank of the Month which starts on August 1st!

job done. Will share pics soon

I continue to remove anacharis by the bucket load, although its still serving its purpose of providing some cover until the vallis grows in. The lfs had three frogbit left which i grabbed.
I have some more wood currently soaking that I need to place. Will likely strap an Anubias which is already strapped to a rock.
I randomly plonked the crypts in place and it shows... not sure where they can go, the centre/front should be reserved for the corys, and so leaf litter will be placed here.
Still yet to get the barbs in however I'd like the vallis and frogbit to take hold so theres enough cover for them.

mbsqw1d said:

View attachment 110433
I continue to remove anacharis by the bucket load, although its still serving its purpose of providing some cover until the vallis grows in. The lfs had three frogbit left which i grabbed.
I have some more wood currently soaking that I need to place. Will likely strap an Anubias which is already strapped to a rock.
I randomly plonked the crypts in place and it shows... not sure where they can go, the centre/front should be reserved for the corys, and so leaf litter will be placed here.
Still yet to get the barbs in however I'd like the vallis and frogbit to take hold so theres enough cover for them.

Click to expand...

Absolutely beautiful tank! I think it's amazing, and I prefer the after, the anacharis was dominating a bit before, but you can really see and enjoy the other plants and the clearing at the front. Like the substrate a lot too.

Thank you. The anacharis grows like mad for me, and in a good bushy kind of way. The problem is, I just don't like the look of the stuff! I know it's been invaluable in helping to get the tank cycled safely and now its providing some overhead cover. As soon as the other plants are grown in however, the anacharis will be gone!

The hygrophila (front left and right) will be moved further back in place of the anacharis and vallis.

I'm not sure how much wood is too much wood, but I certainly feel like I want more in there.

I initially wanted black sand but got impatient during lockdown and just grabbed what the lfs already had and don't mind it now, I need to get to the woods and grab some dried oak leaves to scatter around.

Looking forward to getting some barbs in there next, I've been trying to make my mind up for a while. I was fixed on Odessa for a time but they're FAST swimmers and I feel like they need a longer tank layout. Currently got my mind set on Black Rubys.

mbsqw1d said:

Thank you. The anacharis grows like mad for me, and in a good bushy kind of way. The problem is, I just don't like the look of the stuff! I know it's been invaluable in helping to get the tank cycled safely and now its providing some overhead cover. As soon as the other plants are grown in however, the anacharis will be gone!

The hygrophila (front left and right) will be moved further back in place of the anacharis and vallis.

I'm not sure how much wood is too much wood, but I certainly feel like I want more in there.

I initially wanted black sand but got impatient during lockdown and just grabbed what the lfs already had and don't mind it now, I need to get to the woods and grab some dried oak leaves to scatter around.

Looking forward to getting some barbs in there next, I've been trying to make my mind up for a while. I was fixed on Odessa for a time but they're FAST swimmers and I feel like they need a longer tank layout. Currently got my mind set on Black Rubys.

Click to expand...

Lol, the way you feel about anacharis is how I feel about the hornwort in mine! I don't love the look, and it needs trimming back so often so it doesn't dominate, which is a bit annoying. But it keeps the nitrate levels in that tank low, and it's always packed with shrimp. If they love it, who am I to argue?

About lighter substrate - I have no real design knowledge, so just my layman's impression - the clearing at the front seems like a feature that draws the eye, especially where the gap in the canopy lets the light shine down right over it. Gives it the look of the sun shining into a clearing in a glade. I don't know whether it would have the same effect if you'd used a dark substrate, so maybe one of those happy little accidents! Plus it's a very natural looking sand, not like a brilliant white. I like it a lot.

lfs had a new shipment of mangrove/bogwood and managed to find a piece that had a bit more character

Need to have a play around, I'm thinking a large piece I already have in there could rest between the 'V' shape and create some much needed height .. hmmmmm

Did some bits this morning - getting closer to what I had in mind. Removed majority of anacharis now and left a couple of stems as a souvenir.
Moved the crypts over so hope they don't melt
Amazon swords seem to be taking their time/struggling.. they do have some TNC tabs dotted around them. tbh they were quite poor when I got them, only 2-3 leaves on them.
Airline wants tidying up and I could do with a better solution for keeping floating plants in place.
Once again, need to be patient now and let it grow into place