90L Dirted Planted Tank

[gwand]

Results are in
View attachment 357665
I will admit I thought the Nitrate would have been lower. But at least it's not dangerously high levels. I make it out to be between 10-15ppm?

It looks like the ammonia level is .25 ppm. That is not good. Maybe it is just the way it looks online.

 

[MattW]

That is the only other pic I got of the test tube sadly

 

[CassCats]

Looks more 0 to me, at most could be 0.25pp but it's barely even there if at all.

 

[MattW]

Well, that flew by​

The tank is now a year old since setup.

 

[MaloK]

Outstanding ! I love it.

 

[MattW]

I don't think I ever showed a video of them at feeding time, so here it is. On the menu Fluval bug bites

 

[MattW]

Well, another little update.​

First plants. I removed the failing Rotala on the right and moved around/added stems in its place. So now all the Hygrophila and Ludwigia are on the right along with some new Bucephalandra Theia Red & Lamandau in front. I added some young Crypt undulatus into the terracotta pot which seems to be doing well. The Rotala indica seems on its way out too so I'll either find a replacement or allow the crypts to spread there. Next, I've added L.sessiliflora along the back wall where possible and have allowed it to grow and spread across the surface of the water and mix with the terrestrial plant roots and some new floating plants (Hornwort & Hydrocotyle tripartita). Now onto the left side. I have added Mermaid weed and Pogostemon Q. 'Octopus' behind the Anubias and rocks which have given the tank a proper jungle look. Will be even better when fully grown

Now onto an equipment addition. Some will know I've been battling CyanoBacteria for a while, especially in the substrate on the right side. I've done some form of a blackout, reduced lighting and fertiliser and still had no improvements. So the only cause I can think of is lack of flow. I added in a little pump with a flow director pointing to the bottom right corner. I've had it running for about a week and have seen a small decrease in CB on the right side. So I will keep it running and see if it can reduce it significantly over time.

Onto the stocking. No changes to the numbers at the moment. I did see a group of eggs on some water lettuce the other day which is a good sign but the survival rate of an egg or hatched fry is quite minimal in that tank. My oldest amano shrimp from the original trio I got back in 2021 is still going strong! You can actually see her fighting over an algae wafer at the start of the video on the rock. I had been thinking of adding in another species of some sort in low numbers of course but can't seem to find anything that would fit the tank well yet. I will continue to search for potential candidates over the coming months.

 

[connorlindeman]

I always like a top down shot of a planted tank.

 

[MattW]

Snails & Algae​

So I have barely touched this tank recently apart from feeding and Water top-ups every 2 weeks. Thread algae has taken over again, which is great. It loves mixing with CB and this red-looking thread algae, which could also be some form of CB. I know its causes are high lighting and excess nutrients, so starting today, I'll be stopping any dosing and reducing feeding to once a day again and having a look at the lighting. It seems to enjoy growing amongst the pothos/hemigraphis roots, which is good and bad as it creates shelter for the fish/shrimp, but it does look a tad ugly.

My ricefish bucket has become home to a growing group of Ramshorns. I fished some out to add to this tank. The current snail population in the 90L is very low, with even the original bladder snails dying out. So I'll reboot the population with these guys to help with the green spot algae and leftover food.

Also caught the amanos this morning. Not seen this behaviour in ages.

 

[MattW]

Eggs & Plants​

Captured this the other day. Must be a good sign since it's the first time I've ever seen this! It will make great fish food when dropped

Just remembered I was supposed to do an updated plant list. So here it is

Aquatic Plants

• Cryptocoryne undulatus
• Cryptocoryne nurii
• Cryptocoryne wendtii brown
• Cryptocoryne parva
• Staurogyne repens
• Crinum calamistratum
• Nymphea Tiger Lotus red
• Water Lettuce
• Hygrophila polysperma
• Bucephalandra Lamandau
• Bucephalandra Theia Red
• Lilaeopsis brasiliensis
• Marsilea crenata
• Micranthemum Monte Carlo
• Pogostemon Q. 'Octopus'
• Proserpinaca Palustris 'Mermaid weed'
• Ludwigia repens
• Hornwort
• Anubias Nana
• Anubias congensis
• Anubias Coffeifolia
• Limnophila sessiliflora
• Vallisneria spiralis Rubra
• Schismatoglottis prietoi

Emergent plants

• Hemigraphis repanda
• Epipremnum Pinnatum Aureum