Almost Complete, But Not Quite

[Lolly123]

So, i've been updating over the last few days in random sections and thought id post here as to the progress of the tank.

After receiving my plants today I went ahead and planted, even though the tank was full! Silly idea but i wanted to give the redmoor wood i bought a good chance of becoming waterlogged...hmm however that still hasn't happened.

The ferns and moss were easy, but with the tank being 2ft tall, I couldnt reach the bottom properly even when standing on a chair...therefore the placement of the dwarf sag is currently under experiment. I also expected them to be smaller in height than they were, but what with them being such a struggle to plant, im gonna wait to refine the placements until the 'tweezers' arrive

The tank started off like so:

After I woke up and found the wood floating i changed the layout and sent a long time getting the wood in place

Once the plants came i wanted to plant along the lines of the wood, as i said before the dwarf sag is higher than id like it to be and needs to be placed in the gravel a bit more, but for now it will have to do.

After a few final adjustments with other bits of wood the tank currently looks like this:

I would like to order some more java fern to fill up the back left corner a bit more and im still not entirely sure of the foreground layout, id love to have a carpet effect but with my tank setup, it'll never happen.

Any suggestions, criticisms etc? This is my first real planted, so if you can give any advice on how to make it look better then please do

 

[ian]

this has massive potential Lolly. Try and get a full tank shot dead on for us. I can see more java fern in there, around the redmoor.

 

[Lolly123]

this has massive potential Lolly. Try and get a full tank shot dead on for us. I can see more java fern in there, around the redmoor.

ty you know that feeling when you wake in the morning and you're a little hacked off by the plants..lol...these dwarf sags are griping me, i just dont know if i like them, but dont know what to do.

I defo need more java fern, expected more than I got but oh well!

I'll get a pic up for you today, maybe you can help me with these foreground plants

 

[ian]

I'm sure we can sort out the Sag, like i say, you have a good potential with this tank. The redmoor is great.

Are you aiming for an Island/triangle type scape?

 

[Lolly123]

okay so this is the front shot, hope you can see better. I didnt want to upload this actually because in all honesty, i think it looks crap and im hugely disapppointed. The fish are happy, but im not. I can barely reach the bottom of the tank cos its so deep, which means I cant reach to plant at the back, the clown loaches keep dislodging everything. The java moss clogged up my internal like hell so had to retie it all and hope it survives the movement of the fat a*se loaches.

One thing I am happy with is the right corner. Plants have this weird way of bringing out the worst in me. lol

 

[Lolly123]

I'm sure we can sort out the Sag, like i say, you have a good potential with this tank. The redmoor is great.

Are you aiming for an Island/triangle type scape?

Ty for the help by the way.

Well yes I kinda of am, i originally heaped up the gravel on the left to bury the redmoor wood in cos it wouldnt sink, so all in all im happy with the general lines of the hardscape. I also want to change the position of the bog wood, but just chucked it in for the plecs sake. The ferns are easy to move cos their tied to slate, i just think the dwarf sag is ruining the gradiant im trying to achieve and wondered if you know of another easy to grow plant that is smaller and would suit the tank?

I think it looks a little bare atm, so will buy some more background plants, but considering the fish went in yesterday, i dont wanna fiddle too much as they were pretty stressed.

 

[Lolly123]

after my hissy fit this morn, i went out and bought a bit of fern on bw, and some anubias. Overall, i'm alot happier with the way it looks. I've got a huge portion of moss left over so might cover the rocks if im brave enough.

 

[JenCliBee]

I have to agree with Ian and say the redmoor is stunning.

Couple of things from the scape which don't IMO look quite right and take the focus off which should be the main point which would be the redmoor. The rocks on the right hand side i found to be an instant attraction, unfortunately for the wrong reasons, there overpowering the rest of the tank with them been so big... infact i wouldn't have them over there at all my self.... but each to there own and what works for one doesnt for another .

I don't like dwarf sag, found that it grows to large and the leaves are way to big to sit near the front of the tank.... i would have tried carpeting plants myself.. marsilea hirsuata (i think this is the one, im crap with names lol ... it could be one of the other Marsilea. sp .. im on about... sure Ian or lldj would help better there), is apparently a nice plant that can be used as a carpet and quite easy to grow in lower light and relativley hardy... will make a much better feature at the front of the tank than the sag would .

The java moss would look again IMO better attach to the branches of the redmoore, infact i think weeping moss would look even better .

More tall plants in the left hand back corner behind the wood would focalise(is that even a word lol) that side and the tank and wood much better and would give that 'triangle' scape shape appearance a big boost.

Over all it really is a nice tank with as Ian has said, some great potential .

 

[Andy_G]

I love the redmoor! and keep in mind that aquascapes pretty much always look better once the plants have settled in and grown a bit. I'm really interested to see how this one turns out. Tweezers are def. the way forward for planting, i'd be lost without mine.

A

 

[Lolly123]

Actually jake, i think you are completely right, it just sprung on me when you mentioned it, i think the tank would look better with one or the other and not both. Think i'll go and take them out.

Andy - I agree yes, ive had to force myself to quite fiddling with them, if I dont let them settle then i'll probably kill them by replanting all over the place.

I do love my redmoor, its a pain at first but wouldnt do without it.

Hopefully the aquascape will grow into itself and then I can see what needs to be changed and what can stay.

TY all for replies and advice.

 

[Lolly123]

I have to agree with Ian and say the redmoor is stunning.

Couple of things from the scape which don't IMO look quite right and take the focus off which should be the main point which would be the redmoor. The rocks on the right hand side i found to be an instant attraction, unfortunately for the wrong reasons, there overpowering the rest of the tank with them been so big... infact i wouldn't have them over there at all my self.... but each to there own and what works for one doesnt for another .

I don't like dwarf sag, found that it grows to large and the leaves are way to big to sit near the front of the tank.... i would have tried carpeting plants myself.. marsilea hirsuata (i think this is the one, im crap with names lol ... it could be one of the other Marsilea. sp .. im on about... sure Ian or lldj would help better there), is apparently a nice plant that can be used as a carpet and quite easy to grow in lower light and relativley hardy... will make a much better feature at the front of the tank than the sag would .

The java moss would look again IMO better attach to the branches of the redmoore, infact i think weeping moss would look even better .

More tall plants in the left hand back corner behind the wood would focalise(is that even a word lol) that side and the tank and wood much better and would give that 'triangle' scape shape appearance a big boost.

Over all it really is a nice tank with as Ian has said, some great potential .

There we go fishyjake, i took your advice, and you were completely right. Now im gonna leave my tank alone...until the next batch of java fern i've ordered arrives.

As im looking now i think the next step will be, eventually... to pull out all the dwarf sag and replace it with something more pleasing. Get a nice hunk of java fern in the left corner to fill it up where its currently empty. And then work on the other corner. Sounds like a plan.

 

[JenCliBee]

Much better hun ....... Have a look at the plant ive mentioned earlier, if you are looking at a sort of carpet plant.

Another plant which is stunning and one of my fav's is P. helferi (ive also used this as a carpet plant).... I'm not sure what your regime on fertilisers are or the actual light over the tank but if it is all suitable for the plant then i think you would like it .


Anyways much better without the stones .. looking forward to seeing how the tank progresses

 

[SuperColey1]

Looks great. second picture is the best one. The colour looks much better. Maybe the difference in white balance from your camera when a shot is from below compared to above.

I agree on the rocks but I would have put them around the base of the redmoor and then used anubias or something similar to soften the space between the redmoor and the rocks.

Redmoor needs soaking for weeks, somethmes a couple of months really. The last time I had to rush a rescape I ended up using 4 kg of limestone rock from the garden to weigh it down. Was 5 weeks before I could remove it.

Good start and very promising.

AC

 

[ian]

looks loads better, i that was my redmoor (i wish it was), i would just add a couple of more rhizomes of java fern coming around from the left. A great attempt IMO, is this your first time at scaping a tank?

 

[Lolly123]

Looks great. second picture is the best one. The colour looks much better. Maybe the difference in white balance from your camera when a shot is from below compared to above.

I agree on the rocks but I would have put them around the base of the redmoor and then used anubias or something similar to soften the space between the redmoor and the rocks.

Redmoor needs soaking for weeks, somethmes a couple of months really. The last time I had to rush a rescape I ended up using 4 kg of limestone rock from the garden to weigh it down. Was 5 weeks before I could remove it.

Good start and very promising.

AC

lol glad im not the only one with redmoor troubles. Id love to wrap some moss around the branches, but i'll wait a while before i even touch it.

My camera is absolutely awful, its a camera on a phone thats about 4 years old. It is quite annoying because every shot i take i end up with a different tone. Ive got 1000 pounds worth of camera upstairs..shame its broken

As im being given advice, i can see it coming together bit by bit, the left corner only needs bulking up with plants, then i can work across and fit the rest of the scape in with my main focal point.

Although it still needs some revision and a few changes, im really pleased to say that my fish are not my fish...well they are, but they've grown new personalities are are highly active. My zebra loaches follow my danios about, like their shadowing them, its really sweet.

In regards to your post jake - the tank has 3 39w T5's 2 daylight and one reddish...should i be looking to change that for plants?
Im not too worried about the lighting being a bit 'high' the tank is 2ft deep, so im guessing that has an impact..?

Well ive got tpn+ and flourish excel...im guessing the excel i should dose daily and what about tpn+ should i dose everyday or every other? I know it says the amount on the bottle, but looking at my tank and my plants what regime would you recommend?

Thanks for all the help, it really makes a difference