Journal

[mattb]

Really nice tank, seen quite a few looking round the net but imo that is one of the better ones i have seen, really like the red of the lily against the greens. Wish i had the talent(space, money and willing parents) to let me do one like that!!

 

[Themuleous]

Very very nice, looks even better from the front, what are you're plans for it now?

Sam

 

[Fillet 'O' Fish]

Wow ...awsome looking tank m8

 

[netcode]

wow planter.. thats some serious plant action. looks great! your plants are so healthy and green i am surprised.. looks like you are living up to your name

 

[planter]

ok i know its been a while . Nothing much to report really other than work work work and not much time to play plant tanks!!! managed to keep up water changes but didnt find much time to trim up until recently. Trouble is the long stem plants ( along with the riccia i was growing on for another project) grew over the surface blocking out light resulting in my Glossostigma reaching for the surface!!! and spoiling my nice tight foreground carpet but hey ho life goes on.

Looking overgrown -

So i had a big trim and decided to out the Riccia and the Nomaphila Stricta that was blocking out all the light. Think it looks a bit better without it. Couldnt beleive how long the stems were!

Cuttings -

After taking a few pics side on I decided to try removing my black background and am living with it like this for a while to see if i prefer it what do you think?

without Background -

All comments welcome!

 

[Kuhni]

I liked it better with the background as it enhanced the colours of the plants while also concealing the internal filter you have.

 

[planter]

I liked it better with the background as it enhanced the colours of the plants while also concealing the internal filter you have.

yeah i know what you mean about the equipment/pipework showing Im sure i can hide some of it I just like the way the tank looks as thought theirs no water in it! all those tiny oxygen bubbles whizzing round showed up well against the black background. cant see em now! like i said just trying it out for a while may well go back to the background. Thanks for your comment

 

[RadaR]

Good trimming. I still love the colour of that Lilly. I have a question, wouldnt the top leaves of the plants block out light to the other part of the plant below and result in the leaves and stem rotting? I havnt noticed this in your tank however, so im kinda confused.

 

[planter]

Good trimming. I still love the colour of that Lilly. I have a question, wouldnt the top leaves of the plants block out light to the other part of the plant below and result in the leaves and stem rotting? I havnt noticed this in your tank however, so im kinda confused.

thanks radar

Yeah I have expierienced this which is why i removed the nomaphila from the back left corner. It had gone very bare at the base of the stems and I had been collecting the dead leaves from the surface. I guess though if you had enough light It may not be an issue! Im using 4 T5 lamps but once the surface is covered even they wont penetrate. So keep trimming is the answer I guess! Remeber this is my first 'PROPER' planted tank so I think I over did it a bit on the intial planting and did not quite anticipate just how fast the plants would grow and spread so it has got to the point where its looked cramped but im getting there and its all a learning curve!

 

[RadaR]

Ah right. Clear as crystal now.
Keep up the good work.

 

[K-Hulk]

Nice tank mate ~ Aesthetically pleasing.

 

[George Farmer]

Nice updates.

The glosso growing upwards actually looks pretty good! Got any spare!?

 

[planter]

thanks again for your comments k-hulk/gf !

George Ive contemplated removing the glosso because its not how I origionaly pictured it looking and am stuck between feeling 'ive let it GO' and 'actually it doesnt look that bad' its not in its best condition at the moment mate as some of the earlier horizontaly growing runners have turned yellow and seem to be dying. Not sure if this is simply because its not getting enough light or if im not dosing enough ferts? Im using the Tropica plant nutririon + at the recommended dosage then topping up mid week with a half dose! maybe i should up it? what do you think?

still liking it without the background

 

[George Farmer]

I'd dose every other day. Dose the recommended amount for the week but every other day (3x week). 50% weekly water change will prevent excess build-up. Think of it as an easy EI, this is what I may do in my 33 gal.

Glosso is a hungry plant, both for light and nutrients. Try to keep the light unobstructed from it as much as possible. You mention horizontal runners dying. Horizontal suggests enough light so it could be nutrient defs.

Dose as suggested, keep up CO2, unblock light and see how you get on.

Good luck.

 

[planter]

so George just to clarify you mean dose the weekly dosage 3 times in a week OR dose the weekly dosage in thirds over the week? Im guesing you mean up the dosage to 3 x recommended! I think all WAS well with the horizontal glosso until i let the long stemmed plant and the riccia block out the light! although I have just had my first yellow new leaf on an otherwise very healthy Echinodorus 'Oriental' Another case for upping the ferts? or maybe adding additional Iron? appreciate your help!