Llj's 2.5g Planted Tank Journal

[lljdma06]

llj i think those pieces are making me drool lol im so jealous. how much they cost you?

Like $15 a piece from the ADA site. Ridiculous, IMO. If it doesn't sink or if it gets mold, I'm sueing Takashi Amano.

 

[lljdma06]

Time for an update. I rescaped this tank in August and used my favorite piece of ADA wood. Here are the photos. No CO2, no ferts, 13W Compact fluorescent desk lamp. 50% Water changed 1-2x a week, depending on how tired I am. Sand substrate with bottom layer of laterite.

Plants: E. tenellus, HC, Marsilea hirsuta, last strand of Christmas moss I had been saving, Amazonia frogbit.
Stock: Was C. habrosus and C. pygmaeus, now C. pygmaeus and Boraras urophthalmoides. Great combo I think.

Pictures

The E. tenellus is going through a leaf conversion, from emersed to submerged, but the growth is strong and a beautiful, rich bright green. The Marsilea is also doing extremely well. There is very little algae in this tank. Thank you Amazonian frogbit. In this tank, the frogbit will stay, the Boraras appreciate the cover and shade and the plants in this tank aren't particularly fussy. I think the tank looks much bigger than it is, though the marsilea brings it down. I can't remove it, though, the plant is over 2 years old and it is one of my favorites. Still sporting submerged, 4-lobed growth! Very rare.

Again, thanks for looking and sorry for my absence and the delay with posting. School's less hectic now, and I have a free Saturday today. I appreciate your patience and good behavior in this section.

llj

 

[aaronnorth]

looks lovely llj although i think the marsilea is a bit to large.

 

[goin_all_out]

love the new rescape, i have a question though. have you tried growing HC in this tank with the 13W bulb before? does it grow in that amount of light? i ask this because i have read on other sites that HC has a hard time growing because there isn't enough light for it. most people with these size tanks run a 27W light with theirs. id be extremely interested as i have a 2.5gallon I'm attempting with a single 13W lamp and this might save me from buying another lamp and so i can focus on the rest of the tank. ill be watching and this thread for results for sure.

 

[lljdma06]

looks lovely llj although i think the marsilea is a bit to large.

I agree, the marsilea is too large, but would you get rid of a 2 year-old+ plant? I'm loathe to. It also helps with the tank stabilization while the other plants adjust. The E. tenellus is still switching growth forms.

love the new rescape, i have a question though. have you tried growing HC in this tank with the 13W bulb before? does it grow in that amount of light? i ask this because i have read on other sites that HC has a hard time growing because there isn't enough light for it. most people with these size tanks run a 27W light with theirs. id be extremely interested as i have a 2.5gallon I'm attempting with a single 13W lamp and this might save me from buying another lamp and so i can focus on the rest of the tank. ill be watching and this thread for results for sure.

There is HC growing in this tank, albeit, very slowy. It isn't dead, though, and has just started to spread a bit. The leaves are extremely tiny, though, much smaller than standard growth. Could be something very cool, if I'm patient enough. If it works well, I'll rgradually replace the Marsilea with it, then the tank scale will be very interesting.

 

[Mr Bliss]

Amazing that this is a 2.5g tank. The plants and decor make it look much bigger. I love the tenellus, it's one of my favorite plants and looks great the way you've planted it.

Meh, I really need to avoid these threads. I keep going "wow I want to try that too!" but I only have room for one tank at the moment.

Although I think I might have room for a 2.5 or 5g tank on my kitchen counter. Who needs a microwave anyway?

 

[lljdma06]

I'm glad people enjoyed this tank. It was fun to have. Unfortunately, I've had to dismantle it. Fortunately for me, my work load at FIU has increased. While this was great for me and my pocket book, it was lousy for my tanks. Something had to give. It was the smallest system and therefore required much more maintenance that I just didn't have time for. The fish have been rehomed, as have the plants.

llj

 

[Truck]

awww. well atleast you can hold your head up high and think, ive had a beautiful tank, and a wonderful time looking after it.

 

[saintly]

look forward to your next adventure. just out of interest, how long did it take your e tenellus to completely change its emerged form?

 

[lljdma06]

look forward to your next adventure. just out of interest, how long did it take your e tenellus to completely change its emerged form?

A few months, I think. I rescaped in September and it was in the submerged form by the time I took it down, and had been that way for a while.

It'll be a long while before I plan anything new. If a full-time faculty worked my schedule, they'd be in overload. I'm an adjunct and am paid per class, which isn't much, so I have to have a large load to make it worth my while. It's great, and I'm doing what I love, it just takes time away from the tanks.

 

[aaronnorth]

it was starting to look good aswell Did you take any final pics?