Opinions before I plant, please! :-D

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Tank is 34g, for my two L183 plecos and school of bronze and sterbai corydora. Plus a few remaining elderly tetra, the last survivors of their school. Once those pass away, I'll likely go for a large-ish school of nano tetra or rasbora, but not sure yet.

Hardscape before planting, have fiddled with the dragonstone a bit since placing plants in:

Close ups:

Plant list:
Alternanthera sessilis
Microsorum pteropus
Lagenandra meeboldii
Crinum calamistratum
Hygrophilia pinnatifida
Myriophyllum mattogrossense
Lobelia cardinalis
Lilaeopsis novea-zealandia
Bolbitis heudelotii
Echinodorus horemanii Green
Plus another amazon sword I don't know the variety of, hydrocotyle tripartitia "Japan", a crypt I've had for a long time, think it's wendtii, 3 tiny buces (on the central wood piece right now) and a mystery plant I grew from stems I got in trade, if anyone can ID it! Will post pics of that in the comments below.

Will be ordering red root floaters once it's fully set up and trying them again - if they fail or I can't get hold of shrimp safe ones, I'll use some frogbit from my other tank, and I will likely add some weeping moss or similar to the branches on the right side.

Constructive criticism so appreciated! Or just tell me that it's wonderful and I'm a planting/aquascaping genius...
I have to finish making dinner, and not feeling brilliant so won't be planting it up tonight, so have some time to make adjustments!

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Mystery plant, looks like this when bunched together and planted,

But it's made up of tall thin stems like this, with leaves all over the stem, doesn't seem to branch out at all. Very grass like.

Looking a bit ragged since I had to move it around, but some stems send roots out, but you can see on the right, baby stems going from the shared roots

Quite small delicate roots, more stems come out from the roots, but also not hard to tease stems away from the main root ball. The whole plant is fairly thin and delicate - stems leaves and roots, but also feels fairly hardly and robust in other ways. Not hard to grow at all in a low tech set up.

How it looks from the surface.

Really like this plant, so would love to know what it is! @Wills , this is the one we weren't sure about. @Colin_T @Stan510 @mbsqw1d @WhistlingBadger @Byron hope someone will be able to tell me what it is!

 

[SomethingsFishy24]

I think it looks pretty awesome. Very "deep forest" vibes. All you would need are lacy mosses hanging from the branches to make it look like it came out of a fable. If I was a pleco, I'd like it.

I am no help with plants, I can only work with a few species as many of my Cichlids like to turn them into fancy salad if the leaves are too delicate.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I think it looks pretty awesome. Very "deep forest" vibes. All you would need are lacy mosses hanging from the branches to make it look like it came out of a fable. If I was a pleco, I'd like it.

I am no help with plants, I can only work with a few species as many of my Cichlids like to turn them into fancy salad if the leaves are too delicate.

Thank you so much! That's perfect, in my journal thread I've said since the start that I've wanted "submerged gloomy forest" vibes, so it's great if I've achieved that! The water being cloudy right now in the pics helps give that impression, lol! Not sure if it's because I've disturbed the sand again, or if the tank is experiencing a bit of a bacterial bloom at the moment, but it'll clear up either way.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

oohh, @seangee ! While you're around, would love your thoughts on tank above, and if you have any idea what the mystery plant is, pwease! *big puppy dog eyes*

 

[SomethingsFishy24]

Thank you so much! That's perfect, in my journal thread I've said since the start that I've wanted "submerged gloomy forest" vibes, so it's great if I've achieved that! The water being cloudy right now in the pics helps give that impression, lol! Not sure if it's because I've disturbed the sand again, or if the tank is experiencing a bit of a bacterial bloom at the moment, but it'll clear up either way.

You are very welcome. I will have to check out your journal, I'd say you hit the nail on the head with your setup.

Red roots would be a nice addition. Did they just melt back on you? They really do like very calm water. Mine have little tolerance to being shuffled about by currents.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

You are very welcome. I will have to check out your journal, I'd say you hit the nail on the head with your setup.

Red roots would be a nice addition. Did they just melt back on you? They really do like very calm water. Mine have little tolerance to being shuffled about by currents.

Thank you! Yep, the red roots were from an in-vitro pot, and within days they'd just vanished! And I have no plant eating fish. The only current in that tank though is from a sponge filter and a gentle HOB, but I didn't know they were so prone to that! What do you do for surface disturbance then? Stick to an airstone?

 

[SomethingsFishy24]

The ones I have are actually corralled away from the HOB by some clear tubing and suction cups. They have gone crazy now that they are static. It seems like each floating plant has a different level of movement They tolerate. My salvinia and frog bit don't mind a bit of a ride, but the red roots are not about the carousel.

 

[Sgooosh]

It seems to be some sort of hygrophila? The underside of t leaves look like the mystery plant I got when I asked if there were any free cuttings Lol.

 

[Wills]

I think this is looking really good - slightly preferred the island with the spider wood on from your journal but like what you have here

Whats the plant I've circled here? Is it the Lilaeopsis? If so I'd put that where the Pinatafida is and plant it spreading out towards the front right corner - remember to plant this in small plants an inch or so apart. Maybe put the Pinatifida a bit further back behind the crypt in the middle there? I'd also move the Crinium to the back as it is quite a big plant when it matures.

For the mystery plant are the leaves at the bottom of it like a fan shape?

If so I think its Juncus Repens which can be a challenging plant but see how it goes.

Wills

 

[Naughts]

I'm not sure if it has already been suggested for the mystery plant but it looks/ sounds like Heteranthera Zosterifolia (stargrass)? IME grows pretty fast, happy with low light?
The planting and scape are great. It is balanced yet looks natural (no artificial symmetry) and the plants are laid out around the hardscape where the smaller ones are at the front and the bigger ones to the back.
I wouldn't necessarily add a schooling fish, just because there is not a lot of open swimming space.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I'm not sure if it has already been suggested for the mystery plant but it looks/ sounds like Heteranthera Zosterifolia (stargrass)? IME grows pretty fast, happy with low light?
The planting and scape are great. It is balanced yet looks natural (no artificial symmetry) and the plants are laid out around the hardscape where the smaller ones are at the front and the bigger ones to the back.
I wouldn't necessarily add a schooling fish, just because there is not a lot of open swimming space.

THAT'S IT!!
Thank you for solving that!!
Embarrassing confession - I actually bought this one! Didn't realise it until you said Stargrass - I'd bought stargrass and planted it, but it was still tiny in-vitro bits that kept floating loose and hitting the surface, having to be replanted, and a lot of it died. Around the same time, some dude wanted to get some pygmy cories from me, and offered plant cuttings in exchange, which included the 3 buce trimmings and a couple of stems, but he didn't say what they were other than the trimmings from the buce.
So I thought the stargrass had failed, and this was what he'd given me. Whoops!
But even better that that money wasn't wasted in the end! lol

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I think this is looking really good - slightly preferred the island with the spider wood on from your journal but like what you have here

Whats the plant I've circled here? Is it the Lilaeopsis? If so I'd put that where the Pinatafida is and plant it spreading out towards the front right corner - remember to plant this in small plants an inch or so apart. Maybe put the Pinatifida a bit further back behind the crypt in the middle there? I'd also move the Crinium to the back as it is quite a big plant when it matures.

Thank you, (again!) For your patient help throughout this process! Trying to make the scape work, and failing, has had me tearing my hair out and just wanting to stick the plants in any old how and give up, lol. But feels like it's close now, just needs some tweaking.
Yep, the circled one is the Lilaeopsis, and the one you thought was a crypt is the Lagenandra meeboldii (which Tropica says is very like a wide-leafed crypt, so you were close!).
I'm a bit concerned about whether the Crinum will survive, but gonna plant it and hope for the best.

I bought too many plants for the background I think, and I wanted some more fern like plants to attach to the wood and have near the foreground, for that sunken forest/wooden cave feel. Is it ever possible to have too many plants? I do want to cram most of these fairly close together in the background, then perhaps later add some anubius and whatever fern-like rizome plants I can discover onto the rocks and wood. I just don't want a solid line of tall plants at the back, and almost nothing at the front!

@Naughts solved the identity of the mystery plant

 

[seangee]

oohh, @seangee ! While you're around, would love your thoughts on tank above, and if you have any idea what the mystery plant is, pwease! *big puppy dog eyes*

Seems like a lot of plant species. I'm really not the best to advise as mine never turn out anything like I envisage. Since I prefer low tech, low light and low maintenance I stick with what works in the tank and throw out what doesn't (just lazy really). If a particular plant is challenging or I have to work to make it grow it means the tank will soon look bad if I neglect it for a few weeks. I am quite religious about my water changes but for the plants they only get attention when they become too overgrown or leggy.

In my experience each tank has its own unique biology so it is just trial and error. The gorgeous alternanthera rosaefolia and heteranthera zosterifolia in my office tank won't grow in any of my other tanks even though the chemistry is identical in theory. Since I don't even bother with ferts anymore I haven't tried to find out why. Keep it simple and your tank will always look good. Complicate it and it needs constant attention and you have a never ending cycle of highs and lows.

 

[itiwhetu]

Mystery plant, looks like this when bunched together and planted,
View attachment 160782

But it's made up of tall thin stems like this, with leaves all over the stem, doesn't seem to branch out at all. Very grass like.
View attachment 160783

Looking a bit ragged since I had to move it around, but some stems send roots out, but you can see on the right, baby stems going from the shared roots
View attachment 160784View attachment 160785

Quite small delicate roots, more stems come out from the roots, but also not hard to tease stems away from the main root ball. The whole plant is fairly thin and delicate - stems leaves and roots, but also feels fairly hardly and robust in other ways. Not hard to grow at all in a low tech set up.
View attachment 160786

How it looks from the surface.
View attachment 160787


Really like this plant, so would love to know what it is! @Wills , this is the one we weren't sure about. @Colin_T @Stan510 @mbsqw1d @WhistlingBadger @Byron hope someone will be able to tell me what it is!

Heteranthera zosterifolia, I think