Isabella

Hi Everyone

I've just set up my 75 gallon planted tank today. Here are some pictures of it. The way it looks right now is not the final look yet, as all the plants are still young and short. The plants in the back are all supposed to grow all the way to the top of the tank. Also, the front (foreground) looks very bare right now. I'll have to wait until the foreground plant spreads around, or if it doesn't, I'll have top get more of it.

The tank is cloudy right now and there are lots of air bubbles inside. But hopefully the cloudiness will go away in a few days.

Java Moss is missing from the setup, as it wasn't available. The bare spots on the driftwood are all for Java Moss (I'll add it when it'll be available).

My back really hurts right now. I've been setting up everything from 10 am up until about 7 pm today. I didn't know it takes that much time! Cleaning and trimming plants alone took about 3 - 4 hours, as I had to look through every single plant and leaf for snails.

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les

v nice

do u mind naming the species of plants for us ?

Isabella

http://www.fishlore.com/Forum/isabel...today-o.0.html - here is the complete list of plants.

les

Appreciate that - I will go on plant geeks and try to analyse your tank.

Once again, very nice looking tank. Very inspiring - I will try not to copy !

atmmachine816

Very nice Isabella, I like it a lot, very green . Are you going to try and add any redish plants?

Good job and wil look forward to the progress

Isabella

Les, here is some more info on the tank on Plant Geek: http://www.plantgeek.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=9058

You can also go to my board to Member Blogs (right here on Fish Lore) - there is even more info on the tank there.

And ... this is not such a nice tank. I have a lot of changes to make in it, with time. I described those changes on Plant Geek (the above link from Plant Geek) in some more detail. Plus, I don't think anybody can copy someone's tank. No one tank ever looks the same. But you may do as you please, of course

Atm, I actually have red Cryptocorynes and Red Rubin Swordplant in there. Red Rubin Sword supposedly grows all the way to the top and it gains more reddish coloration as it grows. One Aponogeton also has some reddish in it. The Crypts and the Red Rubin Sword are too small to be seen right now. They need time to grow. But I still may add more reddish plants later on.

PPK9110

nice man, i love the naturl look, i'm thinking about setting up a plant tank too, but i have no experience about plants at all.. what kind of fish do you keep in a planted tank

Isabella

PPK9110, right now there are no fish in this planted tank as it has just been set up and it needs some time to cycle. When it's cycled, I'll gradually stock it with my 2 Angelfish, 3 German Blue Rams, and schools of Zebra Danios, Cherry Barbs, Harlequin Rasboras, and Diamond Tetras.

Butterfly

Isabella the tank looks very nice! Just give it time to grow and fill out some then you can re-arrange it some if you like. six months down the road it will be very lush looking.
Carol

Isabella

Carol, the worst part of it all is that ... I want it to be lush RIGHT NOW! LOL But I know, I know, it takes time, so I'll just relax and wait I guess I will spend these following 6 months or so mostly staring at the plants, lol. No matter if the tank looks nice or not, as long as it's green. I just love the green in the tank. I love nature. Staring at a planted tank has such a calming effect on me

les

What sort of 'fertiliser' do you recommend ?

Something that will be good for the plants and kind to the fish...

I'd like this info before I go to the pet shop because they will probably try to sell me something I do not need ...

Isabella

I have been told on Plant Geek that Seachem's Flourish is good for low-light planted tanks. And this is what I got. I cannot tell you about the results yet, as the tank has just been set up. I need time with growing out the plants and seeing what will be happening. I may get algae and snails for all I know ... that's normal in new planted tanks I suppose. But of course I am hoping for the best.

There needs to be a good balance between the fertilizer, the light, and phosphate and nitrate in a planted tank (plus CO2 if one is using CO2 injections). If the balance is not there, algae are most likely to occur.

Isabella

UPDATE:

Here are some pics of the tank after it has been running for 1 week. The water has cleared up nicely and I am not getting any pH changes due to driftwood (which I thought I was going to have). Hornwort and Water Sprite have grown a bit, quite fast, over the course of just 1 week, as for a low-light and "no CO2" tank. Water Wisteria has grown a little too, but less than Hornwort and Water Sprite. Cryptocorynes are losing few leaves but they're also starting to grow new leaves from the bottom. Each of Anubias is growing a new leaf too

I am quite amazed at all of this, as I thought I'd have to wait like a month to see any growth..

*(There is the same thread as this one in my blog.)

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Isabella

Water Wisteria:

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atmmachine816

Looks realllly good, what's that hanging in the middle of the tank.

Just to say, I've found that tetra florapride provides fairly nice results for a fertilizer in a low tech tank, it's what I use.

Butterfly

Very nice! As for the crypts they are prone to "melt"(lose their leaves) when disturbed but grow them back fairly fast. Everything sounds good.
Carol

Tom

Just when it was loading on my screen, I was thinking, 'holy s***, what a beautiful tank, I wish mine was that beautiful'.
Tom

Isabella

Atm, it's the Eheim (Aquaball) powerhead. It has an adjustable flow, and you can have the water flow with or without oxygen (also adjustable). Its design is round, so you can direct the water flow in any direction in the tank. I love this powerhead.

Carol, yes, I have been reading about Crypt melt and that it's normal when they're re-planted, but that they recover fast. So, I have been expecting this to happen. But I'm not worried because- as I've mentioned above - I am seeing new leaves

LOL, Tom. I think it's mainly the light that makes ANY planted tank beautiful. The light has to be in the right spectrum (mine is 6,700K - good for plant growth as well). Also, the back is bare right now, as is the front. I am waiting for the back plants to grow all the way to the top, and the small front plants to cover the entire foreground. I want this tank to be completely covered in plants. I have to go look around for Java Moss for my driftwood - even Aquarium Adventure didn't have it lately.

tan.b

wow!!! i love your tank!! love all the little tufts of grassy stuff (dont know names-sorry!) at the front. i'm no good at the patience thing either!!! i want all my plants to grow and NOW!! but these things wont be rushed! they do grow much quicker than i expected though! i spend alot of time re-arranging. try not to disturb much more than necessary as dont want to damage roots! but mine often uproot themselves (usually after a water change and the water gets stirred up a bit when adding the water to the tank, so there's often a plant floating around somewhere and i cant remember when it was so gets planted somewhere diferent!!! plants are great for hiding filters, heaters, tubes and wires etc too. cant wait to see you tank with fish in it.......we're expecting more pictures!!!!! - keep up the good work. looks fab!
Tan

Isabella

Tan.b, some of my Vals have uprooted to so I had to position them deeper into the substrate. They seem OK now. The front "grassy" plants are Dwarf Sagittaria. It is supposed to stay small and spread on the floor. But it can grow tall too for some reason. If mine grows too tall as for the front, I'll replace it with some other grassy plants, most likely Echinodorus Tennelus (Dwarf Chain Sword).

tan.b

aaaaaaah! the grassy stuff looks similar if not the same as what i've got. mine are dif sizes. the 15 gal has very short and very long, and the 28 gal has 2x medium! i've taken the weights off them now they've rooted in the hope they'll spread. they should make good hide aways for the fry?! (if my fish ever give birth!!)
Tan

Jmarcus

Nice Real Nice. Are you going to add co2 ?, Dwarf Sags look real healthy Great job .

Marc

It's looking great - nice work!

Most dwarf sag. is shipped having been grown emersed and will more than likely end up no more than an inch or two high. Don't be alarmed if you see leaves dying off.

atmmachine816

May I ask why you use a powerhead, is it because you feel there is not enough water movement?

Isabella

Thanks Jmarcus and Marc Marc, I know that dying off leaves are normal in the beginning until the plants settle in. Some leaves on my Crypts are dying off but new ones are already growing. I suppose it will be the same with the Sag. Jmarcus, no, I am not planning on adding CO2, which is why my lighting is low.

Atm, I've been advised on Plant geek to get a powerhead for better water circulation because as plants grow and spread around the tank, they will create a "barrier" and water won't be able to circulate as well. Or so I have been told on Plant Geek. I don't think the tank would be "bad" without the powerhead, but I actually like it with the powerhead. I think the water movement is actually better with the powerhead.

inuyasha_lover_21

I love your tank. Its ready for st. Patties day LOL

Isabella

LOL, yes, only "clovers" are missing from the setup I think there are actually some aquatic plants that look like clovers

atmmachine816

Banana Plant sorta, there nice though

Thanks Isabella, was wondering about that. Did you even consider moving it down a bit to not have as much surface agiation since that will let more co2 escape?

Isabella

I don't think that's very significant since I am not using CO2 injections anyway. And I think you have to have at least some surface agitation or else the water will become stagnant. I am not adding oxygen, just pushing water inside with the pump, that's all.

Isabella

OK, I have 2 more pictures of my tank for those interested My Hornwort has grown tremendously (as has Water Sprite) as for a low-light and only 2 weeks old tank. Anubias have many new leaves. So do Cryptocorynes Sagittarias are actually somewhat slow as is Vallisneria. I thought Vallisneria would grow fast. Also Hygrophila isn't as fast as I have expected. But that's OK. It's good that I am getting any growth whatsoever in my tank

This is Hornwort, and a part of Water Sprite is visible to the right.

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