60cm nature scape v2

samc · 10 Dec 2009

i decided to take my tank down the other day as nothing was going right with it. i belive there was not enough light. i am going to buy a MH soon 😀 .

i wanted to try a naturescape again using manzanita wood i got yesterday which is great. i was inspired by an amano scape in the gallery. after cutting a few bits down and a few ajustments i came up with a layout after about 30 mins 8)

there will be rotala sp green and nanjeshan in the back corners with HM in front. acicularis, tenellus and crypts and a lileaopsis carpet

some parts are there for planting purposes. the wood will be covered in moss. planting will be within the next week 😀

aaronnorth · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

i belive there was not enough light.

light is never a problem (within reason). concentrate on CO2 & nutrients.
Using a MH will just make things worse if you cannot get it right with 2 x 24w T5. That is plenty of lighting, and is a figure most people use due to luminaires coming with that wattage.
I used 36w T5 and had no problems growing plants (except vallis :twisted:

)

But anyway the new wood positioning looks good :thumbup:

samc · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

aaronnorth said:
i belive there was not enough light.

Click to expand...

light is never a problem (within reason). concentrate on CO2 & nutrients.
Using a MH will just make things worse if you cannot get it right with 2 x 24w T5. That is plenty of lighting, and is a figure most people use due to luminaires coming with that wattage.
I used 36w T5 and had no problems growing plants (except vallis )

But anyway the new wood positioning looks good

i know what you mean but the stems just didnt like the low light. i double dosed EI and had the dc on yellow and flow all around and nothing pearled. if the MH does make things worse then i learn.

this tank should be better with planting. also there will be a pathway of the lileopsis down the centre

chump54 · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

the wood looks fantastic... and the plant choice sounds good, what about some moss on the wood too. not too much as that wood looks great.

sometimes starting again is the best option. a fresh perspective.

oh and as Aaron says... CO2. and I would stick with your lighting too.

good luck

Chris

Mark Evans · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

samc said:
i know what you mean but the stems just didnt like the low light

now, many will say stems can be grown in low light, and of course this is true. but IME there are a few varieties that require quit high light to look there best. HM being one of them.

whether you go down the luminaire route, or MH route, you need to get everything good for a hassle free tank. A little less room for manoeuvre with MH but I'm sure you can crack it.

great looking wood sam.

aaronnorth · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

HM being one of them.

But I go back to the 36w on my tank again, which had HM - that grew fine :thumbup:

(im not sure how it could look better, but I suppose I wont know until I see it under "extreme" lighting which I will pobably never use!)

But i'll shut up now and let the journal continue :silent:

Thanks, Aaron

Mark Evans · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

aaronnorth said:
But I go back to the 36w on my tank again, which had HM - that grew fine

true matey, i remember. it grew up though.Nice if that the effect your after, but HM looks better low and bushy IME/O

this is my point. stems will grow in any light, but to get the 'special effects' you need higher lighting. dense, crawling growth of HM needs high light. it's that simple.

I've now got rotala rotundifolia 'crawling' under quite high light.

it may not be the intensity, but more the wavelengths the plants utilise. so a MH lamp suspended gives a different type of light than 2 x 24 low to the tank....possibly 😀

Mark Evans · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

sorry sam for the quick hi jack.

here's a pic of autumn blush, the HM is on the left. this, under MH never ever grew upwards. it stayed real low. i guess it's what effects your after.

aaronnorth · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

Hi,

this is my point. stems will grow in any light, but to get the 'special effects' you need higher lighting. dense, crawling growth of HM needs high light

it stayed real low. i guess it's what effects your after.

exactly, as far as health goes adding more light will not solve the problem of melting stems :thumbup:

- which was my point, rather than the look you are after.

if I can get perfect(IMO) health (not shape) under less light than Sam is currently using, then surely that must mean low light isnt an issue in this case, which is what I am trying to get at.
because as we know, more light = greater demand for nutrients & CO2, so just start off and get it right under the 2 x 24w, before making the jump to MH.

Thanks, Aaron

Mark Evans · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

aaronnorth said:
greater demand for nutrients & CO2, so just start off and get it right under the 2 x 24w, before making the jump to MH.

very true, and something Sam will endeavour to find out. Given the fact that Sam can physically raise the MH lamp, he'll have tons of room for experimentation. 😀

aaronnorth said:
if I can get perfect(IMO) health (not shape) under less light than Sam is currently using, then surely that must mean low light isnt an issue in this case, which is what I am trying to get at.

admittedly, I veered of into another tangent. :lol:

one step ahead of myself.

like the age old adage, HC will grow under low light, but wont look compact until under high light (waits for barrage from HC growers :shifty:

) i've veered off again :lol:

samc · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

i dont mind a good debate guys 😀

i really want the HM to grow low and bushy especially for this scape. i am sure the ferts and co2 wont be an issue but only time will tell 😀

saintly said:
aaronnorth wrote:if I can get perfect(IMO) health (not shape) under less light than Sam is currently using, then surely that must mean low light isnt an issue in this case, which is what I am trying to get at.

admittedly, I veered of into another tangent. one step ahead of myself.

like the age old adage, HC will grow under low light, but wont look compact until under high light (waits for barrage from HC growers ) i've veered off again

one thing about me is that i allways want everything to be perfect. really healthy plants. not a spec of algae ect and i wont be happy until i reach that point

AdAndrews · 10 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

samc said:
one thing about me is that i allways want everything to be perfect. really healthy plants. not a spec of algae ect and i wont be happy until i reach that point

i'm the same mate, sometimes it makes me want to quit :lol:

Mark Evans · 11 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

samc said:
one thing about me is that i allways want everything to be perfect. really healthy plants. not a spec of algae ect and i wont be happy until i reach that point

you can add me to that list. any sign of algae, and i freak out!

aaronnorth · 11 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

saintly said:
samc said:

one thing about me is that i allways want everything to be perfect. really healthy plants. not a spec of algae ect and i wont be happy until i reach that point

Click to expand...

you can add me to that list. any sign of algae, and i freak out!

The only algae(s) I dont like seeing is hair type. I dont mind GDA, and in fact quite like it :thumbup:

TBRO · 12 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

I really like the wood sam, I think I know the ADA scape you mean (shot from above, mossy wood with ember tetras at the front). I'm thinking of downsizing my tank to a rimless job like your's. What are the dimensions?

I also think that stems like rotala grow more compact under high lighting and leggy under weaker light.

Looking foreward to the planted version - Tom

samc · 12 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

thanks tom 😀

this is the ada scape

is that the one? i dont think it is, but i know which one you mean. i really like that one too. the tank dimentions are 60x40x40. i really like the depth but the height is sometimes hard to work with.

that was my inspiration, mine is quite different though. planting choice is also similar 😀

TBRO · 12 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

Hey Sam, yeah that's the scape I was thinking of, there is a nicer picture in Amano's portfolio, in his photo website. Really deep tanks are difficult to scape, my Fluval osaka is 60 cm deep which is too much for me. I definatley want to give somthing like this a go, so I'll watch this space with anticipation - Tom

samc · 15 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

yesterday i recieved my order from plantedbox 😀 the plants were very good and i had to many crypts. 2 pots too many if anyone wants to buy them?

anyway a started as soon as i got home and didnt finnish at midnight so filled it today :lol:

my halide also turned up today and its amazing, it will be put up tomorrow.

plants as follows:

Bolbitus heudelotii
Java fern 'narrow'
Vesicularia dubyana
Lileaopsis nova-zealandiae
Cryptocoryne wendtii 'green'
Micranthemum micranthemoides
Hydrocotile leucocephalis
Anubias bonsai
Rotala sp 'green'
Rotala nanjeshan
E tenellus
E acicularis
heres how it went. sorry i dont own a tripod and my bed is not very stable, so pics vary 😀

first i added the ferns and anubias. i cut most of the ferns right down so they are not visible atm

next i added the lileaopsis

next i added the moss

next i added the stems, crypts and tenellus.

straight after filling

equipment added

andyh · 15 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

Excellent pics, looks great! Really like the mix of plants, gives it a more natural feel. :thumbup:

What height are you /have you mounted your MH at? 😵

samc · 15 Dec 2009

Re: 60cm nature scpae v2

thanks andy :thumbup:

i will hopefully get the light mounted tomorrow. it will be about 2ft+ to start with

60cm nature scape v2

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