# Dutch Variations



## Dr.Phantom (23 Oct 2015)

Hi all 

This is my attempt to create a Dutch scape by the book.


*Tank: *Ferplast Dubai 100 (100x40x50h)
*Tank volume:* approximately 160L
*Lighting:* Dagebao Aquawhite 39 W T5 HO (10000K) + Sylvania Aquaclassic 39 W T5 HO (5000K)
*Filtration:* JBL cristalprofi e 901
*Heating:* Ferplast Blueclima 100
*CO2: *4L bottle pressurised 2-3bps
*Fertilisation: *Vimi Micro + Vimi All in One + Emasolutions Fe  + Emasolutions K
*Gravel: *quartz gravel 3-5mm
*Substrate:* practically no substrate, occasionally JBL clay balls

*Water parameters:*
Kh - 10-12 - the only known  I do not do water tests  and only use tap water. Water change - weekly ~ 40% of the volume.

*Flora:*
Valisneria americana
Hygrophila stricta
Blyxa japonica
Echinodorus Lena
Rotala rotundifolia
Heteranthera zosteriifolia
Microsorum pteropus var. needle leaf
Cabomba caroliniana
Bacopa caroliniana
Ludwigia glandulosa
Cryptocoryne wendtii sp.
Hygrophila difformis
Hydrocotyle leucocephala

*Variation #1*


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## Andy D (23 Oct 2015)

Very nice!


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## MightyPumpkin (23 Oct 2015)

It's absolutely lovely. Lucky lucky fish 

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk


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## Edvet (24 Oct 2015)

Looking very "dutch"


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## Iain Sutherland (24 Oct 2015)

looks great, fantastic plant health.  Very impressed that you have done this with just a 900lph filter


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## Tim Harrison (24 Oct 2015)

Excellent...welcome to UKaps by the way.


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## banthaman.jm (24 Oct 2015)

Lovely tank.
Jim


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## Dr.Phantom (24 Oct 2015)

Thanks 
The condition of the plants is not as good as I would like them to be. And the filter is not very powerful - water is not always crystal clear


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## Michal550 (27 Nov 2015)

what co2 diffuser  you using?


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## Greenfinger2 (27 Nov 2015)

Hi Dr. Phantom Welcome to Ukaps 

Fab planted tank


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## PARAGUAY (27 Nov 2015)

Well thought out and great positioning of Red plants,welcome to UKAPS


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## Dr.Phantom (5 Dec 2015)

Thanks for your comments 



Michal550 said:


> what co2 diffuser  you using?



I am using http://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/the-best-aquarium-ceramic-CO2-diffuser_1135687292.html placed under the filter outflow flute.


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## Michal550 (12 Dec 2015)

Your  tank looks great!  I'm working on something similar at the moment. Do you use reflectors with your t5?


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## Dr.Phantom (20 Dec 2015)

Michal550 said:


> Your  tank looks great!  I'm working on something similar at the moment. Do you use reflectors with your t5?



Yes, Michal, I use jbl reflectors.


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## Dr.Phantom (27 Jan 2016)

Today's view... a never-ending experiment 

*Variation #2*


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## zozo (27 Jan 2016)

Awsome tank!! Very nice.. You should shoot a video and use this as soundtrack.. Not very Dutch but it suits your nick.. And it's a tremendous camel ride.. As exotic as your tank..



Btw what's that rasta smurf with the red had in the lh back corner??


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## Michal550 (27 Jan 2016)

you need some reds!


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## Dr.Phantom (27 Jan 2016)

Michal550,
I have one dark red echinodorus and limnophila aromatica (behind bacopa). It was planted yesterday, therefore, has not yet appeared on stage


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## Dr.Phantom (6 Mar 2016)

A small update  Your comments are welcome 

*Variation #3*


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## Alexander Belchenko (6 Mar 2016)

Wow! For me it looks like a proper dutch tank. And nice school of fish. Have you trained them?  

But I'd remove red ludwigia stems at the center. It looks out of place atm.


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## Michal550 (6 Mar 2016)

Looks nice. What is the plant in rear right corner? Is it hygrophila polysperma?


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## Dr.Phantom (6 Mar 2016)

In theright, yes, it's hygrophila polysperma, in the left corner - shinnersia rivularis weisgrun


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## Dr.Phantom (6 Mar 2016)

Alexander Belchenko, thanks. No, the fish are not trained LOL. Ludwigia will be moved out as soon as a new tank is equipped


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## Dr.Phantom (4 Apr 2016)

Current view
*Variation #4*


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## MWS (4 Apr 2016)

Superb tank


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## Greenfinger2 (5 Apr 2016)

Hi Dr Phantom, Superb Love it


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## Dr.Phantom (8 May 2016)

After algae infestation 
Pogostemon helferii and hygrophila polysperma do not feel well, limnophila hippuroides/aromatica has lost its colour and is rather pale.


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## Michal550 (9 May 2016)

Is it the picture or you added more light?


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## Ludvig_swe (9 May 2016)

Im really impressed by your growth considering youre not using any substrate  Too bad you removed the zosteriifolia, it looked awesome in your tank. Also, have you updated your light fixture since the light was more yellowy in the earlier photos or is it just a change of camera settings?


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## Dr.Phantom (9 May 2016)

Ludvig_swe said:


> Im really impressed by your growth considering youre not using any substrate  Too bad you removed the zosteriifolia, it looked awesome in your tank. Also, have you updated your light fixture since the light was more yellowy in the earlier photos or is it just a change of camera settings?



Hi, 
This is just camera settings. The lighting fixture is standard Ferplast Dubai 2x39 T5 HO, but I have changed lamps to Philips TDL (if I remember it right) and both are 6500K.
Yeah, there's no substrate, only fish poo LOL  And I think too much of it. I have started using Microbe-lift special blend to try to avoid the restart of the tank 
There was a period of time, when the plants have been deteriorating, that's why heteranthera zosteriifolia had to go  At the moment the tank is recovering from the mix of algae.


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## Michal550 (10 May 2016)

what caused algae outbreak?


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## Dr.Phantom (10 May 2016)

I think it was because of new lamps and fertilizers (I have not noticed the expiry date and continued to doze it). But it is really hard to tell exactly.


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## Dr.Phantom (14 May 2016)

Several pictures after trimming...
Comments are welcome  Currently the tank is far from perfection


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## Marius (5 Jun 2016)

Fantastic view.


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## Dr.Phantom (14 Jun 2016)

Today's view 
*
Variation #5*


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## Alexander Belchenko (15 Jun 2016)

Today's colors are more vivid! Cool photo


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## rebel (19 Jun 2016)

such classic Dutch technique~! What a statement to make to achieve this without fancy aquasoil etc. Kudos!


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## Dr.Phantom (20 Jun 2016)

Thanks for nice words 
Definitely there is much to do to improve the layout of plants and to shape groups. My initial goal was to make a dutch style aquascape on plain gravel. I think, I have achieved this goal  It is really possible to have plants in a relatively good condition without those high-end aquasoils and big investments


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## Dr.Phantom (25 Jun 2016)




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## Robert H. Tavera (26 Jun 2016)

It's looking really good, you have improve allot!! 

Where did the fish go?? Are you planning to add new ones? A large group of mosquito rasboras will look amazing in there. 

According to the "Dutch rules" you have too many plant species in there, but looks really good for me. 



Enviado desde mi iPhone utilizando Tapatalk


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## Dr.Phantom (26 Jun 2016)

Robert H. Tavera said:


> Where did the fish go?? Are you planning to add new ones? A large group of mosquito rasboras will look amazing in there.



The fish are there: 15 hyphessobrycon eques and 10 corydoras panda. Somehow they avoided being photographed this time  I thought to change h. eques to h. amandae, but it's a nightmare to get them out from this jungle 



Robert H. Tavera said:


> According to the "Dutch rules" you have too many plant species in there, but looks really good for me.



Yes, currently there are 14 species of plants, but all of them are the plants I like and it's very difficult for me to remove one or another species. Maybe I'll reduce the number in the future.


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## Dr.Phantom (22 Jul 2016)

The current "reconstruction" works of the layout  The layout is not finished yet - some plants (I think pogostemon octopus and hygrophyla polysperma) will be replaced (most probably blyxa will have to go as well???). Your comment's/suggestions are very welcome.

*Variation #6*


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## Alexander Belchenko (22 Jul 2016)

The left part looks a little bit crowded. Maybe due the narrower groups of plants than on the other side. What do you think?


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## Dr.Phantom (22 Jul 2016)

Alexander, thanks, I will consider this. Most probably I will remove staurogyne and enlarge the group of didiplis.


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## Manisha (22 Jul 2016)

This tank looks very healthy and your choice of fish compliment your aquascape brilliantly - very impressive in my opinion ☺


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## Dr.Phantom (23 Jul 2016)

Manisha, thanks  But there's still a lot to do with the layout of plants.


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## Dr.Phantom (19 Aug 2016)

IAPLC ranking #1301


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## Manisha (20 Aug 2016)

Congratulations!


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## Dr.Phantom (22 Sep 2016)

Current view. Did not notice that rotten corymbosa leaf on rotala    or just was lazy to take it out  Alternanthera rosanaerwig was eaten down by amano shrimps, so had to replace its remain with nymphaea rubra. Also, some trimming needed...


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## Alexander Belchenko (23 Sep 2016)

This bush in the centre is something! Very cool tank. Does it require much time for keeping it so great?


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## Dr.Phantom (23 Sep 2016)

Maintenance is about 1,5-2 hours per week for uprooting and trimming from the bottom plus water change. the dosing of ferts is very chaotic - every other day or once per week micros plus iron


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## Dr.Phantom (24 Sep 2016)

The red beauty 


 

After trimming... Somehow made myself to trim some plants... Bacopa and didiplis have to be the different hight, but I'll try to do this next time LOL


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## Greenfinger2 (24 Sep 2016)

Dr Phantom, Simply Wonderful  Fab photos too


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## Dr.Phantom (24 Sep 2016)

Thanks, Greenfinger2  there's still much space for improvements. Though it might seem from the first sight that the Dutch style is simple, I am not even half-way in mastering it. In my opinion, this style is the most difficult among other aquascapeing styles...


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## Daveslaney (26 Sep 2016)

Great plant health.
Nice one.


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## GHNelson (26 Sep 2016)

Very  nice....I would remove the plant from the right front corner it distracts from the Lily rubra, add something low growing there!
hoggie


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## Dr.Phantom (26 Sep 2016)

Hi,
hogan53, thanks, I'll consider your suggestion


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## Dr.Phantom (29 Oct 2016)

Something went wrong and some plants have started losing their condition...


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## EdwinK (30 Oct 2016)

Update us with more info and we will try to help.


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## Phil Edwards (30 Oct 2016)

Hey there Dr. Phantom,

First off, I'd like to say how nice it is to see someone sticking closely to the Dutch style.  Yours is one of the nicest I've seen outside of the group of Masters.  Have you considered entering it in the AGA Dutch category?  I think it would be well received there.

If I may add a couple of minor critiques-
1. The lily is a bit too far forward and to the right, try moving it into the hollow next to the Bacopa that's currently taken up by Staurogyne.  That'll put it in a good focal position and give you better shape and color contrast with the surrounding plants.

2. You're using a lot of similarly colored, fine leaved, species in the main section so the overall impression is lessened.  Consider adding a darker leaved species with a bit larger foliage such as Anubias or Cryptocoryne to provide better contrast.  Lobelia cardinalis would be another good choice and is one of the classic standards that'll lend the tank a more authentic impression.

3. I think I get what you're trying to do with the Staurogyne.  It's making a nice street, but it's too similar in leaf shape and color to the Bacopa next to it to give good contrast.  

4. The moss piece looks VERY nice and does a great job of adding some front-to-back interest and light vs. dark contrast.  Consider moving the Bacopa to the left space where the Didiplis is currently.  That'll give good contrast on the left side and will open up some space to bring the moss around the front in a curve partway along the Stauro border.  Doing so will open up a space for a broad leaved species as previously mentioned.

Overall though, this is quite a pleasing tank and you're doing a great job working within the constraints of the Dutch style.  *Thumbs up*

Regards,
Phil


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## Dr.Phantom (30 Oct 2016)

Phil,
Thanks for the comments. I will definitely consider them for the improvement of the layout. 

EdwinK,
JBL tests show the following values:
Fe - 0,1-0,2
NO3 - 10-20
PO4 - 0,4-0,6

Micros and Fe are dosed on a daily basis, plus K after the water change (25 % of the volume on a weekly basis).


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## Dr.Phantom (22 Nov 2016)

Variation #5 has been certificated 

IAPLC ranking #1301
AGA2016 Dutch category 10th position
2nd ISTA International Aquascaping Contest world ranking 295


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