# Mirkwood - ADA 45P



## Mikeba (21 Feb 2018)

Hi there,

New scape, so that means a new journal! 

This one will run next to my 60P, so 2 scapes at the same time ... exciting times ahead!

Let's dive into the specs:

*The setup:*

*Tank: *
ADA 45P ( 45x27x30cm)

*Light:*
Twinstar 450E

*Filter:*
1x Fluval 106

*Other Equipment: *
Inline atomic CO2 diffusor
Lily Pipes (outflow)(inflows)

*Hardscape: *
Seiryu stones
Spiderwood

*Substrate: *
ADA Aquasoil Amazónia
ADA La plata sand
ADA La plata sand (big)
ADA Colorado sand
Dennerle Baikal 3mm

*Ferts:*
Planted Box All-in-one

*Plants:*
Not sure yet.

*Photos:*




ADA 45P - Mirkwood



ADA 45P - Mirkwood



ADA 45P - Mirkwood



ADA 45P - Mirkwood



ADA 45P - Mirkwood



ADA 45P - Mirkwood



ADA 45P - Mirkwood


Next step is adding the substrate and sand, but the wood is currently soaking.

Hope you like it!


----------



## gregl (21 Feb 2018)

I really love your hardscape, looking forward to the progression here. Any ideas on plants/stocking?


----------



## Tim Harrison (21 Feb 2018)

Very nice hardscape.


----------



## Nigel95 (21 Feb 2018)

Awesome Michael!


----------



## Luís Cardoso (21 Feb 2018)

Great work


----------



## Mikeba (20 Mar 2018)

It took a while, but I finally got around adding the substrate and sand. I created the slopes on the sides because the foreground was hard to reach with all the wood. This way it will be a lot easier to do trimmings and glass cleaning in the future.





I also created a little planting map, but I'm questioning some plants. The dark green spots on the wood is a mix of Riccardia/Fissidens mini. The lime green on top of the piece in the right corner is glued Monte Carlo that (hopefully) will creep down on the wood. I would love to hear your thoughts! 





I started the dry-start of Riccardia/Fissidens Mini some days ago and pictures will follow soon, promise


----------



## CooKieS (20 Mar 2018)

Nice hardscape, following with interest.


----------



## Eduard18 (20 Mar 2018)

Nice hardscape ; I wonder if it wouldn't be more interesting to have darker shades of green in the foreground and lighter in the back, to increase the sensation of depth; 


Envoyé de mon SM-G935F en utilisant Tapatalk


----------



## Mikeba (20 Mar 2018)

Thanks guys!



Eduard18 said:


> Nice hardscape ; I wonder if it wouldn't be more interesting to have darker shades of green in the foreground and lighter in the back, to increase the sensation of depth;



What would you change to achieve this?


----------



## Eduard18 (20 Mar 2018)

For example a mix of anubias, buces, crypto parva in the front and H.Cuba on the top of the wood and/or light green moss


----------



## doylecolmdoyle (20 Mar 2018)

Looking good, the Monte Carlo may try to take over those other ground level plants, it can get invasive when it has good light and co2!


----------



## Mikeba (21 Mar 2018)

@Eduard18 @doylecolmdoyle  Thanks, I think I'll go for HC Cuba after all.... if it fails I can always swap it out with Monte Carlo later. It will be a lot better for the scale in this small tank.

I got around taking pictures sooner than expected  So here are some shots of the scape during DSM.


----------



## Eduard18 (21 Mar 2018)

Mikeba said:


> @Eduard18 @doylecolmdoyle  Thanks, I think I'll go for HC Cuba after all.... if it fails I can always swap it out with Monte Carlo later. It will be a lot better for the scale in this small tank.
> 
> I got around taking pictures sooner than expected  So here are some shots of the scape during DSM.


Has the wood been soaked prior of applying the moss ?

Envoyé de mon SM-G935F en utilisant Tapatalk


----------



## Shinobi (21 Mar 2018)

I have to keep an eye out for this one!

Great job!


----------



## Mikeba (21 Mar 2018)

@Eduard18 Yes, the wood has been soaking for almost 3 weeks and was completely waterlogged before applying the moss. I'm hoping it will stay soaked due to the humidity inside the tank.

@Shinobi Thnak you!


----------



## Zoe (21 Mar 2018)

Beautiful hardscape!!


----------



## Dominik_K (23 Mar 2018)

Hi,

I already saw this hardscape on other platforms and I am impressed  Looking forward to see the development in that little of a tank. Keep track of the monte carlo, I have to support the statement of @doylecolmdoyle .
Did you do any contests so far? I think it would be worth a try


----------



## Mikeba (23 Mar 2018)

@Dominik_K Thank you! The planting will be challenging, hope I will be able to pull it off. I'm going to try HC Cuba instead of Monte Carlo. Had some advice from Cory Hopkins (not on this forum I think), and he suggested to do the planting like the scape below.



 

So, Giant Haigrass on the side corners and Pearlweed in front to blend the foreground with the background. In the middle back Eleocharis acicularis. 

I think that could work very well


----------



## Daveslaney (23 Mar 2018)

That will look fantastic IMHO.


----------



## CooKieS (23 Mar 2018)

Giant hairgrass is too big for your tank ,
I would stay with a mix of eleocharis sp mini in the middle back


----------



## Mikeba (9 Apr 2018)

Small update on the dry start of this scape. It's going very well, I can see new growth popping up everywhere.

We are at week 3 now, but I'm going to give it one more extra week to be sure.


----------



## Tim Harrison (9 Apr 2018)

Nice tension.


----------



## Nigel95 (9 Apr 2018)




----------



## CooKieS (9 Apr 2018)

Very nice, dry start needs patience and method, 2 things I don't own.


----------



## Mikeba (5 May 2018)

After almost 6 weeks of dry start I finally got around planting this scape a few days ago.

The dry start was a big success and I'm going to use this method for all my future scapes, for sure. It's so easy with very nice results, the way I like it. 

So here some pictures for you guys, hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed the planting!


----------



## Mikeba (5 May 2018)

If you are interested to see how I build this scape, check out the video below!


----------



## CooKieS (5 May 2018)

Very nice, myriophilllum guyana or some hemianthus micranthemoides would fill the background nicely adding the 'forest' effect.


----------



## Jayefc1 (6 May 2018)

Wow looks amazing great start


----------



## Mikeba (7 May 2018)

CooKieS said:


> Very nice, myriophilllum guyana or some hemianthus micranthemoides would fill the background nicely adding the 'forest' effect.


My first idea was to do a hemianthus micranthemoides background, but then I saw a scape a bit like mine using this plant in the background and I didn't like it. It was too bushy, taking over all the twigs, not a natural sight.

That's why I went for Eleocharis acicularis. I hope it grows well so I can trim it the same height as the twigs in the back, going from high to low. I think this will increase the feel of depth.

But I love the myriophilllum guyana, maybe I can plant some of it later on, to give the background a little more texture.


----------



## Ryan Thang To (7 May 2018)

Hey

Awesome layout out Love the tiny details. Going to look very cool in a month time. Love step by step video too

Cheers
Ryan


----------



## TheAquascaper (9 May 2018)

Great hardscape watching this one


----------



## Jayefc1 (18 May 2018)

Really would like to see a update


----------



## Mikeba (19 Jul 2018)

Looooong overdue update on the 45P. Sorry for that guys, life got in the way. 

Replanted the foreground with Monte Carlo yesterday as the HC Cuba melted on me ... twice  but hey, we’re staying positive!


----------



## Nubias (19 Jul 2018)

Looking great


----------



## FJK_12 (19 Jul 2018)

I like the tall hair grass and the shape you've trimmed it in the back left, you don't usually see that in a scape like this


----------



## Mikeba (19 Jul 2018)

Thanks guys 

@FJK_12 I hope it will fill in nicely so I can emphasize the depth even more. I'm also planning to add a lot more sticks in the back, going from bigger to smaller. But when the hair grass is grown in completely.


----------



## Mikeba (26 Sep 2018)

*Month 5*

I have been struggling with this scape for the past months.  Had brown algae that just wouldn't go away, HC/MC in the front kept melting and to top things off, a giant Cyano outbreak.

So I decided to remove the front soil slopes and do a complete 6 day blackout to kill the Cyano bacteria. This worked like a charm and the tank recovered really well. All the brown algae is gone too 

I recently added some Bucephelandra and more wood for more details.

Enjoy!


----------



## CooKieS (26 Sep 2018)

Nice mini buce!

If cyano comes back (and it probably will...), try this;





Very effective, harmless, cheap and it works like a charm.


----------



## rebel (26 Sep 2018)

Very nice, prefer it without the foreground mc/hc!


----------



## Mikeba (27 Sep 2018)

@CooKieS I have some Chemiclean stand by in case it returns  But I THINK I tackled the root cause of the Cyano outbreak. I think it was due to lots of MC/HC melting and some issues with flow the tank became very unstable.

@rebel Thanks man, I'm also more fan of this version


----------



## jrc75 (28 Sep 2018)

wow this is superb. The hardscape really resonates with the mental picture I have of Mirkwood, and Fangorn maybe. Can't wait to see it grown in a bit more... just needs a little Thranduil figure in there 

http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Category:Images_of_Mirkwood


----------

