# "Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project



## Antoni (22 Jan 2011)

I have been long time thinking of creating something like wabi kusa and yesterday I gave it a try. I' appartantly waiting for some plants to come for a bigger wabi kusa project, but meanwhile I have done this:




 

I have used some common mosses found around courtyard, a fern I picked up from a fence and some unknown for me grass that was growing on and near the moss. 

I do not know, how it is going to develop in time, but I couldnt wait for the plants to arrive...

Also I have been curious to try does the plants going to grow on moss, instead of a clay or any other substrates.

Once I have left some plants in my planting tray, as I didnt know whether to give them away or to plant them somewhere in the tanks and I have noticed that HC and some rotala have been thriving on top of the christmas moss . It is such a shame that I do not have a picture of it    After that I came across a issue in the ASW magazine regaring growing crypts on moss, so I decided to try this approach for my Wabi Kusa project.

Maybe I will add some white sand, if I manage to get some...

I hope you like it!


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## Mark Evans (23 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Portsea native" - Wabi Kusa project*

this should be a great little project Antoni.


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## Gill (23 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Portsea native" - Wabi Kusa project*

Really Like this and agree will be a great project.


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## Antoni (23 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*

Thanks guys,   

I hope it will turn up nicely, even if it does not have a large gap for development, but will see..

I just change the name.. I think I like it better this way  

I'm just trying to get the right substrate for the larger Wabi Kusa. Cant wait for plants and bits to arrive...


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## nayr88 (23 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*

Very nice Antoni, I think the white sand is a must! Or some fine gravel. 

What is the ball made from? Do you dose the water coloumn?

Cheers


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## Antoni (23 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*



> Very nice Antoni, I think the white sand is a must! Or some fine gravel.
> 
> What is the ball made from? Do you dose the water coloumn?



Thanks, mate!

I'm trying to get some white sand, but it turns to be a hard task...

The ball actually is a small stone, rapped in moss. And I have planted the grass and ferns on top of it. Actually I wanted to try to grow some plants on top of moss, as it has a low Ph, good water retention capacity. 

In the next project I will experiment with some soil/clay based substrate...

I do not dose anything at the moment, but I'm planning to start adding some pottasum and micros, deluted in water and spraying them directly on the plants.


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## a1Matt (24 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*



			
				Antoni Dimitrov said:
			
		

> Also I have been curious to try does the plants going to grow on moss


I've grown plants on a substrate of pure moss (crypt parva under high humidity)



			
				Antoni Dimitrov said:
			
		

> I hope you like it!


I do  It is very nice.


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## Antoni (24 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*

Thanks Matt!

This is a good example to encourage me   

Im wondering what fertiliser to use. Shell I mix something myself or just to get a branded one...? 

Amano uses Do!Aqua Be Bright, but we can not get this in Europe and it is costly..

Also I wonder shall I use white sand: http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/unipac- ... -5167.html
or coarse: http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/unipac- ... -5166.html


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## JEK (24 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*

It looks really good. Looking forward to see it with sand.


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## nayr88 (24 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*

I have no experience with fertilizing wabi's, I'd say a tpn+ mix should be fine in a mist bottle?

This wabi has really my walk to the shops abit more enjoyable as I look for little plants to come back and 'borrow' for a wabi  

I could send you a couple handfulls of my silica sand, its a pretty plain natural looking sand, would look good with a few small rocks from outside around the base of the moss? Let me know mate

Cheers


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## Dan Crawford (24 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*

This is really cool Antoni, I want one!


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## a1Matt (24 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*



			
				Antoni Dimitrov said:
			
		

> Thanks Matt!
> 
> This is a good example to encourage me
> 
> ...





I always mix my own ferts, purely to save money.
I like the look of the white sand more. It is nice because it is not bright white.


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## Antoni (25 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*



			
				JEK said:
			
		

> It looks really good. Looking forward to see it with sand.


Thanks mate, Im trying to get some sand now!



			
				nayr88 said:
			
		

> I have no experience with fertilizing wabi's, I'd say a tpn+ mix should be fine in a mist bottle?
> 
> This wabi has really my walk to the shops abit more enjoyable as I look for little plants to come back and 'borrow' for a wabi
> 
> Cheers



Im glad to hear that you like it. I have been walking on the street looking for ideas and I found out so many different types of mosses and small plants, just "behind the corner" It is amazing   

About the ferts I will maybe try DIY TPN+ Just need to get small amounts of everything..



> I could send you a couple handfulls of my silica sand, its a pretty plain natural looking sand, would look good with a few small rocks from outside around the base of the moss? Let me know mate



Thanks for the offer, I will try to get some white sand first 



			
				Dan Crawford said:
			
		

> This is really cool Antoni, I want one!



Thanks Dan, it is actually nice litle juwel on y window sill. 



> I always mix my own ferts, purely to save money.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Yes this is a good point, expecially for such a small wabi..


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## Antoni (26 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*

I have managed to get some whitish sand today. This is a litle update of the Wabi Kusa   




Im not quite sure about adding some small gravel around the base or to leave it like that...?

Look from above: 




This is not the exact setup for the pictures above, but at least is showing the size of the "Moss & fern Garden"


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## JEK (26 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*

Very nice! The sand improved it a lot. Try with some gravel, you can always remove it again if it doesn't suit the 'scape. 
What lightning are you using over it (sorry if you have already mentioned it)?


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## Antoni (26 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*

Thanks Johan,

it is positioned on the window sill, so I relay on the ambient light only!


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## JEK (26 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*



			
				Antoni Dimitrov said:
			
		

> Thanks Johan,
> 
> it is positioned on the window sill, so I relay on the ambient light only!


Okay. I have a question - it's probably stupid, but I'm asking anyway.  How do you deal with algea in wabi-kusa? Is is just manual removal of any algea or is it possible to keep balance in a wabi-kusa so algea does not  become an issue?


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## Antoni (27 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*

Well I have not encounter any algae yet, but with regular water changes I believe there will not be any significant outbreaks.


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## JEK (27 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*



			
				Antoni Dimitrov said:
			
		

> Well I have not encounter any algae yet, but with regular water changes I believe there will not be any significant outbreaks.


Thanks for your answer, Antoni.


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## Antoni (29 Jan 2011)

*Re: "Moss & fern Wabi garden" - Wabi Kusa project*



			
				JEK said:
			
		

> Antoni Dimitrov said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



You welcome my friend!

I have just started fertilizing it with 1 capful of EI mix from Plantedtanks.co.uk deluted in 500 ml of water. Intend to spray it twice a day. Will see how the plants will respond..


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## Antoni (30 Mar 2011)

I have not been posting for awhile, as I didn't have much of a free time lately, but today, as I was doing some product shoots for our website/shop I manage to take picture of the Wabi garden too :





I have changed the name, as you have noticed, because the fern, didn't make it. I had to replace it with another unknown for me plant   , which I found growing outdoor, but yet very beautiful and similar to the hydricotile sp. 

I'm quite pleased with it as it is flowering at the moment with very cute purple blooms/two rigth now, but another 4-5 or five are about to blossom in the following days/


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## Steve Smith (30 Mar 2011)

I really like that Antoni, it must be a pleasure to look at


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## Antoni (31 Mar 2011)

Thanks Steve,

yes it is a really nice to have it on the window  

Here few more pictures of the Wabi Garden as a 360 panorama view   

Not the best quality... the acrylic is so easy to be scratched


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## bigmatt (31 Mar 2011)

Really, really nice.  I really liked the (very) early pics where the tank was bare - thought it gave a great modern, minimalist vibe to the whole thing.  It's still lovely though!
Cheers
Matt


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## John Starkey (31 Mar 2011)

Really very nice,i am showing the wife and she likes it very much,so i think i will get one   ,

John.


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## Antoni (31 Mar 2011)

bigmatt said:
			
		

> Really, really nice.  I really liked the (very) early pics where the tank was bare - thought it gave a great modern, minimalist vibe to the whole thing.  It's still lovely though!
> Cheers
> Matt



Thanks Matt, yes the early stage was very nice, but a I felt it was a not that much natural, as it should be for a Wabi kusa and that's why I place some sand in it.



			
				john starkey said:
			
		

> Really very nice,i am showing the wife and she likes it very much,so i think i will get one   ,
> 
> John.



Thanks John, I'm glad your wife likes it too! It is a different aspect of the hobby and it is a great fun too, but very addictive! You are warned now   

I also have another Wabi, that would be with proper aquatic plants -thanks to Mark!    but still working on the hardscape at the moment. IT would be a round shallow tray with a small island in it and maybe couple of killies. I'm just a bit unsure about the killies in such a small volume of water: 1-1.5 l of water?


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## Antoni (1 Apr 2011)

I was caught up by the way sun illuminate the Wabi today, so I decided to take couple of pictures:




and a humble attempt for decent shot from above... 





It is blooming like mad at the moment and I'm really pleased with it!

It would be great to identify that stunning plant..


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## Mark Evans (2 Apr 2011)

This is looking great antoni.


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## Steve Smith (2 Apr 2011)

On my way home from my LFS today, I intend to cycle back along some paths next to the local river and have a look about for some wabi' plants to bring home.  I get to combine my two passions - Cycling and aquascaping, with some nature thrown in for good effect!

Inspirational stuff Antoni


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## Antoni (2 Apr 2011)

Thanks guys! 

Your comments and appreciations mean a lot to me! 

As Mark said once, I'm catching the Wabi Kusa fever  , so is you, Steve!   

You know, It is great, when cycling or walking around in the outdoors, to observe the plants and arrangement in nature. I'm constantly doing it!    Aquascaping is a great way of communicating with nature, it opens my eyes for the beauty of her creations! There are so many things I discover, that otherwise I wouldn't notice and appreciate!


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## John Starkey (2 Apr 2011)

Very nice indeed Antoni,i dont know what that plant is,but it is a very nice looking plant,

john.


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## Antoni (2 Apr 2011)

Thanks, John! Indeed it looks lovely! Today new blooms are about to show off!Just begging for the sun to come out


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## bigmatt (2 Apr 2011)

my new favourite thing on the forum! I too will be cycling and looking for plants! Love it!


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## Johno2090 (2 Apr 2011)

Just bought myself a little glass "Oval roasting dish" from Tesco to do myself one...think i'll go plant hunting tomorrow!


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## Steve Smith (2 Apr 2011)

I've been plant hunting and set my own up! I'll start a new thread shortly.  Thanks again for the inspiration Antoni


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## Antoni (3 Apr 2011)

Thank you very much, guys! Thats so rewarding!

I can't wait to see your setups!   

Now, I'm waiting for the PLANT to produce another maybe 4 or 5 blooms and will make a picture! Cant wait


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## heathen06 (6 Apr 2011)

I really love this thread, and definitely intend to have a go myself at some point. I'll be collecting plants when I'm out cycling over the summer too.


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## Johno2090 (6 Apr 2011)

I'm not sure mine is classed as a Wabi, since its got a small pine tree in it lol


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## Antoni (7 Apr 2011)

heathen06 said:
			
		

> I really love this thread, and definitely intend to have a go myself at some point. I'll be collecting plants when I'm out cycling over the summer too.



Thanks, mate! In the summer, there will be a great choice of plants, that can be used! I often check the fence of stone, when I'm waling arround the street. Sometimes you can find interesting plants, mosses, ferns and ect.  

Actually the fern that I have used initially was from the fence of my house  



			
				Johno2090 said:
			
		

> I'm not sure mine is classed as a Wabi, since its got a small pine tree in it lol



IMO it is exactly a Wabi   . If we try to follow the meaning of the term "Wabi Kusa" - we will find that:


> The name Wabi-Kusa is a reference to the Japanese aesthetic sense of Wabi-Sabi that appeals to the beauty in the slight chaos of nature.  Kusa means weeds or plants.


 Credit AWF

So it is certainly a Wabi Kusa by meaning  The term is an ADA trade mark, but I think it is more of a trend after all and tends to be extended and defined in favour of the creators' imagination.


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## bigmatt (7 Apr 2011)

Mine's going great guns!  found a few sizeable pieces of moss with plants already growing in them, and transferred them to vases with old tank water in the bottom.  I'll upload pics when i get a chance.  Just as an aside (and a slight thread hijack - sorry Antoni!) is there a good single source for emersed or Wabi projects? I've had a flick through the emersed section and can't really find anything (but i may have missed it!)
Cheers folks,
Matt


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## dw1305 (7 Apr 2011)

Hi all,
Has the moss arrived Matt? I posted Friday morning 1st class, so if it hasn't arrived? I'll need to chase it up with the PO.


> It would be great to identify that stunning plant..


 _Cymbalaria muralis_ (Ivy Leaved Toadflax). 

Cheers Darrel


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## Antoni (7 Apr 2011)

bigmatt said:
			
		

> Mine's going great guns!  found a few sizeable pieces of moss with plants already growing in them, and transferred them to vases with old tank water in the bottom.  I'll upload pics when i get a chance.  Just as an aside (and a slight thread hijack - sorry Antoni!) is there a good single source for emersed or Wabi projects? I've had a flick through the emersed section and can't really find anything (but i may have missed it!)
> Cheers folks,
> Matt



HI Matt, 

no probs at all 

I cant wait to see your Wabi project!

I have been looking for a nice source for Wabi, but couldn't find anything    There are some information on the official website: http://www.wabikusa.jp/index.html and I also particularly like the thread of Steven Chong on APC: http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/aquascaping/34685-style-wabi-kusa.html, but apart of those the information is really scantily. 


			
				dw1305 said:
			
		

> Hi all,
> Has the moss arrived Matt? I posted Friday morning 1st class, so if it hasn't arrived? I'll need to chase it up with the PO.
> 
> 
> ...



That's spot on Darrel! Thank you!


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## Antoni (7 Apr 2011)

The Kenilworth Ivy has really interesting way of propagation, I thought it might be interesting to you folks   :



> This little flower is very commonly found growing on old walls and bare, waste ground.  Its little lilac coloured flowers (8-15 mm across) have two lips, the upper is divided in two and the lower has three lobes with a pale yellow spot to guide in the nectar-seeking bees.  Behind the lower lip is a small spur.  The flowers are solitary on long, slender, sometimes reddish, stalks at the base of the leaves and bloom from May to September.  These leaves are ivy-shaped and, like the rest of the plant, hairless.  The seed-planting mechanism of this plant is very clever indeed.  The flowers turn their heads to the sun until they have been fertilised at which stage they turn about towards the wall on which they are growing and in this way they plant or push the seeds into any little crevice possible on the wall. They also have very long roots which help them to hang on, like the Ivy for which they are named, and thereby ensure their survival.  This plant was introduced in the seventeenth century from the Mediterranean countries. It belongs to the family Scrophulariaceae.


 taken from www.wildflowersofireland.net


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## a1Matt (7 Apr 2011)

Antoni Dimitrov said:
			
		

> ...a round shallow tray with a small island in it and maybe couple of killies. I'm just a bit unsure about the killies in such a small volume of water: 1-1.5 l of water?



Most killies are fine in small bodies of water, as they live in puddles in nature.
However they also jump (to find a nicer puddle), so a tight fitting lid is needed.
Which is probably not in keeping with what you intended.

I've kept dwarf shrimp in 1.5l of water. They do not breed, but stay alive.


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## Antoni (7 Apr 2011)

a1Matt said:
			
		

> Most killies are fine in small bodies of water, as they live in puddles in nature.
> However they also jump (to find a nicer puddle), so a tight fitting lid is needed.
> Which is probably not in keeping with what you intended.
> 
> I've kept dwarf shrimp in 1.5l of water. They do not breed, but stay alive.



I didn't think about that prospective.... There is going be a killies keeping problem  

I was considering some shrimps instead .. but the killies were to be so much nicer inside.... 

However I will need some time to think about the hardscape of that particular wabi first and it will need another couple of days to mature, before I introduce any life stock in it.   

I will have to do some research!

Any ideas for life stock are appreciated


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## Antoni (9 May 2011)

Its being a while since I have posted something here, so here I am   





This was the moment when the Ivy Leaved Toadflax was blooming at most. very beautiful and pleasing. A moment to remember   





After some algae issues with the white sand I have decided to go for the minimalistic look again without the sand and to save some Carbo too   - I was adding it daily to combat the algae.

Here are some shots from today:

Here with the Sekibokka 


 

It is amazing that the weeds has taken over the "scape", but I still think it looks great   





and finally how the birds sees it ot at least a tall person, like me


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## Gill (19 May 2011)

I love it, Lovely development of it along the way. Reminds me to look for some Ferns to add to mine.


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## Antoni (19 May 2011)

Thanks, my friend! 
I have removed the fern in the last stage, as it couldn't make it.. But the other plants are going well, I have blossoms again


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## donilcruize (12 Jul 2011)

It's just wonderful!!!


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## Antoni (12 Jul 2011)

Thanks mate!

Now this wabi kusa is gone, as some of the plants died out, probably finishing the seasonal cycle and also I must admit, that I got bored and wanted to do something a bit different. 

Making the plant list now....


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## donilcruize (19 Aug 2011)

I do not think that you should replant of this rotundifolia. Because it’s growing in it’s own way and does not effect at it’s growth.


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## Robbie X (26 Mar 2014)

I'm amazed that the "ivy leaved toadflax" has taken to this setup, i have seen it growing in cracks and small gaps in walls all over my village, did not realise it would tolerate the conditions in a semi aquatic Wabi! Very cool..


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## Antoni (26 Mar 2014)

That wabi almost entirely done with plants I have found on the fence wall in my backyard  Very different project and it was awesome. Flowering all the time. I kept it humid, but not very wet though. There was just about 5 mm of water at the bottom.


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## Greenfinger2 (25 Sep 2014)

Hi Antoni, Missed this one
Super little project.Sunning Wabi- Kusa Congratulation.


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## Greenfinger2 (3 Nov 2015)

Hi Antoni, Its being a while hows things going any updates ??


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## Antoni (17 Nov 2015)

Hah true, no updates for a long time... Planning a new wabi now. Will update soon! 

Sent from my Nexus 10 using Tapatalk


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