# Ryuboku



## Tim Harrison (4 Oct 2020)

My latest scape, originally posted on the tail end of my last scape. But since I decided to go with it I thought it probably deserved its own journal.
The scape is pretty simple, just the root and 7 rocks, but very Zen...


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## Jayefc1 (4 Oct 2020)

Is that new soil as well @Tim Harrison good luck Forth time lucky i hope


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## Tim Harrison (4 Oct 2020)

Thanks Jay, yes it's Prodibio AquaGrowth soil from AG


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## Ady34 (6 Oct 2020)

Lovely. 
I envisage more round and oval leafed plants in this one for some reason......


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## PARAGUAY (6 Oct 2020)

I was thinking one of the red Rotalas third in each side  green  Rotala both ends and maybe couple of areas with small Sword or Crypt Your usual lovely moss on the wood of course


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## Tim Harrison (7 Oct 2020)

Ady34 said:


> Lovely.
> I envisage more round and oval leafed plants in this one for some reason......





PARAGUAY said:


> I was thinking one of the red Rotalas third in each side  green  Rotala both ends and maybe couple of areas with small Sword or Crypt Your usual lovely moss on the wood of course


Thanks Ady and PARAGUAY, it's pretty much what I envisioned. I hope to get the planting list finalised soon.


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## Wookii (7 Oct 2020)

Crossing my fingers that you have better luck on this one with the fresh soil Tim.

(PS - In my ignorance I had to google what 'Ryuboku' meant!)


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## Tim Harrison (7 Oct 2020)

The plants have now been ordered and hopefully will be here before the weekend. I already have a few in a holding tank including Rotala 'Vietnam H'ra', Bucephelandra sp. "Mini Needle Leaf", Bucephelandra sp. "Theia Green", Staurogyne repens, and Eleocharis sp. 'Mini' which will go in too. They will all be grown in Leicestershire tap water. No RO...

Hygrophilia pinnatifida




Anubias barteri var. nana 'Mini Mini'




Microsorum pteropus 'Narrow"




Micranthemum tweediei ("Montecarlo-3")




Lilaeopsis brasilliensis




Rotala rotundifolia 'Orange Juice'




Rotala sp. "Green"




Cryptocoryne beckettii "Petchii"




Fissidens sp. "Mini"




Myriophyllum sp. "Guyana"




Cryptocoryne walkeri 'Hobbit'




Cryptocoryne walkeri "Lutea"




Cryptocoryne x willisii "nevillii"


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## Tim Harrison (7 Oct 2020)

Wookii said:


> Crossing my fingers that you have better luck on this one with the fresh soil Tim.


Thanks, I'm hoping I've ironed out the kinks. I strongly suspect the ready mixed dry TNP+ was deficient in N, and perhaps other nutrients
I changed from TNC to TNP+ half way through NatureScape, and noticed after a few days that my stems were colouring up.


Wookii said:


> (PS - In my ignorance I had to google what 'Ryuboku' meant!)


Apparently, ryuboku means driftwood in Japanese. It's used to refer to a scape where wood is the dominant, but not necessarily the only, feature;  rocks are allowed too


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## DeepMetropolis (7 Oct 2020)

Nice scape, the rear side of the wood reminds me of viking ship.. 

Verstuurd vanaf mijn SM-G920F met Tapatalk


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## dcurzon (7 Oct 2020)

I see a doberman sitting tall and keeping an eye on things


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## X3NiTH (7 Oct 2020)

dcurzon said:


> I see a doberman sitting tall and keeping an eye on things



If we’re playing Simulacrum I’ll double down further and say ‘Anubis’ (missing an ear though)!


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## Tim Harrison (8 Oct 2020)

I see the Loch Ness Monster 🤪


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## DeepMetropolis (8 Oct 2020)

Your wood in scapes almost always resembles creaturen..  

Verstuurd vanaf mijn SM-G920F met Tapatalk


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## Tim Harrison (8 Oct 2020)

DeepMetropolis said:


> Your wood in scapes almost always resembles creaturen..


It does doesn't it, it's not intentional though


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## nat.willis (9 Oct 2020)

Amazing scape!!!


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## Tim Harrison (10 Oct 2020)

The plants arrived early this morning. I ordered a lot with the intention of planting densely from the get go. Hopefully, it will improve my chances of success 
Some of the plants have been grown emersed and are huge. For instance, the Cryptocoryne  Walkeri 'Lutea' is about 30cm tall. I'm hoping it'll stay around 12-15cm submerged...


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## Jayefc1 (10 Oct 2020)

Nice looking plants tim where are they from


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## Tim Harrison (10 Oct 2020)

Thanks Jay, they're from Aquasabi in Germany.


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## Tim Harrison (11 Oct 2020)

Planted...










Very healthy plants with big roots...


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## Ady34 (13 Oct 2020)

Looks like it’s going to be a beauty. 
Fingers crossed for this one mate, there must have been some issue in the previous scapes. Hopefully the new substrate will solve it.
#massivecrypts


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## Tim Harrison (13 Oct 2020)

Thanks Ady


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## Tim Harrison (7 Jan 2021)

Living on the edge...


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## Wookii (7 Jan 2021)

Tim Harrison said:


> Living on the edge...
> 
> View attachment 160095



Come on Tim, don't be a tease - where's the FTS?


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## Karmicnull (7 Jan 2021)

Tim Harrison said:


> Living on the edge...


That is a superb capture!  Phone or camera?


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## Tim Harrison (7 Jan 2021)

Wookii said:


> Come on Tim, don't be a tease - where's the FTS?


I will, soon 


Karmicnull said:


> That is a superb capture!  Phone or camera?


Thanks, just a phone


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## Mr.Shenanagins (9 Jan 2021)

Wookii said:


> Come on Tim, don't be a tease - where's the FTS?


Yes I agree, crack on then!


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## Tim Harrison (12 Jan 2021)

Needs a trim...


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## Jayefc1 (12 Jan 2021)

That is just a tease @Tim Harrison 
Come on show us


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## Wookii (12 Jan 2021)

Tim Harrison said:


> Needs a trim...


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## DeepMetropolis (12 Jan 2021)

Jayefc1 said:


> That is just a tease @Tim Harrison
> Come on show us


You are right.. fts, else it didn't happen..


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## TheOslo (13 Jan 2021)

Hey Tim wanted to ask how did you manage to get them to ship to the uk? I checked their site and it wasn’t in there


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## CooKieS (13 Jan 2021)

I like the teasing


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## Tim Harrison (13 Jan 2021)

DeepMetropolis said:


> You are right.. fts, else it didn't happen..


I'll level with you, it almost didn't on several occasions. The scape was plagued with algae for the first 2 months or so, it only started to turn a corner a few weeks back. So there really isn't much to look at, at the moment  


TheOslo said:


> Hey Tim wanted to ask how did you manage to get them to ship to the uk? I checked their site and it wasn’t in there


The scape was set up months ago, I guess Toby isn't shipping to the UK at the moment maybe because of the "C" word.


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## Tim Harrison (13 Jan 2021)

Trimmed, and the tops replanted...


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## GHNelson (13 Jan 2021)

Nice Rotala.....some of the leaves have a different width!


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## Tim Harrison (13 Jan 2021)

Thanks, they're a combination of R. green, 'Vietnam H'ra,' and orange juice.


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## EA James (13 Jan 2021)

Tim Harrison said:


> Needs a trim...


Your H.Pinnatifida looks beautiful, I'm jealous! This plant seems to be the thorn in many of our sides lately 😭
Great quality photo too by the way, looking very vibrant

Cheers


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## BigD (14 Jan 2021)

TheOslo said:


> Hey Tim wanted to ask how did you manage to get them to ship to the uk? I checked their site and it wasn’t in there


Aquasabi announced on their Facebook page that they have discontinued shipments to the UK due to the new Brexit regulation.


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## Wookii (14 Jan 2021)

BigD said:


> Aquasabi announced on their Facebook page that they have discontinued shipments to the UK due to the new Brexit regulation.



That's a shame, I have always had great service from them, and their plants have always been some of the best I've had. Hopefully these things will get ironed out, it must be a large chunk of lost income for them.


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## GHNelson (14 Jan 2021)

hogan53 said:


> Nice Rotala.....some of the leaves have a different width!


Are you sure you haven't got some sort of deficiency or toxicity?


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## Djoko Sauza (14 Jan 2021)

hogan53 said:


> Are you sure you haven't got some sort of deficiency or toxicity?


Rotala Orange Juice has wider leaves than Hra in my experience as well.


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## Tim Harrison (14 Jan 2021)

hogan53 said:


> Are you sure you haven't got some sort of deficiency or toxicity?


I don't think so, but I can invent one 😁
I must be the exception to the rule since I've heard it on good authority that all-in-ones like TNC Complete will poison my plants...🤪


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## Wookii (14 Jan 2021)

Lol I was trying to work out if @hogan53 was commenting 'tongue in cheek'


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## Tim Harrison (14 Jan 2021)

Sort of FTS. post trim.


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## Wookii (14 Jan 2021)

Tim Harrison said:


> Sort of FTS. post trim.



Very nice Tim!

On a side note, and whilst not an expert on the subject - I believe you should cut the flowers off your venus fly trap asap. Apparently they can result in the death of the plant as they put so much energy into growing them.


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## Tim Harrison (14 Jan 2021)

Yeah, I've read that too, pretty much the standard advice  I actually feed mine once a month or so with aquarium water. And you're not supposed to do that either since they supposedly loose their traps and grow ordinary leaves instead. But it brings out the red in the traps and greens them up as well. They can actually uptake nutrients through their roots.

There are three plants in the pot and they've all flowered before a couple of times and none of the plants showed the slightest health issues. They are also supposed to have a rest period over the winter, but I've found that's not necessary either. The key is light, mine is under a light 12 hours a day 365 days a year and it's fine. Well so far, at least


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## Wookii (14 Jan 2021)

Tim Harrison said:


> Yeah, I've read that too, pretty much the standard advice  I actually feed mine once a month or so with aquarium water. And you're not supposed to do that either since they supposedly loose their traps and grow ordinary leaves instead. But it brings out the red in the trap and greens them up as well. They can actually uptake nutrients through their roots.
> 
> There are three plants in the pot and they've all flowered before a couple of time and none of the plants showed the slightest health issues. They are also supposed to have a rest period over the winter, but I've found that's not necessary either. The key is light, mine is under a light 12 hours a day 365 days a year and it's fine. Well so far, at least
> 
> ...



Nice one - the light must be the difference then. We let my sons plants flower, as we didn't realise the standard advice was to cut them off. by the time we did it had started wilting quite badly. they took about 6 months to bouce back.

I also fed one of them some aquarium water up through the base, and half the traps turned black 

Ours only receive natural light through a window though, so that is a big difference. (Plus the fact that I don't have a single green finger!)





The biggest surprise, much to my lads excitement, was when one trapped a massive hornet over the summer - it took us ages to work out where the intense buzzing was coming from!


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## Tim Harrison (14 Jan 2021)

Yeah this time of year they really need a light or to rest in a cool place. Mine is a cheap IKEA desk lamp. I guess my tank water is a really weak fertz solution.


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## Wookii (14 Jan 2021)

Tim Harrison said:


> Yeah this time of year they really need a light or to rest in a cool place. Mine is a cheap IKEA desk lamp. I guess my tank water is a really weak fertz solution.



Yeah, ours are resting in the shed currently. Do you use a particularly type of bulb in the lamp, or just a standard room bulb?


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## Tim Harrison (14 Jan 2021)

It's a standard desk lamp bulb. So quite warm around 3500 k. But it doesn't matter works just as well as a 6500 k bulb.


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## Garuf (14 Jan 2021)

Real nice scape you have there, Tim. Do I remember right that you also had a big'ol shallow tank too?


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## Tim Harrison (14 Jan 2021)

Thanks. That's right I do have a shallow, but it's only 60cm wide.
The last time it was used was nearly 2 years ago, coincidently using the same piece of wood...


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## Tim Harrison (18 Jan 2021)

End of the photoperiod yesterday...


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## Artichoke (19 Jan 2021)

Such a nice scape, and love the Venus fly trap 😍 so into carnivorous plants at the moment 💚 water mine with aquarium water as well occasionally, not had any problems or disappearance of traps, so far.


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## Tim Harrison (19 Jan 2021)

Thanks @Artichoke 

Finally got fish...


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## DeepMetropolis (21 Jan 2021)

Looking great again .
Really like the photo of your flytrap flower.


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## Tim Harrison (1 Feb 2021)

Just a couple of snaps...


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## alto (2 Feb 2021)

Brilliant as usual


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## Tim Harrison (2 Feb 2021)

alto said:


> Brilliant as usual


Thanks alto


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## cbaum86 (2 Feb 2021)

So clean and vibrant without being OTT - happy vibes!


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## Tim Harrison (3 Feb 2021)

Thank you @cbaum86


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## Ady34 (3 Feb 2021)

Back to business as usual with this one Tim. Great to see your plants thriving. Looks like another cracker.


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## Tim Harrison (3 Feb 2021)

Thanks Ady, it's been a struggle, battling algae all the way. Still got some BBA to see off but I think it's finally getting there, I hope.


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## Tim Harrison (3 Feb 2021)

Bought half a dozen Cherries about a month ago. They were tiny, not any more...


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## alto (9 Feb 2021)

Awesome photo

Inspiration for your (maybe leaky) shallow tank
GlassAqua carnivore


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## Tim Harrison (9 Feb 2021)

Very nice @alto. Funny you should mention my leaky shallow. I’ve not long since received a tube of silicon sealant and the tools to repair it. The idea is to use it for the next scape 🙂


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## Tim Harrison (12 Feb 2021)

Got some more new fish...
Are they Mr and Mrs?
Or is the bottom fish a male impersonating a female?


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## GHNelson (12 Feb 2021)

Very nice! 👍


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## dw1305 (12 Feb 2021)

Hi all,


Tim Harrison said:


> Are they Mr and Mrs?
> Or is the bottom fish a male impersonating a female?


Nice, my guess is that she is a she, and definitely _A. agassizii,_ although I don't have a very good record identifying or sexing _Apistogramma. _

These are my last pair_ (_apologies for the quality of the video_), _I had some fry from these but they were all male.



cheers Darrel


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## Wolf6 (12 Feb 2021)

Very nice! They leaving the cherry's alone?


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## Tim Harrison (12 Feb 2021)

GHNelson said:


> Very nice! 👍


Thanks hoggie 


dw1305 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> Nice, my guess is that she is a she, and definitely _A. agassizii,_ although I don't have a very good record identifying or sexing _Apistogramma. _
> 
> cheers Darrel


Thanks Darrel, me neither, especially Rams 


Wolf6 said:


> Very nice! They leaving the cherry's alone?


Thanks, the ones too big to fit in their mouths 🦞


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## Conort2 (12 Feb 2021)

Tim Harrison said:


> Got some more new fish...
> Are they Mr and Mrs?
> Or is the bottom fish a male impersonating a female?


Look like a pair to me, very nice fish choice!

Cheers


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## Mr.Shenanagins (14 Feb 2021)

Very nice, love some apistos. Yes looks like a female to me.


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## Tim Harrison (9 Mar 2021)

Reflection...


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## Mr.Shenanagins (11 Mar 2021)

What crypt is that dead center at the bottom, lucens?


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## Tim Harrison (11 Mar 2021)

Tropica _Cryptocoryne willissii_


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## Tim Harrison (21 Apr 2021)

The last image, the scape is in the midst of being torn down. I've been out of action for a about a month and during that time it became choked with Myriophyllum guyana and Rotala. As a consequence the rest of the plants suffered. Got some pretty good emersed growth though


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