# My vivarium (pic heavy)



## Gh0st

I already posted some pics of my viv in a other thread, but i've got a lot more pics to share.
the viv is 100cm high 80cm width and 60cm deep these pics are from the period i got the tank (end 2008) till today
happy vieweing 

this is how i bought the viv (second hand, made by a belgium shop)

my doughter in front to show the size 





initial setup (notice the P. helferi, grows well emersed)







added some more plants, but wasn't happy with the way it looked yet




bought a plant  (Callisia fragrans) from ebay from portugal, a hanging basket plant which does great in a viv




getting greener and greener




one of the frogs
E. tricolor (we called him Highway)



offspring from highway




added some coushin? moss, looked great at the beginning, but couldn't stand the high humidity and got brown




one of my leucomelas




removed the moss and created a bit larger waterarea




a aquatic plant that is adapting to emerse growth




getting greener 





this is how it looks like today













video of the tank in the early days


the tank a few weeks ago


tnx for watching  any questions? please ask


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## Anonymous

Thats fantastic! 
Terrariums and vivariums used to be very popular in the uk about 30 years ago, with most garden centres selling equipment. Doesnt seem the case now though. As a child I remember spending many hours in a garden centre called Rochfords in Hertfordshire, they had a huge greenhouse set up as a giant terrarium, tropical trees, ponds streams, all the plants you could wish for. All gone now though. Its a housing estate now. Pity.
Thanks for showing us your work.


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## mattyc

it looks realy nice, what is the brom with the thin leaves called?


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## Steve Smith

Lovely vivarium!  Congrats   How many inhabitants are there?

Can you tell me what this plant is? -


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## dw1305

Hi all,
Magnificent vivarium, really inspiring, and your frogs obviously like it as well. With apologies as it is not my thread, but the dangling plant looks like it might be Ficus repens, and the Bromeliad is possibly a Tillandsia sp. as a lot of these have thin leaves.

Rochfords was the first UK nursery to go into house plants in a big way, it was a shame that competition from Holland (where they had subsidised heating) and air freighted plants from Singapore etc did for them, and all the rest of the Lea valley nurseries.

http://www.theleevalley.co.uk/category/programme

cheers Darrel


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## LondonDragon

The best vivarium I have seen, amazing stuff, keep something this size looking this beautiful must be a challenge  congrats and job well done 
Thanks for sharing.


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## Dave Spencer

That is a real beaut. 

Dave.


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## Graeme Edwards

Great pictures Mark...

I would love one of these, and so would the girlfriend...

Ive just spent the last hour looking for paladariums for sale. The same type as what you showed us when we were in Holland with you. Can you link some suppliers? All the paladariums over here are not paladariums, there vivariums, which look rubbish and arnt suitable.

Nice post.


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## Graeme Edwards

http://www.justvivariums.co.uk/?gclid=C ... 2Aod8SC6_g 

Thats as good as it gets over here. Disappointing.


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## Gh0st

@Graeme the guys at the exhibition are www.dutch-rana.nl and www.green-nature.nl these guys sell the style of viv's i use.

@ the rest, tnx for the compliments 
the plantnames mentioned by dw1305 are correct


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## Garuf

Graeme, is this more what you're looking for?
http://www.brianstropicals.com/building.html
Scroll to the section on verticals. I'm tempted, I'm glad I'm poor there's so many projects I have brewing away in my head.


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## dw1305

Hi all,
I love "Brian's basement", I have to limit my visits to his web site. If I ever combine divorce with a lottery win that is what I will spend the money on.
cheers Darrel


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## Garuf

Yeah, me too. It's actually amazing. It's made me massively crave a frog viv. I have to avoid Tbro's posts otherwise I find my self scaping wabi kusa's.


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## Gh0st

i also made a wabi kusa because i read the wabi kusa thread  will show pics of that in the wabi kusa thread


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## Gh0st

it has been a while that i posted something about my viv.
this is a video i shot a few months back


also won first prize in the vivarium contest last march here in holland 
http://www.vivariumbeurs.nl/index.php?o ... 41&lang=en


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## Steve Smith

That's fantastic!  Could you remind me of the planting?  Specifically the small leaved plants around the right and top of the viv   Congrats on your competition win too!  I'm really not surprised, it's an amazing setup.


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## dw1305

Hi all,
It is a lovely Viv. I'll jump in as I can do a few of the plants, the small leaved plant is _Ficus pumila_, the silver leaved Gesnerid is an _Episcia cupreata_ hybrid. The Bromeliad is a _Tillandsia_, there is also a _Scindapsus_ and an _Anthurium_. The Fern near the top is a_ Nephrolepis (cordifolia)_? 

cheers Darrel


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## BigTom

Very nice indeed. I've been considering trying out some Ficus repens in my setup, I wonder how it would do with the roots in water.


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## nayr88

This looks the daddy!

Gotta be worth GEAMS!!!


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## ghostsword

It is really nice. Looks great. 

Why misting system do you use? Or is it manual?


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## Gh0st

have to be honest with you, i don't mist.. at all.
All i have is a background dripping system, that drips some water every 3 hours on the background. humidity is ok due to the heated waterpart in the front that evaporates all day long.
as you can see, all is growing well


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## ghostsword

Thanks, it is amazing how nice it all looks! 


.


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## LondonDragon

Is maintenance on the viv hard work? whats your maintenance routine? How often you trim plants? cheers


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## Gh0st

maintenance is pretty easy, i cut the plants once every 2 weeks, refresh a bucket of water each week and drop a bottle of fruitflies in every week. 
and clean the glass once a week


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## Morgan Freeman

LondonDragon said:
			
		

> Is maintenance on the viv hard work? whats your maintenance routine? How often you trim plants? cheers



Vivarium maintenance is 100 times easier than planted tank maintenance.


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## Tom.Verey

very good growth, looks awsome.


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## Iain Sutherland

that is well cool!!! 
i want one! Being new to the hobby i havent seen many viv's.

Awesome job!!


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## Callum

So beautiful  it's a shame i don't have the money to set one up myself!


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## RudeDogg1

Awesome always fancied getting some dendrobates.... Sighs


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## Emyr

That is amazing. Love the way it has changed and developed and you can look back over the different layouts and plants used.


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## Gh0st

tnx for all the positive comments  i will be changing the layout drasticly over the upcoming months. I want to make something like this.





will need some new pomps for the waterfall and have to make a complete new background. But when i saw this picture i was sold.... I need to make this...


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## Emyr

Wow. Quite a project. Looking forward to seeing it take shape.


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