# Paludarium In the making.



## foxfish

l have started to decorate my new Paludarium box, I built it from plywood and completely glass fibred  the inside.
Approx 1m x1m x 60cm. The water filled part will be 15cm high.
It will have a glass top but no front doors so I will have to choose the terrestrial plants carefully.. I am very much open to ideas or suggestions?
I have built a tree stump to fit just right and tight.
Lots more to do but it’s all good fun.


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## AverageWhiteBloke

Nice bit of sculpting mate. Looking forward to seeing this progress.


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## sparkyweasel

Yes, that wood looks very convincing. Nice job.


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## TBRO

Impressive DOY skills! I’m finding that I can only get around 70% humidity with my open top Pali. Guess it can be affected by temp from lights, air circulation and amount of wet surface for water to evaporate from. Good luck  


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## foxfish

My present set up has a closed front and very high humidity but after a few years I am fed up at looking into a steamy 
glass box I want to have an open front and different plants.
I have been useing windscreen de mister but it only last around 3 days and then needs re treating.
I think orchids will play a roll in this one.
I need to take my present one down in the next few days.....


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## foxfish

Well I have the tank in place and the lights working, I just need to think about plants now....
I just placed a couple of potted ferns in there but that is not th look I am after....


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## Edvet

Astroturf?


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## zozo

Edvet said:


> Astroturf?



That's what i thought as well.. Local socker club is missing a patch from its training field.. 

@foxfish Realy nice work!!..


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## foxfish

Thanks, I will have a sump type thing behind the tank with several pumps powering numerous air line feeds that will dribble water down the grass and some type of spray system too.
The bottom will be filled with water so I should have quite high humidity.
I am thinking about breaking down my rabbit foot fern and fixing lots of little pieces over the tree and I am on the look out for small orchids but I don’t really know what I am doing!


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## zozo

foxfish said:


> I am on the look out for small orchids but I don’t really know what I am doing!



Take a look here for inspiration for what goes around, or maybe order if your budget alows..
https://www.dutchrana.nl/en/product-category/terrarium-plants/orchids/

This shop is a stone throw from my place, a real candy store.. Seen them all in real life and all are rather small and quite easy to grow. I'm currently growing the B.sikkimense in a small terrarium setup. Gorgious little undemanding Orchid with each summer peculiar pinky flowers on a long spike. 

For spraying, maybe a car windscreen wash canister and pump with distilled water is an option to install. These DC 12 volt pumps are pretty strong, build for the job. Canisters are usualy 5 litres. Spraying feetilized or tap water garanties in stains on the plants and glass..


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## foxfish

I have started making the tree for the other side, hopefully the picture shows the first stage but please ask if you want more details...


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## goldscapes

I was looking for orchids a while ago and found these guys in Devon, they seem to have a decent selection and have been around a while:
https://www.orchids.uk.com/


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## zozo

Are you screwing Peepfoam to Peepfoam? Or is there a pvc pipe in the centre? 
(Is peepfoam propper English btw? That's the dutch common name for it because it peeps when rubbed together  )


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## foxfish

It is just standard polurathane house insulation foam, the screws are just temporary while the gun foam sets and acts as a strong glue.
I need to leave it overnight to set and I will remove the screws before the next stage.


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## Edvet

If you want to go a bit ''finer'':


 

 
Not my project  (yet) btw


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## zozo

Edvet said:


> If you want to go a bit ''finer'':
> View attachment 120684 View attachment 120685
> Not my project  (yet) btw


Seen that one one Pinterest, there are few more of these pvc builds on there.. Also seen a video from somebody using strips of rough hemp cloth, smear it in with S kit rol 'm up cover them with peat litter and hung in the tank as Lianas..  Looked very realistic once dried up.


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## foxfish

I would like one particular specimen plant to be a main feature, I want to mount it on the new tree but I really don’t really know what it might be?
I can make a hollow section in the tree to accommodate some soil and roots but I think I would prefer an epiphyte or at least something that shows its root system?
A bromeliad seems likely but I can’t see one that I like enough, I do like the look of a stag horn ferns, If can grow it in relative humidity and keep it a manageable  size?
I don’t want to fit a front glass so I think this will limit my choice.


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## foxfish

Here is the structure this morning, you can see how the gun foam has expanded and set.







I set to it with a craft knife to obtain  a basic shape I liked...








I made two holes to take plants and added some air line to get some water to various spots on the tree


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## foxfish

Here is the back of the tree with the water feed pipes visibly and then the with them hidden by the gun foam.



 


As this side will never be seen I was not particularly bothered about how it looks but nevertheless i applied the foam in a very delicate manner paying attention to the form and structure so the lines follow a natural path.


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## zozo

Even without paint the tree already looks very realistic.. Realy nice job.. 



foxfish said:


> I would prefer an epiphyte or at least something that shows its root system?


A small Anthurium variety maybe? We only see them as potted plants in the shops, but actualy an epiphyte with a rather nice shuncky rootsystem. And easy to grow, they grow with their roots into the water if you let them..

This is a big one in nature..




example from a hanging pot.. Nice air roots..


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## foxfish

I like that Marcel...... roots in the water sounds fantastic!


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## foxfish

Straight out the shed with these pictures after the first coat of resin and Mahogany dust with a bit of cypress for highlights


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## zozo

foxfish said:


> I like that Marcel...... roots in the water sounds fantastic!



Than anthurium might be definitively a plant you want in there.. 


 

Smaller variety ofcourse..


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## foxfish

Well I have the second tree in place, water in (15 gallons), drip system semi working and all the lighting in place.
Not the best picture but that is the view from my attic armchair with just three of the seven lights on.
Now waiting on mail order parts to finish the drip wall system and the RO top up...


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## Edvet

Have i got the perfect inhabitant.................................


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## foxfish

Ha Ha I have cared for them before when I worked at a fish farm, I might of considered dart frogs but I can’t import them to Guernsey.
I don’t really want the responsibility of any live creatures to be honest.
This is the first time in my life when I have not had a pet of some sort but, I don’t even keep fish anymore and the freedom feels great at the moment!
We look after three dogs for 6 hours a day, 5 days a week and I am more that content with that arrangement.


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## TBRO

Looks fantastic, can’t wait to see it planted up. Why not some shrimp? In a mature, well planted tank, they need virtually no care and add some movement.


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## foxfish

I have been taking my time deciding on any form of planting and come the conclusion that the mass majority of plants have far too big a leaf size to look comfortable in the set up!
However I did buy a jasmine today and I ordered 3 pots of  riccia and a nymphaea Stellata
I have set out a few bits of rabbit foot fern but I think that if I can concentrate on covering the trees in moss... then that will be my main goal.


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## DutchMuch

looks simply amazing! good luck on the journey!


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## foxfish

I have placed a few bits of foliage in there but I feel most of it is just temporary while I gradually develop the theme....


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## TBRO

Looking amazing. I love the depth created by the trees. Great piece of DIY! 


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## foxfish

Here is a shot behind  the scenes, not very pretty but busy and functional.....


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## Edvet

That's a whole lot of hardware, care to elaborate on their function a bit??


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## foxfish

Well there is only one pump, which is my old grundfoss central heating pump that I have managed to repair!
That one pump is actually powering those two external filters, it also powers 10 individual  6mm water feeds that go to varouse spots. 
One filter goes to a water fall that cascades down the left hand tree the other filter feeds a drip wall.
The sump has a heater and a top up valve, at the moment there is also a feed simply recycling the sump water but it will eventually go to a trickle tower.
The thing is my pump, on its low setting, produces 2000 lph and it works at a very high pressure too. So I have had to use up some flow by recycling.
I would prefer two or even three smaller  separate pumps, but every other pump I have tried makes too much noise.
The tank is in a place where I like to read and get away from my hectic household, so a quiet pump is important to me.
I have ordered a few more plants to try out, they should be here soon....


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## Edvet

Ah so the Eheims are not running on electricity, just function as the cannister.
And the split to the 6 mm drips is that DIY?


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## foxfish

Not not completely, I bought this https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01GNKRI4G/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


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## foxfish

It all looks a little untidy at the moment but I have mixed up a load of local wild moss and tropical moss with a bit of yoghurt in a blender.
I have spread it all over the place so we will see what happens..
I made this short vid for my own reference really but here you go.....
(HD available)


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## Ady34

I think it looks great already, will be cool to see what happens with the moss.


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## foxfish

Some of the wild collected moss and liverworts are showing some fresh growth


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## mort

Looking great already. Do you have enough humidity to keep the air plants going or do you have to spray them? If you do how often? I was given a couple for Christmas and I've been submerging them in water once a week until I have an idea of where they are going.


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## foxfish

I don’t really know how they will fair, I would say they are getting more humidity than the average household one would but if that is enough for them to flourish, I don’t know?
Yes I am spraying everything inside with plain rainwater at least once a day and more often three or four times a day but I hope to slow this down once everything is setteted in a bit more.
As it happens I bought another 12 air plants this morning! My local garden centre was selling 12 in a glass tube for £25. 
The first ones I bough via eBay cost me £3.99 each.


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## foxfish

I have the new air plants in place, I just took this picture a few mins before lights off, with just one light on...
The jasmine decided to flower today, lovely smell if a little overpowering...


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## foxfish

I need to thing about some water plants, maybe a tiger lily ?


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## mort

foxfish said:


> I need to thing about some water plants, maybe a tiger lily ?



I like nymphoides hydrophylla 'taiwan' as it's a really bright green and will bring light to the darker bottom. The only downside is if you want something that you can just drop and forget because it grows new plants from the leaves and needs some regular ish pruning.


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## foxfish

It might not be filled with water but .... here comes the dreaded algae nevertheless.....


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## zozo

How deep is the water level?.. 

Why not buy nymphaea seeds and germinate them.. They stay rather small for a long time. 

https://www.ebay.de/itm/Nymphaea-ca...=item3d3e6fa374:g:UtIAAOSwa-dWjQMD:rk:45:pf:0


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## Tim Harrison

foxfish said:


> I have the new air plants in place, I just took this picture a few mins before lights off, with just one light on...
> The jasmine decided to flower today, lovely smell if a little overpowering...
> View attachment 121545


That looks amazing.


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## foxfish

Spot the slightly unwelcome guest!


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## zozo

foxfish said:


> Spot the slightly unwelcome guest!
> 
> View attachment 122406



The nettle on top?..


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## dw1305

Hi all, 





zozo said:


> The nettle on top?


I might go for the _Tradescantia fluminensis _as well, it is a rampant grower.

cheers Darrel


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## foxfish

Hi Darrel, I am good at  stunting plants, 45 years of bonsai experience!
Getting lots of unwanted weeds though!
Mostly, everything is fine with the exception of the air plants, most of them died before I worked out what was killing them. They seem to like being dry for most of the time with only the occasional spraying but the main thing is that no part of the plant touches anything that is permanently wet. Even a tiny end of a spike (or leaf or whatever it is called) will suck up water and rot the plant. I also worked out just how much much bright light and heat they like, so the few that are thriving are the ones right at the top under the main light.
I might get some more....


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## foxfish

The solerirolia  ( if that is what it Is?)  is growing rampant and spreading everywhere...


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## zozo

foxfish said:


> The solerirolia ( if that is what it Is?) is growing rampant and spreading everywhere...



As Abba sang the song "The winner takes it all".. 

May the strongest win..  That's only natural competitons.. Also seen it in a friends dart frog paludarium.. He planted Ficus pumila among others, after a few years it covered the background completely almost choking all others out of the way. And its a big palu metre in height and width.. It actualy doesn't look bad at all.

Considering it is hard to find many that different plant sp. in nature on such little surface area. In comparance with what we build with our collectoritis approach it's hard and about a day job to keep all planted intact and thriving all togehter.


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## dw1305

Hi all, 





foxfish said:


> Hi Darrel, I am good at stunting plants, 45 years of bonsai experience!


I'll post some of your <"Bonsai images">, they are pretty stunning plants. 





foxfish said:


> Mostly, everything is fine with the exception of the air plants, most of them died before I worked out what was killing them. They seem to like being dry for most of the time with only the occasional spraying but the main thing is that no part of the plant touches anything that is permanently wet. Even a tiny end of a spike (or leaf or whatever it is called) will suck up water and rot the plant. I also worked out just how much much bright light and heat they like, so the few that are thriving are the ones right at the top under the main light.


The degree of hairiness is a good indicator, all the grey tomentose ones like to dry out between waterings and are drought tolerant, they don't tend to have a central "vase". If you can find ones with a very shiny leaf and central vase they are more likely to better in the wet. _Cryptanthus_ spp. will grow very wet at the root, but I don't know how good they are will continually wet foliage. 





foxfish said:


> The solerirolia ( if that is what it Is?) is growing rampant and spreading everywhere.


It is, and <"it does">.

cheers Darrel


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## foxfish

Talking of bonsai, I took this picture today, quite a difference from summer to winter!


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## foxfish

This is so much easier than dealing with underwater plants but I still have some algae


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## foxfish




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## foxfish

I am afraid to say I have totally neglected the tank over the last few months!
It lives up in my attic room where we spend most of the winter but hardly ever go up there in the summer.
Anyway the baby tears stuff has just taken over and shaded many of the other plants into submission.
Matters not though as I have learned a lot and I have plans for a rescape very soon.


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## zozo

Still looks great..


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## foxfish

Not so great now!


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## Edvet

Ahhh a { almost clean} new canvas


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## foxfish

I fitted new capillary cloth and I have saved one tree, just modified it a bit to divert the water flow.
There was a lot of annoying dripping going on so  I have made a few groves to direct the water.


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## zozo

foxfish said:


> I have made a few groves to direct the water



That can become a never-ending story.  I once made a small waterfall, took me 2 weeks to figure out where the water should run. # days later it ran different again, spilling water over the edge. Corrected it and a week later it went to the other side. Plant growth, detritus etc. etc. constantly redirected the water flow. Its an unpredictable entity dripping and splashing all over the place.


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## foxfish

Absolutely, I was forever trying to stop that drip torture!
In the end that was my main reason for stripping  it down!
I have cut out channels that all lead back to the main trunk so hopefully that will sort that out.
Also I was using a permanent drip wall but this time I will just have it run for a few minutes every hour.


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## foxfish

A bit more progress....


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## foxfish

Just making it up as I go along, but I have one limitation in that there will always be at least 2” of water in the bottom due to my overflow pipe position.
I was thinking about using quite a bit of Christmas cactus and maybe that fibre optic grass stuff as both are in abundance in the garden centres....


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## foxfish

I have put a couple of buckets of rain water in the bottom, the capillary cloth seems pretty effective  as it is wet for about 6” above the water level.
When the drip system is working it will be well soaked and will add quite a bit of humidity.
I actuality loved the baby tears stuff, I had collected from several  spots and it looked very different at the time but in the end (a bin full) it all looked the same.


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## foxfish

Just making it up as I go along but something came together today as I had an idea ......
I collected a bucked of wild moss and a load of soleirolia then I mixed it up with sphagnum moss and yogurt.
Then I rolled it up in a nylon mesh, twisted it all tight.
Might work? I plan to make a fair few, I might be able to individually feed water to each one  .....


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## REDSTEVEO

foxfish said:


> My present set up has a closed front and very high humidity but after a few years I am fed up at looking into a steamy
> glass box I want to have an open front and different plants.
> I have been useing windscreen de mister but it only last around 3 days and then needs re treating.
> I think orchids will play a roll in this one.
> I need to take my present one down in the next few days.....
> View attachment 120481


That looks brilliant, and that's what I'm aiming for with my Eheim Incpiria 400 litre.  Have you got a journal or something on how you created this? Thanks.


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## foxfish

Hi @REDSTEVEO, I dont know if I have, I had a quick search but did not find anything!

I have put togher loads of similar tanks in the past, there are a few issues based around the front glass condensation so you need to have good  venation  and then  you are limited to the plants you can keep.

You can add ‘water proof circulating fans’ pointing at the glass, in combination with  ventilation  and choosing plants carefully, it is possible to keep the front glass clear but  I find the front glass always makes the display look too false!
Of course an open front will make plant choice  even more important but that style adds another dimension  and looks much more natural .. ….


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