Part of what I wanted for this tank, that I've admired in many others such as Tom's Bucket O' Mud, Tom's Poco Pozo, and @hitmanx's Celestial Swamp and others is some emersed growth. I think that the above water/below water planting adds a fantastic extra dimension and makes the scape look even more naturalistic, so I'm keen to have a play with the idea for the first time.
As with everything on this tank, I wanted it easy to maintain and adjust as needed, I also needed a system that could be hung on the tank (given there are no raised areas that breach the surface) and easily removed.
I saw these on Amazon that I think @Courtneybst first posted a link to in one of his threads:
Amazon product ASIN B097M74YLF
Unfortunately the hanging lip on the back isn't wide enough for the 15mm glass on this tank, so I made up some little stainless brackets, which also get the pots a little lower in the water:
I've drilled out the pots so I get good water circulation through them:
Then I've lined them with this thin carbon impregnated fibre sheet. The carbon element isn't relevant, I just wanted some thin black woven material to act as a barrier and contain the soil.
I've 3/4 filled them with some of the Shrimp King active soil, since it has no nutrients to leach, only beneficial acids, then put some plants in.
I'd no solid idea what plants to use, so I've added a mixture to experiment with. I wanted some long grassy stems, so got some Eleocharis vivipara. I also wanted some fern - initially I was hoping to try and get hold of some Marsh Fern as its the only one I've read does well with wet roots, but it has the availability of rocking horse turd, so I've opted for a Maidenhair Fern. For the other plants I got some Ficus Pumila, Ludwigia Mini Super Red and Hydrocotyle Verticillata,
I was hoping, given that the plants were potted and grown emersed, planting them in my emersed pots wouldn't be too much of an issue. Unfortunately it looks like Horizon has stored them submerged, so a lot of the stems that would typically be quite rigid in an emersed pot, are quite soft now and can't support their own weight. Not an issue if I was planting submerged, but could be as they dry out and have to stand on their own. 🤷♀️
As with everything on this tank, I wanted it easy to maintain and adjust as needed, I also needed a system that could be hung on the tank (given there are no raised areas that breach the surface) and easily removed.
I saw these on Amazon that I think @Courtneybst first posted a link to in one of his threads:
Amazon product ASIN B097M74YLF
Unfortunately the hanging lip on the back isn't wide enough for the 15mm glass on this tank, so I made up some little stainless brackets, which also get the pots a little lower in the water:
I've drilled out the pots so I get good water circulation through them:
Then I've lined them with this thin carbon impregnated fibre sheet. The carbon element isn't relevant, I just wanted some thin black woven material to act as a barrier and contain the soil.
I've 3/4 filled them with some of the Shrimp King active soil, since it has no nutrients to leach, only beneficial acids, then put some plants in.
I'd no solid idea what plants to use, so I've added a mixture to experiment with. I wanted some long grassy stems, so got some Eleocharis vivipara. I also wanted some fern - initially I was hoping to try and get hold of some Marsh Fern as its the only one I've read does well with wet roots, but it has the availability of rocking horse turd, so I've opted for a Maidenhair Fern. For the other plants I got some Ficus Pumila, Ludwigia Mini Super Red and Hydrocotyle Verticillata,
I was hoping, given that the plants were potted and grown emersed, planting them in my emersed pots wouldn't be too much of an issue. Unfortunately it looks like Horizon has stored them submerged, so a lot of the stems that would typically be quite rigid in an emersed pot, are quite soft now and can't support their own weight. Not an issue if I was planting submerged, but could be as they dry out and have to stand on their own. 🤷♀️
