How can I improve my 10g planted?

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xoparis

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Sep 16, 2008
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It just doesnt look right. :/ I'm a COMPLETE newbie to aquascaping and put this tank together on the teenage budget I have, and with a new baby coming, I'm not quite sure whether I can afford driftwood or anything super expensive. I'm not even possivitive what types of plants I have! I know I have a sward in there...Can anyone identify them!

Please excuse the algae on the glass and on the terracotta pots. And I topped it off right after these wee taken.

Any ideas on how I can prevent the leaf-melting? Also, some of my java ferns seems to have tiny holes in them and are turning a bit black-ish.

Substrate is a small layer of gravel on the bottom with playsand on top. My fertilizers are just Flourish Excel, but Im planning on purchasing tabs once I have the money.

Full frontal:

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Left corner:

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Right corner:

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Center shot:

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Stock are a group of juvie cories, an albino cory(who's getting moved to a different tank with his other abino buddies) and 4 teeny tiny HM babies. Plus a mystery snail, and some ghost shrimp.
 
Well... I'd start with scraping off the algae, and maybe you could find some driftwood outside? idk. The wood would make a nice focal point for the tank, and then you could have the plants on the side or behind the piece depending on size. I'm not a big fan of the blue gravel, but that's JMO... You could remove that and just have the sand. What wattage light are you using? that may have something to to w/ the leaf melt.
 
driftwood isn't terribly expensive. with only a ten gallon tank you're talking about very small pieces. People selling driftwood on e-bay are even willing to sometimes accept 1 cent bids just to get rid of excess inventory. you can also just put in rocks that you find anywhere that are an interesting shape or color. I considered putting some small smooth rocks together in a pile for fish to rest to but where i didn't intend to put plants. Just boil them for a little while and soak a couple of nights to ensure no bad chemicals or fertilizers.

Move the java fern and needle leaf java fern closer to the middle or front. They're not very tall growers like your giant hygro in the back. They should also be tied down to rocks or wood, not planted...

If your java ferns are developing holes, it could be because of a potassium deficiency. you could try adding a pinch or two of potassium chloride (versus NaCl) which is salt substitute that you can find in supermarket to supply the potassium. You could also add a little bit of epsom salt for dosing magnesium. those are both super cheap and readily available. Otherwise you can try seachem flourish (not flourish excel) which is a comprehensive fertilizer.

I wouldn't leave the lights on too much if you don't think you're not or can supply nutrients fast to match growth. Java fern will still grow under very low light conditions just not very fast. But at the very least you can probably meet all their needs with just fish waste and water changes. Not possible if you keep lights on 12+ hours at 2+ wpg.
I don't see many fast growers in that tank though, so no matter what you're not going to get the fast growth you probably want. In that case, be wary of also adding too much nutrients as your plants probably can't use it all and the rest will go to algae.
 
My humble opinion is that you might want to organize your plants around a focal point. As others have said, it could be a rock from outside, a piece of driftwood if you find a deal on one, or even an ornament like a cabin/castle/ship etc. You need something to draw the eye. You could even use your terra cotta pots, and centralize them a bit more, then keep a clear space in the middle of them (like a 'town square' or a 'forest clearing'), then build up a 'forest' of leafy plants around them, bunched by type or appearance.

A background would help, that would hide some of the mechanics you can see behind the tank. Even a plain black background can really heighten the look of a tank.

Once you pick a spot for your focal point (off center if you want a classy look) then arrange your plants around it. Try to put your taller, stemlike plants in the back (consider hiding your filter intake or your heater) and plant your leafy plants around the sides. Plants that grow low to the ground could go in the foreground as long as they won't grow high enough to hide your centerpiece..

If you can afford to disturb the substrate, you can try to scoop the gravel up, or you can just hide it by pushing it back into the sand, away from the glass. I personally have tanks with blue rocks, so I don't have a problem with them, but having them sparsely distributed under the sand is a little distracting.

Good luck, this tank has a lot of potential and I look forward to seeing your results once you start arranging it.
 
I agree, a dark background would help.

The sword plant looks to be losing it's emersed leaves & they'll be replaced by submersed leaves, shorter stems & pointier leaves. You'll need at least an iron supplement for it.

Try grouping the same kind of plant together for a stronger looking element until they grow more.

The java fern (dark green) needs to have the rhizome (sideways stem that leaves & roots grow from) above the substrate. Maybe tie (with thread) some of the small java plantlets to one of the pots to soften the look of the terra cotta. They'll eventually attach to the pots (or rock or wood). If you have enough, make 2 groups of java, repeating groups rather than individual plants spread out.

(I like some algae on the pots, like a patina to soften the color & make them blend in a bit)
 
Thank you for the help! Im going to go out and try to find some drift wood around here. And on my day off, Im going to make an attempt at re-organizing.
 
Does this look any better? Its cloudy, I know. And I still have to add the black background too.

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Looks a lot better. What I do when Im feeling a little lost is to look back at others tanks and try to emulate the same look.
 
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