65 tall South America biotope riparium

be carefull on some plants as it has a tendency to make them melt seems my valls and my pygmy chains dont care for it.

that's good to know about chain swords i have some in the foreground with extra algae and i had considered nuking it with the syringe technique. i will find another way.
 
Wow... Really amazing tank. This is a very interesting idea. Saw in your blog that you were considering bletilla striata for riparium culture. Have you ever considered phragmipedium orchids? I'd be very interested to see how they do in these setups, as they are known to be fond of wet roots and tropical temperatures.
 
that Bletilla might not have been the best choice. many of the references that i have encountered since the purchase describe it as more of a moist soil than wet marginal plant, plus they also require a cold winter dormancy. however, i think that the Spiranthes seems promising. did you check out those other plants i got in that box? there are some pretty cool ones.

i have started experimenting with a phrag. the planting description is right here:

http://hydrophytesblog.com/?p=115

this one is a P. bessaea selection, 'St. Ouen'. i know a guy who breeds Phragmipediums and he says that bessaea and longifolium cultivars grow in wet habitats out in nature and respond well to "semi-hydroponic" culture.

here is a picture from when i potted it up.

13-iii-09-st-ouen-ii-s.jpg


it still looks OK. i don't see much foliage devlopment, but the roots are growing.
 
Nice choice! As long as the roots are growing I wouldn't worry too much. Can't wait to see how this works long term.
 
i have been working on tidying this tank up some more. it has some new plants, and i removed the big Echinodorus sword. here is a quick shot from last night.

30-vi-09-scratch-tank-ii.jpg
 
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