Started out My 40planted

nguyendetecting · Sep 3, 2010

thanks for the input all I think I will remove the rock on the left. I'm not big on big and branchy but will try it also. I do like the open tank feel, the plants in the background will hopefully grow taller and fill up some of the emptiness. I want the moss to grow over most of the rocks and wood on the left side also.

nguyendetecting · Sep 5, 2010

Sept 4 pic, black bg added, some red plants 2 more pieces of driftwood. Removed some anubias, added 6 golden tetras (mis labeled?)

JAY973 · Sep 5, 2010

There's no rule against combining driftwood and rocks on the same side.... If you like open are consider scapes that allow for taller areas on one side or the other and work either way shorter to the other end. I stink at scaping I cultivate more than anything.....LOL but that doesn't mean you can get something that looks pleasing to you.

ghengis · Sep 5, 2010

Looks good.

If you want to add some depth and "pop", you will need to create a slope in your substrate, say two inches at front and six or eight at the back. This will amend the overall flat appearence of your layout. The layout itself is pretty good and the addition of the red plants has really lifted the appearence as well. Only other suggestion I might add would be to remove the black bg. A black bg really does make the colours of plants stand out heaps and looks great, but can also give the impression of confinement or lack of perspective, ime. Having just a white wall behind the tank offers so much more depth of field and draws the eye into and thru the tank.

Keep up the good work!

nguyendetecting · Sep 12, 2010

Update

Pic before and after the root trim, big difference replanted some new growth, added a piece of driftwood, added some sms covered pvc pipe, and introduced in the new fry container I just made.

Also big addition of 6 peacock gudgeons. Will be my last addition to the tank, unless I can get a female bristlenose pleco or can increase my pygmy cory school.

WeedCali · Sep 12, 2010

Lookin good!

whats the red plants you added?

nguyendetecting · Sep 15, 2010

not sure what those red plants are but they're awesome. they grew above the water line already. I did a major trim and experimented with the red plants by cutting little plantlets. Guess I'll see how they turn out in a few weeks. Everything else is doing good, I'm not liking the rotala type stuff too "wild" growing and not very organized. I'm going to switch it out for something cleaner looking maybe a hygro of some sort.

Also I think I will pull these stem plants up every 2wks to avoid too much major rooting to take place, I will try to stay on schedule with trimming and replanting. =), being my first high light co2 tank I want to stay on top of this tank.