Scape suggestions

[dan12boy]

I would like to change some stuff around in my 20 tall, mainly with the pearlweed that’s grown super tall. Expected a carpet but they just grew tall in the wrong place. My other 20 long is having the pearlweed carpet though. Now I still like like the pearlweed in the 20t but not sure where to go next with the scape. Any advice would be appreciated. Here’s the tank:

[FLFishChik]

I’m no plant expert as I have yet to delve into the world of live plants, but I think your scape looks awesome as it is! 

[nabokovfan87]

On 7/7/2022 at 5:18 PM, dan12boy said:

I would like to change some stuff around in my 20 tall, mainly with the pearlweed that’s grown super tall. Expected a carpet but they just grew tall in the wrong place.

Trim it short and it'll expand on the substrate and carpet for ya. I'm assuming it's a stem plant, you can just trim it so it's 1" long and then take the tops of each of the stems and plant those into the substrate to push the carpet out. There are ways to adapt lighting to encourage it to grow wide vs. tall as well.

Missed it on the notes, but plant the Val on the back, center of the tank.

I would try to revitalize the moss. Pull it, cut it into 1/4" sections and the re-glue it to the log you have to try to get it to carpet on the surface.  If you need to, move the log slightly to give the Lily some room to exist.

[Root]

Beautiful tank! If it were me I would do this:

[dan12boy]

On 7/8/2022 at 2:41 AM, nabokovfan87 said:

Trim it short and it'll expand on the substrate and carpet for ya. I'm assuming it's a stem plant, you can just trim it so it's 1" long and then take the tops of each of the stems and plant those into the substrate to push the carpet out. There are ways to adapt lighting to encourage it to grow wide vs. tall as well.

Missed it on the notes, but plant the Val on the back, center of the tank.

I would try to revitalize the moss. Pull it, cut it into 1/4" sections and the re-glue it to the log you have to try to get it to carpet on the surface.  If you need to, move the log slightly to give the Lily some room to exist.

Okay so thank you so much for the tips. The wood is there because the lily has a ton of roots coming out of its bulb and I was told that it shouldn't be planted all the way so there's no way to hide the roots if I took the wood away. The roots are like all over the place. With the moss I'll definitely try that because a lot of pieces are just lingering off the wood and sometimes just fall off on the floor which I end up vacuuming out. 

On 7/8/2022 at 4:01 AM, Paul R said:

Beautiful tank! If it were me I would do this:

My dwarf sag has always grown super quick which is why right now that's all I have in there because I'm worried of it taking over the tank. Also I have some jungle val in there too so in your opinion where would that go? The reason my lily is back there is to hide the roots from its bulb so I don't know how I'd move it. Plus I feel like if it were in the middle it will kinda take up the space of the other plants especially since this is just a 20 tall and it has less space length wise.

On 7/7/2022 at 8:48 PM, FLFishChik said:

I’m no plant expert as I have yet to delve into the world of live plants, but I think your scape looks awesome as it is! 

Thank you so much!! I like it too but I just feel like I can do a little bit more to make it even more awesome.

[nabokovfan87]

On 7/8/2022 at 3:03 PM, dan12boy said:

The wood is there because the lily has a ton of roots coming out of its bulb and I was told that it shouldn't be planted all the way so there's no way to hide the roots if I took the wood away. The roots are like all over the place.

The wood is nice!

Here's a video of Cory discussing how to plant the bulb.

I think all you really need to do is set it on the substrate and then bury the roots themselves. This would free up the log to be decor itself and not be stuck with where it is to hide roots. The plant also might be happier because it can have an easier time feeding from the roots.

It's a great looking plant, you've done well.

Edited July 8, 2022 by nabokovfan87

[Root]

I see I see. If it were me I would place jungle val in the back left then. That stuff can get pretty thick and tall. Understandable about the roots the good thing about dwarf sag is it will help cover stuff like that over time. I have a pretty big anubias in the corner of one of my tanks and if you look at the corner it is you will see root city, but if you look from the front or anywhere else you would never know the roots were there. 

[Root]

On 7/8/2022 at 5:03 PM, dan12boy said:

My dwarf sag has always grown super quick which is why right now that's all I have in there because I'm worried of it taking over the tank.

Mine seriously started with 5 small twigs and you see it now lol. The good news is it is pretty easy to control. I do maintenance once a week and when I see it trying to mix in with my crypts or pogo I just pull it out and replant somewhere else or give it away. 

[Patrick_G]

I think it looks really nice. I love a scape with some glowing green and some shady areas. 
I might try trimming the Pearlweed a bit and putting some Ludwigia super red behind it, but I like it. 
 

 

[dan12boy]

On 7/8/2022 at 6:18 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

I think all you really need to do is set it on the substrate and then bury the roots themselves. This would free up the log to be decor itself and not be stuck with where it is to hide roots. The plant also might be happier because it can have an easier time feeding from the roots.

It's a great looking plant, you've done well.

Thank you so much, that's actually really smart so I think I'll try that. I'm pretty sure a lot of its roots have set into the substrate but with a lot still out in the water column. I'm gonna trim off some lilies since they grow crazy fast anyways. I like them there because they help my clown killifish feel safer I believe and even though I have a top, reduces the chances they'll try looking for holes to jump out off

[dan12boy]

On 7/8/2022 at 7:00 PM, Paul R said:

I see I see. If it were me I would place jungle val in the back left then. That stuff can get pretty thick and tall. Understandable about the roots the good thing about dwarf sag is it will help cover stuff like that over time. I have a pretty big anubias in the corner of one of my tanks and if you look at the corner it is you will see root city, but if you look from the front or anywhere else you would never know the roots were there. 

Your carpet looks incredible. I think I might as well let my dwarf sag do something like that towards the front and middle. I do have the jungle val to the back left! I had a jungle of it like a month ago and the leaves were so long they went around the tank once with some extra. It was some beautiful cover but way too much light blocking. So I took the biggest ones out for my 75 while also cutting off the longest leaves. 

 

On 7/8/2022 at 7:07 PM, Paul R said:

Mine seriously started with 5 small twigs and you see it now lol. The good news is it is pretty easy to control. I do maintenance once a week and when I see it trying to mix in with my crypts or pogo I just pull it out and replant somewhere else or give it away. 

Mine is the same. Started with like two main plants and then it blossomed and over the months I've taken so much out and just dumped outside in my backyard. I could move some dwarf sag from my 20 long to the 20 tall because my pearlweed in the long is carepting so nicely that I'd like if it filled the whole substrate especially since it's just a breeding tank. 

 

On 7/8/2022 at 7:18 PM, Patrick_G said:

I think it looks really nice. I love a scape with some glowing green and some shady areas. 
I might try trimming the Pearlweed a bit and putting some Ludwigia super red behind it, but I like it. 
 

 

Would I need a CO2 system for that? Only plant I've gotten to be red is the red lily. I've tried two others but I don't know their names. Got them from petco and they never growed much and even the smallest new growth just started turning the plant green. 

[nabokovfan87]

On 7/8/2022 at 5:40 PM, dan12boy said:

Would I need a CO2 system for that? Only plant I've gotten to be red is the red lily. I've tried two others but I don't know their names. Got them from petco and they never growed much and even the smallest new growth just started turning the plant green. 

There are some plants that get red based on high light, others that get red based on having high growth / CO2 / "being healthy".  I couldn't tell you which is which, but there's definitely some options that might not require CO2.  Something like Scarlet Temple is a good one to look into also and it's a plant where people can get it to grow and it changes colors based on parameters. 

Edited July 9, 2022 by nabokovfan87
fix store link

[Patrick_G]

On 7/8/2022 at 5:40 PM, dan12boy said:

Would I need a CO2 system for that? Only plant I've gotten to be red is the red lily. I've tried two others but I don't know their names. Got them from petco and they never growed much and even the smallest new growth just started turning the plant green. 

I think it can’t hurt to use co2. In a low tech tank it might just turn red at the top, but you’ll still have some contrast since it’s be bronze. 

[dan12boy]

On 7/8/2022 at 8:46 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

There are some plants that get red based on high light, others that get red based on having high growth / CO2 / "being healthy".  I couldn't tell you which is which, but there's definitely some options that might not require CO2.  Something like Scarlet Temple is a good one to look into also and it's a plant where people can get it to grow and it changes colors based on parameters. 

Okay I'll definitely look into that because my tank is all the way low tech and all I add is one or two pumps of ACO easy green every two days. 

 

On 7/8/2022 at 9:14 PM, Patrick_G said:

I think it can’t hurt to use co2. In a low tech tank it might just turn red at the top, but you’ll still have some contrast since it’s be bronze. 

I've never tried CO2 before but if I did it'd be the cheap diy one. Maybe when I have a stand for the 20 gallon I'll try a little bit of CO2. If the colors will still have contrast then I'll definitely get it. Did you get in on the ACO website?

I think I'm gonna make another thread for my 75 gallon since I'm kind of struggling with figuring out its scape too. 

[Patrick_G]

On 7/8/2022 at 6:20 PM, dan12boy said:

If the colors will still have contrast then I'll definitely get it. Did you get in on the ACO website?

They don’t seem to sell any variety of Ludwigia. It’s pretty common though. The other major online aquarium plant company will have it, but I’d try a local store first. 

Edited July 9, 2022 by Patrick_G

[dan12boy]

On 7/8/2022 at 9:31 PM, Patrick_G said:

They don’t seem to sell any variety of Ludwigia. It’s pretty common though. The other major online aquarium plant company will have it, but I’d try a local store first. 

Okay thank youu!!