My newest setup. Looking for suggestions.

[Schuyler]

I got some plants and that piece of wood at the local fish club auction (shout out to the GSAS) so I decided to use some of the leftovers I had laying around to make one of the tanks on my rack actually look nice.

So far it has UN Controsoil in the front, fluval bio stratum behind the rock, bolbitus fern, nymphoides Taiwan in the back, and dwarf sag in front.

My plan is to take cuttings from my main tank to fill this one out more. Here's what I have there:

Any suggestions?

[gjcarew]

I think a Hamburg Mattenfilter covered in moss would be cool to hide the back wall and equipment

[Schuyler]

On 4/25/2023 at 8:32 AM, gjcarew said:

I think a Hamburg Mattenfilter covered in moss would be cool to hide the back wall and equipment

How do you get it to stick to the sponge? Do you have to dry start or sew it on the or something?

[Guppysnail]

That looks like a fantastic start. What type of rock is the grey with white striping?  I have a tiny chunk of it I’ve had for years and love but don’t know the name of. 

[Ninjoma]

Love the hardscape. Here are some suggestions:
-You could maybe put a hygrophila trimming (or whatever the tall plant is on the right side of your main tank) behind the rock on the right side. Or you could fill in the whole back wall to the right of the Taiwan with hygrophila.
-You could use rotala trimmings on either side of the bolbitas fern between the log and the rock. Maybe short pieces on the left and taller pieces on the right. You'll have to trim them a lot to get the heights right though long term.
-You could split up some of your anubias and put it on the wood on either side of the bolbitas fern. If you have some extra short rhizome plants like nana petite or buce, you could put some on the rock too.
-You may want to put the dwarf sag into the main tank and use a shorter carpeting plant like moss or dwarf hairgrass (or whatever species those are in your main tank) in the foreground. Dwarf sag gets crazy tall and will block out your beautiful hardscape eventually. You can make dwarf sag work though, if you prefer it.

[Schuyler]

On 4/25/2023 at 10:29 AM, Guppysnail said:

That looks like a fantastic start. What type of rock is the grey with white striping?  I have a tiny chunk of it I’ve had for years and love but don’t know the name of. 

Mine came from landscaping in my yard. I'm fairly sure it's basalt with quartz (mohs scale of 5 for the main part and 7 for the veins and not reactive to vinegar).

 

[gjcarew]

On 4/25/2023 at 8:56 AM, Schuyler said:

How do you get it to stick to the sponge? Do you have to dry start or sew it on the or something?

I've seen a video where Cory sews it on with acrylic yarn. I wouldn't recommend a dry start, in this case you don't really want it to form a uniform mat or it might inhibit flow through the mattenfilter. Sewing chunks of moss on seems like a better choice.