Hobby Doc Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 Hi all! My name is Russell, And I am a fish-a-holic! I have been in the hobby for about four years, and still feel clueless sometimes. I am branching out and planning a 180 gallon tank to transfer my current stock and add to it. Currently I have a A. heckelii, G. “surinamensis”, G. steindachneri, and small shoals of harlequin rasbora, Buenos Aires Tetras, and pepper cories. I’ll post a few pictures of my fishy friends here. I have tried a planted tank and while it is thriving from a chemistry standpoint, it is kind of a mess. I’m hoping to add some plants to the big tank, but with the earth eaters, plants don’t last long. I bought six of the easy planters, and hope to add some simple low maintenance plants that I will not be upset about if they get demolished. I have some questions for the forum, but I will seek out the appropriate location to ask them. Glad to be a part of the group! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OceanTruth Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 Welcome to the forum. Your fish and that 180 are beautiful! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 Welcome to the forum sounds like an interesting project 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jungle Fan Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 Welcome to the forum! Have you tried some Amazon swords? I have seen some very large Amazon sword plants in tanks with Geophagus that seemed to be thriving. Sometimes it helps to place some big river rock that can stick out of the substrate around the roots to create sort of a protective barrier, or, if you arrange several pieces of driftwood you can have the plant emerge out of strategically created holes which will keep it protected from digging. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CorydorasEthan Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 Welcome to the forum! Nice tanks and fish! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobby Doc Posted March 14, 2021 Author Share Posted March 14, 2021 1 minute ago, Jungle Fan said: Welcome to the forum! Have you tried some Amazon swords? I have seen some very large Amazon sword plants in tanks with Geophagus that seemed to be thriving. Sometimes it helps to place some big river rock that can stick out of the substrate around the roots to create sort of a protective barrier, or, if you arrange several pieces of driftwood you can have the plant emerge out of strategically created holes which will keep it protected from digging. Amazon swords are at the top of my list for the background plants. I have a large stump that will serve as a block for some of the plants, but this is also why I bought the easy planters. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jungle Fan Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 (edited) I would protect the sword plants with rocks, or roots rather than use a planter. Swords are root feeders with very large roots once they get established, especially because you will want to add root tabs because they need that extra iron and potassium. You could also add some crypts in between driftwood, and cover the driftwood with epiphyte plants going from small to large as you progress upwards like Anubias nana petite, followed by Anubias nana, Bucephalandras, Java Fern, and Anubias afzelli. That way you would have your plants either mounted on rocks, or wood, or protected by rocks, or wood and you can leave the area around the rocks and wood for your Geophagus, and Cories to dig around at their hearts content. If you are planning for an open tank then you could also add some floating plants like Amazon frogbit, and Red Root floaters, which will help keep the nutrient levels in the water down, especially if you feed fresh, or frozen foods. I hope this helps. By the way, that stump looks awesome! Edited March 14, 2021 by Jungle Fan Another thought 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobby Doc Posted March 14, 2021 Author Share Posted March 14, 2021 1 minute ago, Jungle Fan said: I would protect the sword plants with rocks, or roots rather than use a planter. Swords are root feeders with very large roots once they get established, especially because you will want to add root tabs because they need that extra iron and potassium. You could also add some crypts in between driftwood, and cover the driftwood with epiphyte plants going from small to large as you progress upwards like Anubias nana petite, followed by Anubias nana, Bucephalandras, Java Fern, and Anubias afzelli. That way you would have your plants either mounted on rocks, or wood, or protected by rocks, or wood and you can leave the area around the rocks and wood for your Geophagus, and Cories to dig around at their hearts content. If you are planning for an open tank then you could also ad some floating plants like Amazon frogbit, and Red Root floaters, which will help keep the nutrient levels in the water down, especially if you feed fresh, or frozen foods. I hope this helps. I like your ideas. Although, I think the swords may still work with the planters. They are open on the bottom and they don't need to be moved. I could also take them out of the pot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jungle Fan Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 I always remove my plants from the pot, and the rock wool because growers tend to not just use copious amounts of fertilizer to soak the rock wool with, but many times also with pesticides, especially those that come from plant farms in Asia. I remove every last bit of the rock wool with a plastic fork in a basin with water treated with Seachem Prime. Then I give the plant a quick rinse under the tap, trim back the long fine portion of the roots to encourage better anchoring and new growth and plant it in the substrate with tweezers placing one or two root tabs around it. As long as the planter is open on the bottom it will work but Amazon swords Echinodorus bleheri can get huge and can get stuck in planters. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishdude Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 This is super cool and I can't wait to see how the 180 turns out. I heartily approve of the pepper cories especially! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jungle Fan Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 For an illustration of the progression from Anubias nana petite, to Anubias nana, and then Java fern, and Anubias afzelli look at the stump on the left in my 75 gallon tank, other than that it won't be much help because all I've got in here that comes close are Mikrogeophagus altispinosa Bolivian Rams and they love to hide in the many caves and in the plants. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cmike15 Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 It looks like a nice stable setup. I like all of those fish, it seems you could have some real fun seeing it mature. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobby Doc Posted May 28, 2021 Author Share Posted May 28, 2021 Well, here it is... not settled on the positioning of all the driftwood, but check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Renee Posted May 29, 2021 Share Posted May 29, 2021 Wow, that looks great already! Good luck with the plants, Hobby Doc! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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