Aquascaping Tall/square Tanks

[kylealastairlove]

i did it! i think it was a good job i did else i wouldnt have been happy with the height of the substrate, and i cant be bothered to go out and get another bag of sand haha i pushed most of the old substrate to the back so i could create some height then just covered everything with sand 

i actually decided i wanted my tank back in the corner where it used to be (this involved moving the whole room around) so ive been fiddling about for hours! 


but i got some sort of hardscape in place now too after tinkering about for ages, tell me what you think
ignore the piece on the right thats just there because i was experimenting with it!  
i quite like it but un sure as to whether i should move it to the right a bit more or whether i should rotate it a bit more hmmm any tips welcome  

 

[kylealastairlove]

i really dont know what plants to use, all i was thinking was the usual crypts because well you cant go wrong with crypts and i love em, maybe some hygrophilia species too, ive got a lot of space to fill which might be a bit difficult in terms of arranging the plants, im okay planting around something like the hardscape because i can sort of use it as a guide and i'll know what i need to put in certain places but when it comes to the open space its a little harder for me, i feel like i need to raise the whole hardscape a little maybe add some rock work sloping to one side or in the middle and place the wood on/in/around that, i like the hardscape but feel it needs something else something more maybe 

 

[kylealastairlove]

another post (yay) 
guys i think i prefer the manzy wood looks more pleasing to me what do you think ? 



need some more sand to build up the right corner just so i can be sure that the plants i put in the back will grow to the surface! 15kg of sand really doesnt go as far as you would have thought haha

the plan is to either plant from right corner to left corner, tallest plants starting on the right and gradually using smaller plants as it reaches to the right, OR. plant tall plants in both corners and use smaller plants on both sides as they begin to meet in the middle hmm 

wondering if a planted tank would look right full of leaf litter, because its kinda a mix between a planted set up and a natural biotope set up with stained water?

 

[zoeb2912]

i like the manz wood better but think it needs more height to the right. Also I would plant big plants at right going smaller to the left. x

 

[kylealastairlove]

yeah im thinking the same too, after looking at it for a while, i'll have to fetch me another piece although i rarely see it in any shops around here. if i order on the internet i probably wont receive it until after christmas either and i dont know if i can wait that long 

 

[daizeUK]

I love the big piece of wood you had on the left in the first pic.  Would look fantastic with some anubias tied to it.
 
I agree you need to make sure you get wood with decent height.
 
I find thin branches harder to work with than thick ones, although they can look really cool, they can also make maintenance more difficult and are harder to get plants rooted on.  

 

[kylealastairlove]

thank you i actually put like 3 pieces together to get it looking like that  
this is the problem i have with this tank i want to get it sorted because i dont wanna leave the fishys in there temporary housing for too much longer but i dont wanna rush it either, i think another bag of sand might be in order to help the height issues, and of course a couple of taller pieces of wood and i agree with you on getting plants rooted onto thin wood is a nightmare lol! 

 

[kylealastairlove]

okay so there isnt alot i can do right now, ive ordered a nice piece of manzanita as i couldnt find any whilst browsing shops today so for now i think im gonna fill up the tank to keep the wood thats in their water logged, put the fish and plants back in, and when my wood arrives i shall plop it in get another bag of sand, then sort out buying some more plants and get the tank going how i wanted it  

think im gonna put together a proper journal too whilst im at it and put that in the fishy/tank photos section

 

[kylealastairlove]

i just got my wood, but i think ive made a big mistake! so stupid i brought a manzanita branch turns out the wood i already had was sumatra wood!! i just spent £20 on the wrong type of wood! could of sworn the stuff i already had was manzanita, it wasnt really labelled in the store when i got it so i just assumed it was manzanita, but no its sumatra typically having more straight branches coming off it where as manzy seems to have more twists and curves to it and is lighter in colour!! damn it haha think i could blend it in somehow ?