Advice for semi-planted aquarium?

I'm making planters out of cross-stich sheets and nylon thread, then
when I have the right shape using aquarium silicone to cover them in
either aquarium gravel or river rocks (some of each.)

The substrate in the planters is going to be laterite mixed with
vermiculite, with pond fertilizer tablets (if I can find them) and each
planter will be 3-4" deep. 160 watts over a 55 gallon aquarium. I'm
planning on a few massive Amazon Swords and some other hardy plants.

Does this setup sound feasible? Any advice would be greatly
appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Jamie

-cross-posting on req.aquaria.freshwater.plants

Jamie Drilling wrote:
I'm making planters out of cross-stich sheets and nylon thread, then
when I have the right shape using aquarium silicone to cover them in
either aquarium gravel or river rocks (some of each.)

The substrate in the planters is going to be laterite mixed with
vermiculite, with pond fertilizer tablets (if I can find them) and each
planter will be 3-4" deep. 160 watts over a 55 gallon aquarium. I'm
planning on a few massive Amazon Swords and some other hardy plants.

Does this setup sound feasible? Any advice would be greatly
appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Jamie

-cross-posting on req.aquaria.freshwater.plants

Ditch the vermiculite. It will float and make a tremendous mess. Use
Flourish or Eco Complete instead of laterite, or mix the laterite with
gravel or sand. Fertilizer tabs need to be in some clay so that they
don't leach too much nitrate and phosphate into the water column.

You're going to need a lot of plants to outcompete algae under 160 watts
of light. Are you sure you don't just want to put down 3 or 4" of
substrate and forget the planters?

--
Elaine T __
http://eethomp.com/fish.html '__
rec.aquaria.* FAQ http://faq.thekrib.com

"Jamie Drilling" wrote in message
ups.com...
I'm making planters out of cross-stich sheets and nylon thread, then
when I have the right shape using aquarium silicone to cover them in
either aquarium gravel or river rocks (some of each.)

The substrate in the planters is going to be laterite mixed with
vermiculite, with pond fertilizer tablets (if I can find them) and each
planter will be 3-4" deep. 160 watts over a 55 gallon aquarium. I'm
planning on a few massive Amazon Swords and some other hardy plants.

Does this setup sound feasible? Any advice would be greatly
appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Jamie

-cross-posting on req.aquaria.freshwater.plants

I did something similar, as my substrate is not really suited to planting. I
used some black soup bowls to match the existing gravel and filled them with
a layer of fluorite, a layer of aquatic soil (pond dirt in a bag) and a
shallow layer of the existing gravel. I also buried some pond tabs (it's
what I had) in the soil as fertilizer. My Nitrates run around 10 PPM in this
tank, so it's possible the tabs are contributing to the Nitrates.

I let this mixture (without the pond tabs) sit in a bucket first to float
off any muck, but I really did not get any cloudiness in the water. I've had
a minor BGA outbreak, but the plants were doing fine prior to this problem.

Elaine, thanks for the tip - I'm junking the vermiculite. I want to
use planters to create barriers so I don't have different species
encroaching on territory devoted to Amazon Swords, etc. (Don't like my
food touching, either, so I'm weird. ) I'm thinking about
fastening Java Ferns to a cork board, too, for some extra plants
if/when I run out of room on the bottom.

I have my aquarium maybe 25% set up (I'm thoroughly washing 50 lbs of
gravel right now) but it already looks pretty neat. I'm having a lot
of fun--I work on the planters and watch _Moulin Rouge_ over and over
again. I love that movie.

Thanks again--it's great to get expert advice!

Jamie

I love your idea for the planters. At Petco (mea culpa, but they're
close and cheaper than several lfs) I saw reptile food dishes I thought
would make really natural-looking planters. Too bad they're covered in
chemicals to ward off samonella.

Jamie

Jamie Drilling wrote:
Elaine, thanks for the tip - I'm junking the vermiculite. I want to
use planters to create barriers so I don't have different species
encroaching on territory devoted to Amazon Swords, etc. (Don't like my
food touching, either, so I'm weird. ) I'm thinking about
fastening Java Ferns to a cork board, too, for some extra plants
if/when I run out of room on the bottom.

I have my aquarium maybe 25% set up (I'm thoroughly washing 50 lbs of
gravel right now) but it already looks pretty neat. I'm having a lot
of fun--I work on the planters and watch _Moulin Rouge_ over and over
again. I love that movie.

Thanks again--it's great to get expert advice!

Jamie

Control plants? What a concept. ;-) I'm the opposite. Whatever grows
well is allowed to have as much substrate as it would like! I've had
crypts or sag pop up 3 or 4" away from the parent plant. I have baby's
tears in my 10 gallon tank that started as one clump and have now spread
the entire length of the tank. I always like to see which plant "wins"
when two encroach on each other.

Ae you doing any terracing? I've always wanted to do Dutch style
terracing with glass propped against driftwood or slate, but never had a
tank deep enough from front to back for it to work.

Java fern on cork should be beautiful. I usually attach mine to
driftwood and it grows great that way.

--
Elaine T __
http://eethomp.com/fish.html '__
rec.aquaria.* FAQ http://faq.thekrib.com