[Chesherca]

I can't wait! Bombard away ;)

[Canadian Fish]

I love that big hunk of driftwood, it complements your plants and set up perfectly!

[thekoimaiden]

My shipment of plants from Petswarehouse came in today! I ordered Undulated Crypt and a green Tiger Lotus. I'm actually rather disappointed with the way they were packaged. Just thrown in a bag and stuck in a box. No padding at all. Because of that the box and the plants got a little smushed. I hope they'll recover okay. Anyway! On to pictures!!


This is the whole tank. Hard to spot the itty bitty plants.


So here is a closeup! I also cleaned the glass a bit, so my pictures don't come out so fuzzy anymore. I was leaving it up there for the farlowella, but he's like a month off. I'd like a clean picture right now.


Because I stirred up the substrate, I must have stirred up some goodies for the loaches because they were all over the tank today. I tried to get some pictures of them on the substrate, but no luck. Brown doesn't show up well on black. But I did manage to get some pictures of crazy loach circles which they started after I started taking pictures. It's like they were determined to be little blurs.

I'm trying something interesting with my lighting. I'm making a home-made reflector out of aluminum foil. If it generates too much algae then I'll just remove it, but I figure why not give it a shot?

[Chesherca]

The new plants - and the entire tank - look fantastic!!! I love Crypts. . . I really think that eventually I'll end up with a crypt-only tank. They come in so many varieties, and are so wonderfully easy to care for :)

LOVE the loaches! *squeeeee* Mine do that, too. Anytime I change things in the tank, they act like the carnival just came to town. Love those silly little loaches!

Bummer that they packed your plants carelessly. I'm sure they'll recover - probably the Crypt will melt and re-grow anyway, and I'm betting the lotus will, too - so it might not matter. But STILL! That isn't the point! You should send an E-mail complaining. . . *maybe* they'll send you some more for FREE! >.<

Thanks for the update, I'm loving watching this tank grow. It was so empty when it started, it's really starting to take shape now, and looks gorgeous!

[thekoimaiden]

It was so horribly empty when I started! I went back to look at the initial pictures and MAN! I can see why people would take one look at the tank and wonder if there was anything in there. Now that the tank is planted I hope these plants will take off!

I fully expect the crypts to melt like mad, and I made sure to be very careful with their root systems and give them plenty of root tabs. But they're crypts, so I don't think it will matter. Funny thing is, they actually look better than the lotus right now. Both of the leaves on the lotus are browning. BUT! I do see a baby leaf coming up from the substrate, so I'm hopeful.

I spent like an hour today just laying on my bed and watching the loaches go crazy on whatever goodies are in the substrate. I should disturb the tank more! They're soo cute! I actually got a video of them foraging, but my camera is so crappy you can't tell they are actually fish. T-T

The first fish I'm adding to this tank will certainly be loaches! ^_^ I saw some up on Aquabid the other day. I hope they are still there in January.

[Chesherca]

I also adore it when loaches go mad! They're such silly squirmy little things :D

I wouldn't be surprised if the crypt melts, either - but, by the same token. . . I wouldn't be surprised if it DOESN'T! Those plants are notorious melters, but in my (limited) experience, they're really random! The cryptocoryne wendtii that I have was shipped to me through the mail, and came from someone with VERY hard water (as opposed to my soft), and it never dropped a leaf. ALSO never melts when I have moved it in my own tank, or from tank to tank inside of my house. It kind of... pauses on growth for a month or so while settling in, but the leaves stay put. On the other hand, my cryptocoryne spiralis melted when I got it, and also every time I move a runner to a different tank within my home - but not when I move a piece to another spot within the SAME tank. Such random plants! Still, even when they melt to the quick, they come back gloriously fast - and it's neat to watch them grow. I'm really in love with the crypts I have, hope you have a similar experience!

I can't wait for those new loaches to arrive!!!

[Boredomb]

Izzy your tank is looking awesome!!! Love the pics of the loachs btw! LoL

[thekoimaiden]

I would LOVE it if my crypts didn't melt! They have such cute little leaves! I'd kinda like them to stay that way, but most descriptions I'm reading say they get about 6 inches tall. That's still fine.

Thanks, John! I'm really proud of how it's coming along.

[Boredomb]

Originally Posted by thekoimaiden

I would LOVE it if my crypts didn't melt! They have such cute little leaves! I'd kinda like them to stay that way, but most descriptions I'm reading say they get about 6 inches tall. That's still fine.

Thanks, John! I'm really proud of how it's coming along.

Izzy did your Undulated Crypt melt?? I had that plant one time. It would melt on me continuously. LoL I think that plant hated me! I have had some crypt wendtii and never had any problems out of them. They never melted once on me.

[aussieJJDude]

Izzy I am falling in love with your driftwood! :D (But then again, I love wood - but yours is excellent!)
Cute loaches - are they coolie loaches?? I thought you can only get them in Tiger stripes....