Layout Problems
 

http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/a...94cb7_full.jpg

Hi all, I have been having a lot of issues about how my aquarium currently looks, I've changed around the plants today and can't seem to find a good set up for it.

I originally had a rock as the centerpiece, but my ram pair had taken over most of the tank as their breeding ground, so I want to make my new sword the centerpiece of the aquarium. I need help rearranging the plants to have an appealing look, and yes I can buy a few more plants if needed.

Here is what I have:

Plenty of slate
3 anubis
plenty of java moss
3 java fern adult with many daughter plants growing
5 stalks of wisteria

It is rather ugly right now in my opinion, any thoughts on what I could change around?

If it were me, I'd take the centerpiece plant and move it further left and back a little. Then I'd get some more slate and build up the middle of the tank a little more. Maybe make a sturdy little rock shelf or cave with it?

Another idea would be to get a unique looking piece of driftwood and place it off center to the left a little and have your taller plants behind it. In the end, it's what looks good to you.

Good luck.

I used to keep a sword as a centerpiece, it got so big that it actually began to take away from the rest of the decor.

IMO, large tall plants often serve as better framing tools on the sides of the tank than in the middle. I think Romad's driftwood idea is very good, many aquascapes also feature an open area with low plants as a centerpiece as to feature their fish more.

I'm with romand - some more hardscape would be useful for building some structure into the tank - more rocks or some wood. Some more plants would be nice - Something tall at the back like some vallisneria spiralis or amazon pennywort? a nice foreground plant would be good for nearer the front - maybe some pygmy chain sword? echinodorus tenellum. I'd also shift the sword you have back and to the left so it hides your equipemnt a bit better. I also prefer a black backgroud to the printed ones as i think it really makes the fish and plants stand out.

I agree w/ Romad, but sik80 points out the one thing that will be an INSTANT makeover and that's to change backgrounds. If it was my tank the first thing I'd do would be to replace the printed background with a black one. You'd be surprised by how much all those colors in the current background detract from the tank itself.

I really like this idea, especially the idea of a slate pile near th center of the tank, I would also do a small grove of java fern on the right of the tank, maybe you could attach it to a piece of driftwood. You can also attach Anubais and java moss to driftwood to do some more unique looks. Large pieces of unique driftwood also work well for a center piece. Wistera IMHO works best as a foreground or mid ground plant.

As others have said, a good hardscape can go a long way in making your plants and fish really pop.

I actually have a black background on the other side, will be turning it over tonight. I've begun to make some structures with the slate and aquarium sealant again, I'm thinking about two sloping structures in the back two corners of the tank, but am not completely sure yet, driftwood is a good idea, I just never find a piece that I really really like... maybe some day lol.


Foreground plants seem to die in my tanks always, I had baby dwarf grass once, I don't think the light makes it to the bottom, I have a tall 29 gallon tank, not standard.

I used to have a slate pile in the middle, but my rams basically took over the whole tank and used it as their breeding ground, killing other fish constantly. I'm changing my tank around to avoid this, thus I think the rock structure in a corner will help in the reduction of deaths.

I think I'm going to buy some more background type plants to fill that in and rearrange my current ones.

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone.

I'll post a picture of what I change for more suggestions on plant placement, something I am struggling with.

http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/a...e880c_full.jpg

Ok, how about now?

1. moved the sword a little bit to the left and back
2. Added the two rock formations in the back corners
3. Rearranged the plants, now they just need to GROW! :-P

I think I need something tall like corkscrew val though, somethings seems to be missing, I like the thought of a piece of thin driftwood for the middle, one with a lot of branches or something.

Any other suggestions?

I love the rock work. I might switch the sword and the wisteria and add a few vals in the back, but it is lookin good.