Are you also an AGA member?

[jetstream]

Just wondering any of you are also a AGA member, if you don't know what AGA stand for, 51%  you are not! 

[BigDaddy]

I plan on becoming a member this year... and OVAS will buy a club membership this season as well.

[darkdep]

Ok, I give up. What is it?

[PaleoFishGirl]

Warning: SPOILER!! lol

See for yourself

[charlie]

Just wondering any of you are also a AGA member, if you don't know what AGA stand for, 51%  you are not! 

I`m not, don`t think i will.
Regards

[babblefish1960]

One of our previous presidents Ron Barter, has done very well in some of the AGA photo contests in the recent past, it is a very large and fussy group that have a wealth of resources and members. Well worth joining if you are really interested in learning scads about plants.

[succinctfish]

Granted, it is a fascinating concept, and I enjoy looking at the entries into the AGA contests.  It's obvious a lot of effort is put into the contests by the organisers, and the entrants. I am always bemused by the desire to make an aquascape look like anything but a home for fish.  Rivers, islands, swans, and why do rocks always have to be exactly the same?  I love plants and fiddling around with the aquascape, but for me the primary focus is that the aquascaping provides the best home for the fish who live in it.  It's an interesting exercise to look at my tank from the perspective of the AGA judges comments, it gives me ideas of things I could, might change, but I like my green rock even if it doesn't match the others. 
So, I guess my answer would be no also. 

[jetstream]

why do rocks always have to be exactly the same?

In my opinion, most of the AGA contestants don't use much rocks in their aquascape. They use driftwood more often or just 100% plants and consider their aquascape as Dutch style. It's the other ADA contest that you see lots of rocks being used. If you enter either one of the contests, the organizer automatically placed you into the other one because both work closely together. The winner from both competitions, you can tell their styles are totally different! If you have the chance take a look at the AGA bi-monthly magazine, you'll understand the association more. They study plants and related topics.

The reason that I post this topic is, AGA will publish a membership directory very soon and allow members put a link of plant related website or local aquarium club. So far I only found 2 members! Myself, 1/2 BD  and 1/2 OVAS because they'll become member soon! 

Regards,
Jetstream.

[succinctfish]

In my opinion, most of the AGA contestants don't use much rocks in their aquascape. They use driftwood more often or just 100% plants and consider their aquascape as Dutch style. It's the other ADA contest that you see lots of rocks being used. If you enter either one of the contests, the organizer automatically placed you into the other one because both work closely together. The winner from both competitions, you can tell their styles are totally different! If you have the chance take a look at the AGA bi-monthly magazine, you'll understand the association more. They study plants and related topics.

The reason that I post this topic is, AGA will publish a membership directory very soon and allow members put a link of plant related website or local aquarium club. So far I only found 2 members! Myself, 1/2 BD  and 1/2 OVAS because they'll become member soon! 

Regards,
Jetstream.

Have you entered the contests Jetstream?
In regards to my rock comment, I was referring to feedback from judges in last years AGA contest, where it wasn't the amount of rock, but the similarity of the rock. A couple of the judges didn't seem fond of different colours or types of rock in an aquascape, something to think about folks if you are planning to enter.   Let us know if you enter, as I would love to see what you have done.

[jetstream]

Very tempting to give the contest a try! The problem is I have way too many kinds of plants in my tank, which all the judge don't like at all. What I found very interesting about the contest is, at least 80-90% of the plants that the winner's tank used are just some common ones, you can even get them in Ottawa! But they managed to make it so magnificent looking! Every time when I trim my tank, always thinking of remove most of them, enter the competition and then quit and sell off all the stuffs! I am in the process of scaling down and removed all the Tonina already! 

I read about the comments too and was bought up in another forum! Couldn't remember exactly, but the answers from the judge is, the mistakes that some of the contestants made are, they used too many kinds of rocks in their aquascape which in the real world rarely happened or some of the rocks that they used are never find from where the plants grow!  I guess he/she is kind of right after I thought about it!