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[leng]

Dwarf chain sword and hc cuba in the foreground.  Didiplis diandra and singapore moss in the back.


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[charlie]

Thanks for sharing Leng, very nicely done.

[leng]

Thanks for sharing Leng, very nicely done.

I haven't posted anything in a while and I actually haven't paid much attention to my tank for quite a while now.  I stopped dosing but I kept up with the weekly water change and I added flourish excel after the water change.  The algae seems to be in control.  It's funny how trying to get rid of algae caused more algae and when I ignored the tank, it got better.  I guess there was too much nutrients in the tank and also by adding the recommended amount of excel once a week helped to control the algae.  I don't think that I will be able to go too long without adding fertilizers but my plan is to dose when the plants show signs that they need it, otherwise I am leaving things the way it is.

[jart]

That truly is an amazing display. My personal preference is to pack as many species as I can in my tanks, but your tank looks great with very few species.

I have never seen the HC 'Cuba' for sale here. Hopefully I will be able to buy some Didiplis very soon; your pic certainly has convinced me to try it. I may get some Singapore moss tomorrow as well.

[leng]

Thanks all.  Didiplis is not hard to grow and it has a denser root system which grab on to the substrate much better than some plants but like most plants, the entire root system will float up and you will have to replant at some point.  Plants with dense roots will allow you to go longer without having to replant.

As for HC cuba and dwarf chain sword,  they are two of the hardest plants that I have tried to grow in my tank.  I think maybe dwarf chain sword is more difficult to grow because it is slow growing and would be covered in brush algae by the time the next shoot appeared.  When I was spending a lot of time maintaining my tank, I actually did some crazy maintenance stuff on these dwarf chain sword to kill the algae on the leaves.  I don't think I would have any dwarf chain sword left if I didn't spend the extra time.  They are actually growing well now without any more crazy maintenance for over quite a few months now.

[jart]

Do you know what the "dwarf chain sword" is? Is it Echinodorus tenellus? I am not sure what I have in my tank (it came as a hitch hiker), but I believe it is tenellus. It grows like a weed in both my high light and low light tanks, where I was under the impression that the Diandra is somewhat of a difficult plant... both the exact opposite of your experience. Just goes to show that every tank is different. I have certainly had a hard time with "easy" plants from time to time, even under a lot of light.

I tried the "regular" HC before... seemed to take a few weeks to establish itself, but once it did, it really exploded.

Anyway, congrats again on a spectacular display.

[leng]

Do you know what the "dwarf chain sword" is? Is it Echinodorus tenellus?

No, not Echinodorus tenellus.  The scientific name is "Lilaeopsis brasiliensis" so it was not correct for me to call it "dwarf chain sword".  Micro sword is the common name for it.  Anyway, toughest plant for me to grow so far.  Here is a description of this plant http://www.tropica.dk/productcard_1.asp?id=040

[jart]

Thanks for the clarification. I have had pretty good success with Lilaeopsis brasiliensis so far under 3 wpg AH Supply light. Runners have started to appear in most directions after about 2 months. Lilaeopsis novae-zelandiae, on the other hand, seems to be quite prone to developing algae infestations, IME.

[crazy 4 fish]

Very nice looking tank.

[White Lightning]

Very impressive.

[Bees]

Did you ever have any problems with hair algae in the cuba?  I recently got some and there's quite a bit of hair growing out of it.  The rest of the cuba is fine and is growing well, some of the pieces I broke apart are growing together.  I'd just like to know if this is a normal phase or if I need to get aggressive with prevention.  Based on the history and care described above, it seems like patience is the way to go.

[apuppet]

stunning!  couldnt help it, i'd to save it as my wallpaper

[leng]

Thanks!
Bees, I did have some hair aglae at one point.
appupet, cool 

[cichlidicted]

beautiful .... am in the process of building my first planted tank ...
Am saving this pic.