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"Why are my aquarium plants melting?"
This is one of the most common questions that someone new to aquarium plants will ask. They buy plants at a local fish store and get some advice that isn't totally correct, or, at least doesn't provide all the information that's needed.
If you're lucky and have a decent LFS, the plant came with some sort of instructions from the grower. If you're like most of us in the USA, you got a plant in a bag with some water in it. Hopefully, the person who sold you the plant also gave you some instructions on how to keep it but they probably didn't tell you what to expect. So, here you are, reading this article on the Internet hoping to get some answers and, more importantly, some help.
Well, you came to the right place. This online community is full of people helping each other to learn to grow beautiful, healthy aquarium plants that don't melt (most of the time!). This article will give you some grounding that you'll need BUT the best advice I can give you is to 1) head over to the Meet and Greet forum and make a post saying "Hi" and 2) don't be shy about asking for specific help. It is critical that you get used to the idea that you don't have to figure this all out by yourself. There are many of us who are more than happy to help you avoid all of the costly mistakes we've made in the past and save some poor plants in the process. OK? Deal?
OK! Let's get some fundamental understanding as to "why are my aquarium plants melting?".
The fundamentals of aquarium plants and why they melt
Honestly, you probably already know this. All plants, like us, are alive and need some basic items to continue living. Food and water being the most important to you and me, and it's the same for your aquarium plants. The water part is pretty easy and most people get this right. If it's an "aquarium plant", then you will likely be keeping the plant inside your aquarium under water. This eliminates your need for watering the plant. Therefore, unlike many terrestrial plants, water isn't the reason why your plants are melting.Your aquarium plants are melting because of one of three things:
- They are not true aquarium plants (yes, fish stores do sell terrestrial plants as aquarium plants. Sadly);
- They are transitioning from growing in air to growing in water; or
- The environment you have them in isn't meeting their needs.
1. They are not true aquarium plants
Sadly, there are fish stores, both big box and local, that knowingly or unknowingly sell non-aquatic plants to unsuspecting, budding aquatic gardeners. Why remains a mystery to me but it's probably a little bit of ignorance and greed. The bottom line is that if your plant is not designed by nature to be underwater 100% of the time, it will die. Just like you and me, if we were underwater 100% of the time.You may be asking, "Well, how do I know if my plant is an aquarium plant or a non-aquatic?" Well, that's a great question! You either have to identify it on an online site like the now-defunct PlantGeek database of non-aquatic plants, post a picture of it here and ask, or wait and see if it lives if you try the things I will recommend below.
To avoid this uncertainty from happening again, it is up to you to do some research and intentionally choose the plants you are going to purchase. Bonus points if you buy them from local hobbyists or from reputable stores, be they online or brick and mortar. Doing so means you know the plant is intended for your aquarium and, hopefully, how to give it what it needs to grow well for you.
2. They are transitioning from growing in air to growing in water
Many aquarium plants are commercially grown emersed. They are grown in small pots with rock wool instead of soil. This is wonderful if you're the grower because it allows for very controlled growing conditions and the plant stems/leaves grow hardy and strong.These aerial leaves are specifically made by the plant to get oxygen and CO2 from the air. Most of the nutrients (food) they need is pulled from the roots that are suspended in a stream of nutrient-filled water.
These aerial leaves are also designed to photosynthesize out of water. Either the sun (as can be seen in the image to the left) or growing lights are commonly used to provide the energy the plants need for photosynthesis. And, as you remember from school, photosynthesis is one of the ways that plants take light and convert it to food for themselves. Coupled with what they are taking up via their root system, the plant is getting everything it needs.
Amazing what nature does. An aquarium plant, that is designed to live underwater, can be grown outside of water. The term, "nature finds a way", is so true. Humbling.
But enough about that. I mentioned "what an aquarium plant needs to grow well". What is that?
Great question! In a very basic sense, your plant needs water, light, carbon dioxide and nutrients to survive and grow. It gets all of this mainly via its leaves/stems and its root system. And, as we just learned above, in the grower-favored emersed setup, it's getting all of that. The difference with your aquarium is that in your case, the plant needs to get that while being underwater.
So, a plant that was initially grown in the air (like the picture above) has to change (or transition) how it it getting some of the things it needs. Remember, it built leaves that are adapted to get oxygen and carbon dioxide from the air, not water. These leaves were also adapted to getting light without a column of water in between them and the light source. It now has to change all of that so that it can adapt to life underwater in your aquarium.
Of course! It does this by creating new "submersed" leaves that are going to work better underwater and it "drops" the old aerial leaves that are no longer needed. This dropping may be the melting you're seeing. It's just your very smart plant adapting to life underwater in your aquarium. Nature is finding a way.
So what should you do, be patient and research. Depending on the plant and your aquarium conditions, the transition may take a couple of weeks to a month.
I would recommend that you post a picture of your plant(s) here on ScapeCrunch and see if you can get some help from our members to identify the plant you have. They will then be happy to tell you want the plants needs from you to grow healthy. Of course, you can go the Google route and get information. Perhaps you do both. However, as I mentioned at the beginning, there is no comparison to asking other human beings with more experience for help. Don't be shy. You're not nothing anyone. We are here to help.
What happens if you know the plant is a true aquarium plant AND you know it transitioned (or was grown underwater to begin with) and it's still melting?
3. The environment you have them in isn't meeting their needs.
If you've gotten to this part because the other two don't apply to you, then you're likely not meeting the needs of the plant. It may be that you were given a plant that is considered difficult to grow or that has specific growing conditions that your aquarium doesn't have. There are expert-only aquarium plants you should stay away from at the beginning. Again, post a picture of your plant here on ScapeCrunch and we will be happy to help you identify it and share with you its growing requirements.That being said, let's make sure your aquarium is set up for aquarium plant success.
Let's be honest. The aquarium to the left is not a great place for aquarium plant success. These are plastic plants, by the way. Looks nice. Your kids (or you) may love it and Buffy the Betta may be happy as a clam in it. Your aquarium plants won't be.If this is your aquarium, we have a lot of work to do. If you're further along than this, congratulations! You're well ahead of the game.
In any event, what we need to begin to focus on is providing your aquarium plants with an environment that will encourage them to grow. Most aquarium plants are resilient and hardy in spite of your recent melting experience. Give them what they need, more or less, and they will do just fine, especially the more common species.
What is great news is that it doesn't have to be expensive. You can have a wonderful, low-cost aquarium full of healthy, beautiful aquarium plants.
Here's a wonderful example of what we call a "low-tech" aquascape that you can learn to maintain and show off to your spouse and friends.
Here are the things you will need:
- Pick the right plants that will do well in an environment like yours. How? Ask here for help picking low-tech plants.
- Get yourself a good quality, full spectrum fertilizer made specifically for aquarium plants. There are many good commercial options today. Want recommendations? Ask here at ScapeCrunch. Follow the instructions on how to use it.
- Get yourself a pH and hardness kit(s) and test your water. Most plants prefer soft water with a pH of 7 or below. Of course, there are exceptions and if you're keeping hard water fish with a higher pH, just pick plants designed for that environment.
- Get full spectrum lighting to provide your aquarium plants with the light they need. You don't need to go out an buy a new light fixture. Just ask here if they light you're using is enough for the plants you have or are planning to have. It may be just fine!
Yes, of course, there is a LOT more to this than what I've described above. These are the basics of the basics and intended just to give you some understanding and a sense of "everything will be alright". Please believe me that your aquarium can be filled with beautiful, healthy aquarium plants that you and your fish will absolutely love! It just takes patience and a willingness to engage and learn.
ScapeCrunch was created and is run by passionate planted aquarium hobbyists. The mission is to help newcomers to the planted aquarium hobby get past questions like "why are my aquarium plants melting" and get to truly enjoying this wonderful hobby that teaches SO much about the beauty of nature and all it's wonders. Please lean into this community by asking questions and contributing your part. We will all be better for it.
Wishing you much success in your journey,
Art
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3284 views
Hi all,
I recently got a second hand Kamoer F4 Pro dosing pump, but have some difficulty setting it up. The problem is the 'flow calibration'. Hopefully any of you has the same dosing pump and knows how to solve this issue.
As far as I can see, I installed all the hardware correctly and updated the firmware to the newest version. I replaced the in- and outlet hoses for new 3 (ID) - 5(OD) silicon hoses. Also did a factory reset in the app (two times already). The problem is when I calibrate a channel (already tried this with both channel 1 and 2), the calibration dose seems to high for the app to accept it. I tried both the 5 sec and 10 sec giving me accordingly a 10 and 20ml calibration dose. When I enter these doses, the app shows the message 'error setting parameter'.
When I filled in at 10 sec that it only 10ml (whereas it was 20ml), the calibration worked and saved successfully.
Edited later 11-10-26: I just tried the original hoses and the same problem occurs. Also get the exact same measures as with the new tubes
Do any of you know how to solve this?
I recently got a second hand Kamoer F4 Pro dosing pump, but have some difficulty setting it up. The problem is the 'flow calibration'. Hopefully any of you has the same dosing pump and knows how to solve this issue.
As far as I can see, I installed all the hardware correctly and updated the firmware to the newest version. I replaced the in- and outlet hoses for new 3 (ID) - 5(OD) silicon hoses. Also did a factory reset in the app (two times already). The problem is when I calibrate a channel (already tried this with both channel 1 and 2), the calibration dose seems to high for the app to accept it. I tried both the 5 sec and 10 sec giving me accordingly a 10 and 20ml calibration dose. When I enter these doses, the app shows the message 'error setting parameter'.
When I filled in at 10 sec that it only 10ml (whereas it was 20ml), the calibration worked and saved successfully.
Edited later 11-10-26: I just tried the original hoses and the same problem occurs. Also get the exact same measures as with the new tubes
Do any of you know how to solve this?
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130 views
I recently added a small adjustable powerhead/wavemaker that's set to constant flow mode to increase surface agitation, gas exchange, and overall circulation. The goal wasn't to reduce CO₂, but to use stronger gas exchange along with adequate injection to get CO₂ up quickly before lights-on and then reach a stable equilibrium instead of continuing to accumulate throughout the photoperiod
Big thanks to @Dennis Wong / 2Hr Aquarist for his articles explaining this approach. I've learned so much from them. It's completely changed how I look at CO₂ injection and surface agitation
For testing I'm using a freshly calibrated Apera PH60 for pH, Hanna Checktemp 1 for temperature, and the Hanna HI3818 CO₂ titration kit to check actual CO₂ concentration. CO₂ kicked on at 12 PM, lights came on at 3 PM, and CO₂ shut off at 8 PM
Tank/water parameters: UNS 60U, Controsoil, RO/DI remineralized with APT Sky, GH 5 to 6, KH 0. My best degassed pH reference is around 7.30, so I'm seeing roughly a 1.7 pH drop at plateau. With 0 KH the standard pH/KH chart doesn't apply, so I'm using the Hanna kit alongside pH to track the curve
Today's testing showed a really good trend. The tank was already at pH 5.60 by 2:30 PM, reached 5.59 at lights-on, and stayed essentially flat through 8 PM. Hanna measured approximately 44 ppm at lights-on and 44 to 45 ppm at the end of the injection period. Since I was essentially at plateau 30 minutes before lights-on, I now feel comfortable reducing my pre-light injection from 3 hours to 2½ hours and seeing if I can still reach the same level by lights-on
My original CO₂ target was around 40 ppm, but at this point I'm wondering if it's worth trying to make a microscopic needle-valve adjustment just to knock off ~4 ppm when the curve is this stable
Would you guys leave it around 44 ppm or bring it down slightly closer to 40?
There's no livestock yet, so I'm taking advantage of this time to get everything dialed in. Plants are doing great. Planned livestock is cardinal tetras, pygmy cories, Amano shrimp, and eventually Caridina, and I'm planning to start stoc
king next week
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Wrapped up my AGA submittal a few weeks ago, and I just can't seem to bring myself to take care of my tank right now 
I think I'm experiencing burnout. I go through these cycles where my tank is all I can think about for a few weeks/months, and then I need a break, and I can't bring myself to do my usual water change and trim schedule. The good news is my tank has so much healthy plant mass that algae doesnt grow even after a few weeks of neglect.
Any tips on fighting this tendency? I think my first idea is to slow everything down, lower my nitrate to more of a zero-bound system and try to reduce my stem trimming frequency. My second idea is making my water change easier. Right now the hardest part is siphoning detritus into buckets that I walk to the toilet. After that I pump the tank down the rest of the way. How do you guys do this? I would siphon straight to the toilet but I'm bound to accidently send a shrimp to their doom that way.
I think I'm experiencing burnout. I go through these cycles where my tank is all I can think about for a few weeks/months, and then I need a break, and I can't bring myself to do my usual water change and trim schedule. The good news is my tank has so much healthy plant mass that algae doesnt grow even after a few weeks of neglect.Any tips on fighting this tendency? I think my first idea is to slow everything down, lower my nitrate to more of a zero-bound system and try to reduce my stem trimming frequency. My second idea is making my water change easier. Right now the hardest part is siphoning detritus into buckets that I walk to the toilet. After that I pump the tank down the rest of the way. How do you guys do this? I would siphon straight to the toilet but I'm bound to accidently send a shrimp to their doom that way.
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192 views
Staff member
I Donated 2026
Founding Member
Hello Welcome, Scapesome
Welcome to ScapeCrunch, @Scapesome!
We would love to get to know you. Please tell us about yourself. What tank do you have?
We would love to get to know you. Please tell us about yourself. What tank do you have?
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16 views
Rockstar
I mention this plant on occasion, but no one ever comments. So I thought I'd make a post for others and me for future reference.
It is my favorite Erio. It is a darker green, doesn't get too big, and for me it has never sent up any seed stalks.
I find it easy to grow. I have high light but nothing crazy at 124PAR and high CO2, 50+ppm. It gets about max 3-4" and makes side daughter plants when large. I'm not sure my dosing scheme is. Sort of an EI daily dosing kind of thing.
What gets me is every autumn, it starts to melt. I'm not sure how it knows it's autumn with consistent light and a heater, but it must get a little cooler in the tank or something. The plant starts to turn brown and sends up (I'm not sure of the correct term) vegetative stalks with little plantlets on the ends. I've found you can plant these stalks into the substrate with the plantlet on top, and it will grow into a new plant. They've been easy to grow. This is the third year this has happened to me.
Pic of plantlets below. I'll try to get a better one sometime. All I had time for tonight was a crappy phone pic.
This year I divided one of the mother plants in hopes that it wouldn't fully melt and would regrow. That is still in progress.
Anyone else's experiences are welcome.
This plant is the same plant as the one on the right above.
It is my favorite Erio. It is a darker green, doesn't get too big, and for me it has never sent up any seed stalks.
I find it easy to grow. I have high light but nothing crazy at 124PAR and high CO2, 50+ppm. It gets about max 3-4" and makes side daughter plants when large. I'm not sure my dosing scheme is. Sort of an EI daily dosing kind of thing.
What gets me is every autumn, it starts to melt. I'm not sure how it knows it's autumn with consistent light and a heater, but it must get a little cooler in the tank or something. The plant starts to turn brown and sends up (I'm not sure of the correct term) vegetative stalks with little plantlets on the ends. I've found you can plant these stalks into the substrate with the plantlet on top, and it will grow into a new plant. They've been easy to grow. This is the third year this has happened to me.
Pic of plantlets below. I'll try to get a better one sometime. All I had time for tonight was a crappy phone pic.
This year I divided one of the mother plants in hopes that it wouldn't fully melt and would regrow. That is still in progress.
Anyone else's experiences are welcome.
This plant is the same plant as the one on the right above.
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455 views
Got on the tree build kick in past 2 weeks to make somthing I like for 36g freebie build to replace the huge tree turd #2 in there. I got 6 stumps ready today to get built for smaller tanks, 3 done today 3 waiting. Built the larger 17 tall 16 wide tree pics added other day to journal but gonna a build 2-3 more larger trees and the 6 smaller. Sell the ones off on eBay and etsy I don't want.
The larger stump 2nd post pic s 16" tall 15 wide plan to use in future scapes smaller. I've been using Amazon branch packs 15.00 for 25-35 pieces and amazon spiderwood 6-8" 5 for 12.00 for small trees. The large tree I made was a 10.99 piece I tore apart and used the 3 larger branches and built onto them to get the large tree in added pics cost me in end around 22.00 .... I have 10 pieces coming in mail Friday 5 large and 5 medium all spiderwood to make larger trees with this weekend.
Bought a ton of Amazon wood on Amazon lol 2 for 17.00 10-14" so I glued some of them together for larger usable pieces. some came out cool and well worth the 17.00 for the pieces glued together.The 1 has natural plant pots on top. The v shape last 2 pics 12" deep and 16" wide
After literally glueing a finger to a rock today Imao I quit! I ended up used all the accelerator I had anyway so Friday or sat before I can finish my smaller trees. will update as it goes, It will be a forest of trees when its done.
The larger stump 2nd post pic s 16" tall 15 wide plan to use in future scapes smaller. I've been using Amazon branch packs 15.00 for 25-35 pieces and amazon spiderwood 6-8" 5 for 12.00 for small trees. The large tree I made was a 10.99 piece I tore apart and used the 3 larger branches and built onto them to get the large tree in added pics cost me in end around 22.00 .... I have 10 pieces coming in mail Friday 5 large and 5 medium all spiderwood to make larger trees with this weekend.
Bought a ton of Amazon wood on Amazon lol 2 for 17.00 10-14" so I glued some of them together for larger usable pieces. some came out cool and well worth the 17.00 for the pieces glued together.The 1 has natural plant pots on top. The v shape last 2 pics 12" deep and 16" wide
After literally glueing a finger to a rock today Imao I quit! I ended up used all the accelerator I had anyway so Friday or sat before I can finish my smaller trees. will update as it goes, It will be a forest of trees when its done.
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497 views
Ludwigia repens, hairgrass "eleocharis palustris" and ludwigia glandulosa all found locally growing emersed beside water and all growing submerged in water. Nice freebys if they survive the transition theres 20,000 stems in this tiny little pond. all clean no bugs put in tank with no fish to be safe will peroxide dip it before moving into other tank. 1 bunch l repens last pic I picked 8 days ago grown 2" and top turning more red with no melt at all. Well see how it goes. All found beside my local Lincoln dealer parking lot lol.
I've got local emersed plants before I know where theres a storm of lemon bacopa and anacharis is. Seems it always melted badly to mush. These plants are growing emersed for a week then submersed for days when water levels go up. Maybe they are more hardy being grown above and below water over and over? They may all melt to turds in weeks lol.
I've got local emersed plants before I know where theres a storm of lemon bacopa and anacharis is. Seems it always melted badly to mush. These plants are growing emersed for a week then submersed for days when water levels go up. Maybe they are more hardy being grown above and below water over and over? They may all melt to turds in weeks lol.
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476 views
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AquaGirls
I follow several of my native Brit aquascapers, and Fish Shop Matt dropped this announcement via my Youtube feed yesterday, so just thought I would put it out there for those that haven't seen it. Apparently designed for tanks up to 40 gallons, and there has certainly been a void in Oase's Biomaster lineup for smaller tanks. Not sure when it will be available in the US. I do get hits on the Oase website, but no actual product availability yet, so I presume coming soon? Interesting, though, especially for those trying to save space in tight spaces with the prefilter and heater built in. Or just wanting something easier to open and maintain than the Filtosmarts, and more powerful than a small HOB. Of course my questions would be flow, and noise? We'll see.
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64 views
Staff member
I Donated 2026
Founding Member
This is the future home for the announcements when someone obtains an achievement badge. Let the games begin!
2051 Replies
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76538 views
Supporting
I Donated 2026
AquaGirls
Tank: ADA 60F (60 cm x 30 cm x 25 cm) - 10.8 gallons
Lighting: Chihiros WRGB II Slim
Hardscape: Sensei Stone (Magura sandstone, with quartz and feldspar). GH, KH, pH neutral
Substrate: Crushed lava stone (to support hardscape), AF Lava Soil, and maybe Controsoil Extra fine? Still deciding
Filter: Oase Filtosmart 100 with Jardli 12/16 glass lily pipes (modified intake for shrimp)
CO2: GLA GRO Cartridge (once it is in stock)
Primary plants:
Livestock: Neocaridina Ocean Blue; maybe +/- a few Least Rasbora (Boraras urophthalmoides)
Still in the idea/planning stage of this tank. For a challenge I am pushing myself outside of my own comfort zone here, so this will be entirely new territory for me. Modern Iwagumi/diorama is not something I thought I would want to try, but my interest has grown in recent months, so why not give it a try? It will work, or it won’t. If it doesn’t work it’s always an excuse to rescape.
I have an ADA 60F tank sitting on my kitchen counter.
It was the first tank I purchased when I dunked my toes back into the hobby last year, that I scaped with some Ancient stone and driftwood for a few shrimp.
Once it was planted I quickly got in over my head on too many stems in the back, and moss growing too well on the rocks to maintain in a short, cramped space, and had some persistent CO2 related algae courtesy of a drifting needle valve. Thinking about rescaping the tank I had started to tear it down last week, removing most of the stems, and then found myself needing a temporary grow-out tank for some minnow fry, so the tank won’t be fully torn down and scaped for a few more weeks yet, but that gives me time to play around.
So, with an eye toward some sort of modern Iwagumi/diorama, I needed some hardscape. Without the luxury of walking into a store that caters to aquascapers, I am usually stuck with buying hardscape sight unseen. Rather than have a plan, and then try to find the materials, I ordered some rock to see what I would end up with, and let the hardscape inspire me.
Enter 55 lbs of Sensei stone in assorted shapes and sizes.
Why Sensei stone? I didn’t want to use Seiryu. It’s beautiful, easy to work with, and readily available, but I really needed this rock to be inert. Something in this tank’s original build sent GH and KH through the roof, and it had to be either the Controsand, or the or the ‘Ancient stone’ or both. I should have tested it in water first, and I learned that lesson the hard way. The 60F is a small and shallow tank, and shrimp loathe parameter swings, so this time I want to be able to control the water parameters a little more easily (especially the Ca/Mg ratios), so I am starting with inert rocks. Also, in case I wasn’t thrilled with the stones sent to me, I still wanted rocks that were easy to break into usable pieces, so no Hakkai stone this time. I did consider Frodo stone, but would like to use that in at least a 90P. So, hammer and cold chisel at the ready, Sensei turns out to have been a good choice.
The majority of the rocks were interesting either in color or texture, and reasonable in scale for a tank this size.
I did a quick speed-scape on Saturday afternoon with the majority of the larger stones, more for fit, and quickly ruled out some particularly chonky rocks. Thankfully, I saved the lid from the 60F tank when I ordered it, so it is currently my temporary dojo for now. I seriously need to build a real one, it is difficult to get much height in a cardboard lid!
My phone doesn't do it justice here, but Sensei has some interesting character, with neutral greys, and warmer tones that run throughout the rock due to insoluble iron deposits. I think it’s pretty flexible in that it is easy to pair with a variety of sands or soils quite easily. I could use something like WIO Rocket sand to bring out the greys, or Colorado sand to accentuate the warm reddish brown tones. For playing around purposes I just opened an extra bag of La Plata from the 150 build.
Not the all stone was well suited for use in a tank this size, though. That large stone center top in the image above is at least as thick as it is wide, and WAY too beefy and blocky to be useful, even if this was a 90P. Too many like that, and there would be no need for plants at all. It’s always difficult wanting to smash something you just purchased, but this morning I took a deep breath, and unleashed a hammer and cold chisel (honestly just the hammer works pretty darned well with with the strata in this stone) to see what I would end up with. Worse case scenario, I will end up with some accent gravel, because Sensei is difficult to match in color and texture with the accent gravels I have see out there.
What do you know…smashing it worked pretty well, and I much prefer the shards that I broke off that blocky rock. Much more pointy potential there. There are a couple of other odd shaped stones I would be willing to resculpt into a more useable shape, too. It is actually quite fun bashing rocks with a hammer first thing on a Monday morning. I am now looking forward to playing around some more with these rocks, and seeing if I can up the drama a bit. We’ll see what I ultimately end up with. I don’t think the shrimp will mind too much regardless.
Lighting: Chihiros WRGB II Slim
Hardscape: Sensei Stone (Magura sandstone, with quartz and feldspar). GH, KH, pH neutral
Substrate: Crushed lava stone (to support hardscape), AF Lava Soil, and maybe Controsoil Extra fine? Still deciding
Filter: Oase Filtosmart 100 with Jardli 12/16 glass lily pipes (modified intake for shrimp)
CO2: GLA GRO Cartridge (once it is in stock)
Primary plants:
- Eleocharis pusilla
- Micranthemum tweedii ‘Monte Carlo’
- Hemianthus callitrichoides (HC) 'Cuba
- Staurogyne repens
- Gratiola viscidula
- Riccardia Chamedryfolia
- +/- Myriophyllum guyana
Livestock: Neocaridina Ocean Blue; maybe +/- a few Least Rasbora (Boraras urophthalmoides)
Still in the idea/planning stage of this tank. For a challenge I am pushing myself outside of my own comfort zone here, so this will be entirely new territory for me. Modern Iwagumi/diorama is not something I thought I would want to try, but my interest has grown in recent months, so why not give it a try? It will work, or it won’t. If it doesn’t work it’s always an excuse to rescape.
I have an ADA 60F tank sitting on my kitchen counter.
It was the first tank I purchased when I dunked my toes back into the hobby last year, that I scaped with some Ancient stone and driftwood for a few shrimp.
Once it was planted I quickly got in over my head on too many stems in the back, and moss growing too well on the rocks to maintain in a short, cramped space, and had some persistent CO2 related algae courtesy of a drifting needle valve. Thinking about rescaping the tank I had started to tear it down last week, removing most of the stems, and then found myself needing a temporary grow-out tank for some minnow fry, so the tank won’t be fully torn down and scaped for a few more weeks yet, but that gives me time to play around.
So, with an eye toward some sort of modern Iwagumi/diorama, I needed some hardscape. Without the luxury of walking into a store that caters to aquascapers, I am usually stuck with buying hardscape sight unseen. Rather than have a plan, and then try to find the materials, I ordered some rock to see what I would end up with, and let the hardscape inspire me.
Enter 55 lbs of Sensei stone in assorted shapes and sizes.
Why Sensei stone? I didn’t want to use Seiryu. It’s beautiful, easy to work with, and readily available, but I really needed this rock to be inert. Something in this tank’s original build sent GH and KH through the roof, and it had to be either the Controsand, or the or the ‘Ancient stone’ or both. I should have tested it in water first, and I learned that lesson the hard way. The 60F is a small and shallow tank, and shrimp loathe parameter swings, so this time I want to be able to control the water parameters a little more easily (especially the Ca/Mg ratios), so I am starting with inert rocks. Also, in case I wasn’t thrilled with the stones sent to me, I still wanted rocks that were easy to break into usable pieces, so no Hakkai stone this time. I did consider Frodo stone, but would like to use that in at least a 90P. So, hammer and cold chisel at the ready, Sensei turns out to have been a good choice.
The majority of the rocks were interesting either in color or texture, and reasonable in scale for a tank this size.
I did a quick speed-scape on Saturday afternoon with the majority of the larger stones, more for fit, and quickly ruled out some particularly chonky rocks. Thankfully, I saved the lid from the 60F tank when I ordered it, so it is currently my temporary dojo for now. I seriously need to build a real one, it is difficult to get much height in a cardboard lid!
My phone doesn't do it justice here, but Sensei has some interesting character, with neutral greys, and warmer tones that run throughout the rock due to insoluble iron deposits. I think it’s pretty flexible in that it is easy to pair with a variety of sands or soils quite easily. I could use something like WIO Rocket sand to bring out the greys, or Colorado sand to accentuate the warm reddish brown tones. For playing around purposes I just opened an extra bag of La Plata from the 150 build.
Not the all stone was well suited for use in a tank this size, though. That large stone center top in the image above is at least as thick as it is wide, and WAY too beefy and blocky to be useful, even if this was a 90P. Too many like that, and there would be no need for plants at all. It’s always difficult wanting to smash something you just purchased, but this morning I took a deep breath, and unleashed a hammer and cold chisel (honestly just the hammer works pretty darned well with with the strata in this stone) to see what I would end up with. Worse case scenario, I will end up with some accent gravel, because Sensei is difficult to match in color and texture with the accent gravels I have see out there.
What do you know…smashing it worked pretty well, and I much prefer the shards that I broke off that blocky rock. Much more pointy potential there. There are a couple of other odd shaped stones I would be willing to resculpt into a more useable shape, too. It is actually quite fun bashing rocks with a hammer first thing on a Monday morning. I am now looking forward to playing around some more with these rocks, and seeing if I can up the drama a bit. We’ll see what I ultimately end up with. I don’t think the shrimp will mind too much regardless.
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