Wood Greens
4/22/22
The parents of some family friends were intrigued by my aquariums and were interested in having me design one for their family. They asked for the aquarium to be small and vibrant, and to be less maintenance. In order for this to be possible, I needed to include plants since aquatic plants help cycle and filter the aquarium. To ensure good plant growth, I first needed have a selection of nutritious substrate. For the base, I will be including origanic soil from home depot. Then above, I plan to cover the dirt with a kind of gravel substrate. This gravel holds many nutritious values and with its rough texture and compactness, the roots of the plants will have better water circulation. Then at the very top, I will be using a round clay gravel to help hold the plants down. Below are the 3 different substrates that I will be using, they will be layered for the plant’s benefits
4/22/21
Step 1: Add 2 inches of soil
Step 2: Cover soil with 2.5 inches of gravel
Step 3: Cover gravel with an inch of round clay, be sure that the layers of substrate are visible.
After setting the substrate of the aquarium, I have to create the hardscape. In this design, I plan to be invisioning a sunken log in a lake with rocks clustered around. And spreading for the crevices, different kinds of colorful plants will be growing around the wood and rocks. To make this vision true, I gathered small stone fragments and a medium sized piece of driftwood.
First I stuck the driftwood piece in the middle left of the oval tank and tipped it over to the left. In an another reality, an alive tree would be growing straight up, but since its a fallen tree, it will be resting with ease. Then I positioned the rock pieces around the wood as if they were its roots. Perhaps these stones were the pillars that held the almighty giant up. But now they only serve to help its past ruler’s eternal slumber. I then filled the tank up with water gently, trickling the water to not awaken the leaning wood in slumber.
I then added extra cryptocoryne and ambulia plants on the right between the wood and stones. This will become the focal point because nomally the visual target of the aquarium is near the middle.
Afterwards, I added a few stems of jungle val and anubias plants near the front and back. This helps give a sense of a wild habitat. There are no rules of order or cleanness of the design, having a tall plant in the foreground is an excellent way to make the aquarium seem more natural. Then I added more stems on the right and left to help fill the spaces in the tank. This will help provide coverage for both the little critters and the sleeping giant.
To ensure that the plants have good growth, I added a CO2 system. This will allow the plants to create its own food and absorb more nutrients. I also added a small water pump to help circulate the CO2 around. The shape of the aquarium is quite benefiting in this case because once the water is pushed to the right, it will flow downwards then around the bottom, then back to the top. With the injected CO2, the plants are growing much faster and healthier. My customers were satisfied with the design because the plants were able to grow freely and naturally.
Mini Stree Stump
7/14/21
Using both rocks and wood, I wanted to create another design that resembles a tree stump. Along with the stump, I plan to make it seem like there are little stems growing from the stump using small tree twigs. This design will revolve mainly on perspective and I need an aquarium that may highlight the details. In this case, I bought an oval-shaped 2.5-gallon aquarium. To begin, I used organic garden soil on the bottom and covered it with a layer of creek sand. Then I positioned the wood piece in the middle facing upwards to achieve the natural tree impression and placed a few fragments of rocks around to balance the design. Once I have positioned the important pieces, I arranged a few twigs to protrude along the stump to make it seem like the tree is still growing. This addition also makes the fish tank seem more natural since the twig's directions are unpredictable and organic in appearance.
After finishing the hardscape, I filled the aquarium with fresh water and planted extra dwarf sage plants between the rocks to add the natural messy look. I have also planted a few stems of ambulia plants in the back to fill and create a background for the wood. This plant will help create a distinctive contrast for the hardscape.
Alongside, I added some cryptocoryne plants to resemble the ferns that would grow at the base of a tree. Using only hardscape and three different kinds of plants helps show the benefit of simplicity. Every factor in this aquascape works together in a way, creating perfect harmony.
Mini Jungle scape
7/12/21
Lava rock has many characteristics and a lot of detail allowing it to seem much bigger in prospecticion. I wanted to try using this kind of rock in a small heavily planted aquarium. In this next project, I will be using a 2.5-gallon aquarium with a small led light strip. First, I added ¾ of an inch of real origanic garden soil evenly a the base. Then I used gravel to hold down the dirt to prevent the dirt from making the water dirty. Next, I used some sand that I found from the creek to help the design seem natural. Once I have the substrate level done, I gathered four pieces of lava stone. The biggest stone will be the “heaviest” point of the design and the second stone will come in support for the visual appearance. The last two fragments are just aid pieces, meaning they will go wherever would help balance the visual weight disturbution. I added the largest lava stone to the middle left of the fish tank and placed the second piece on the right of it. I made both of the rocks point slightly to the left to make the design “lean,” as if the rocks together make up a part of a mountain.
Once I finished the hardscape stage, I filled up the aquarium and added dwarf sage plants to act as carpet, and to make the tank “messy” with natural plant growth. Then I planted a single amazon sword and a few cryptocoryne plants in the middle right to balance out the weight of the main rock.
As a week went by, I inserted small twigs to resemble small trees or plants growing around rocks. I also changed the light to a strong single LED light to broaden and highlight the central viewpoint.
Tree Stump Scape - 20 Gallon
8/24/20
I wanted to create an environment that reassembles the scene of a sunken tree stump. And in this frame, I’d like to capture the complex nature of coexistence between the organisms and hardscape materials. The design and placement of the hardscape like the rocks and wood depend on the substrate, which also supports the growth of the plants. And as the plants grow, more cover can be provided for the little critters like fish and shrimp. I want everything to live in harmony, so in order to do that, I must first find all the items required to build a sustainable ecosystem. To begin, incorporating many species of plants is important to present the vast variety of plants in the wild. Different heights and shapes will help the aquarium seem less static and more organic with the looks. Along with the aquatic plants, I will need a large piece of wood to be the main focal point of the stump appearance, and some other pieces to resemble the other growing limbs of the tree. Small foreground plants will be grown around the wood to help contrast the tree stump in the aquarium. Thus, I will need a large aquarium in order to execute the goal of resemblance.
On the 20th of November, 2020, we checked the local Petco to find aquariums that fit the table, and we found a 55-gallon with the dimensions: 48 ½ “L x 12 ¾ “W x 21” H. I went home and cleaned the table where I will be making this aquarium and purchased the tank 8 days later.
For this aquarium, I need nutrient-rich substrate so that the plants may grow strong and efficiently. One strategy to achieve this is by using real garden soil that is organic with no harmful pesticide chemicals. To avoid the fish tank becoming murky and muddy, I chose to cover it using another substrate. Above the garden soil, I will be utilizing the commercially sold soil called Fluval Plant Stratum. This substrate stimulates good plant growth on its own and is pact into single little balls of dirt. This enables the plants to grow roots much easier and has better access to the water colony while holding the soil under.
Similar to the anubias plant, I attached java moss to the 3rd piece of wood so that the moss may be stuck on the surface. This will help contribute to the natural look because, in the wild, moss will grow on old things like trees or rocks.
After two weeks of growth, I decided that it was finally time to fill the aquarium and add more plants. I collected some jungle val plants from other aquariums and added them to the back of the right and left sides. The tall thin appearance of the plant makes the aquarium seem more natural and helps the fish feel more comfortable swimming in the open space. Alongside, I added many other plants on the left side to help compliment the tree stump view. I also added another piece of wood with many branches to help add to the composition of the overall natural look. This also helps provide more coverage throughout the tank since it spreads very wide. Now that all the plants and hardscape pieces have been stationed, I added a water pump on the right to help circulate water surface movement. I have yet to fill the aquarium fully because I didn’t want much water to get sprayed outside by the air stone pumps.
After letting the aquarium plants grow and the beneficial bacteria populate, I became comfortable with adding fish-like, mountain cloud minnows, platties, mollies, and shrimp to help clean the uneaten food. At this time, I still felt the need to keep the air pumps in to ensure that the fish have enough dissolved oxygen within the water. As part of this effort, I added a stronger water pump on the right side to help increase the water surface movement.
As soon as I added the soil to the base of the aquarium, I inserted the wood hardscape. I combined three pieces of driftwood to make it seem like the stump of a tree and placed it in the middle-left part of the tank to give natural balance to avoid any artificial positioning. Once I had done so, I needed to add the plants. As part of my past research, many of the traditional aquarium plants are grown in tropical areas with high humidity, which is how they are able to survive in such wet conditions or underwater. So I wanted to first get the plants to develop a strong foundation with solid roots before becoming fully submerged. In order to do this, I added some water to the aquarium and add plastic wrap above. Then I added a heater to the water so that the water may evaporate faster and stimulate a greenhouse effect. Now that I have the desired humidity, I needed a strong light so that the plants may perform photosynthesis.
This function allows plants to convert the light and nutrients into glucose, which is needed for a plant’s growth. For this, I added two aquarium LED lights above and connected two stone air pumps to help circulate the nutrient distribution in the water. The plants may now grow efficiently with accessibility to CO2, rich nutrients, and strong light. Moving on to the plant selection, I chose to first plant an amazon sword plant beside the wood piece and cryptocoryne in front. These two plants will act as the “bushes” next to the tree stump so these will be essential to the overall design. Alongside, I attached some stems of anubias plants on the left side of the wood. These plants only gain nutrients through the water column, so the roots are only grown to attach themselves to hard surfaces. Growing it outside of water will allow it to gain more CO2 through its leaves, which will boost its root growth. I need the roots to be attached to the wood before submerging so that the plant won't go floating everywhere.
Tarzan’s Jungle Scape
7/23/19
When you imagine a wild jungle forest, you think of the chaotic, boundless, wild ecosystem where both plants and animals may thrive. There are no such clean lines because the plants in the tank will grow wildly where there will only be limited space. In this process, the tank will gradually become a certain level of balance, lessening the maintenance needed. The tank will have its own ecosystem, where all life forms will support each other. I wanted to create this sort of environment using a 20-gallon aquarium. Before producing this design, I already filled the bottom with real organic garden soil and covered it with Fluval Plant Stratum soil to prevent the dirt from clouding up the water. Afterwards, I gathered wood and stone pieces to resemble a part of a tree. As the main focal point, I placed the biggest piece of wood on the middle left part of the tank and used stones to ensure the wood stood faced up. Then I added the second largest piece of driftwood right next to the main piece to add depth. This is the second half of the tree trunk, seeming a tad bit farther. Following along, I added the last piece of driftwood which is much smaller than the first two. I placed the piece to be facing inwards on the right side to make sure that the appearance is not too heavy on the left. However, I still plan to make the left side heavier using large plants. Once I have the hardscape design, I added an external filter and a strong LED light strip and filled up the aquarium. To begin the takeover of plants, I planted two large amazon sword plants behind the left and right of the main wood pieces. These large green plants will help contrast the wood and spread like a bush.
The day following, I planted small bulbs which grew with long strands of leaves. I enjoyed this look because it makes the aquarium seem taller and more chaotic due to its unpredictable growth of direction. And to increase the clutter, I added another piece of driftwood with java moss on the right side to fill the open space. I also added another amazon sword plant in front of the left wood piece and a medium-sized dwarf lily plant on the right side. The point of these large additional plants is to pursue the naturalistic look by minimizing the open space. Later on, I added a few plant stems around the bottom and cyptocoryne plants among the aquascape. Now, this aquarium truly fits to be a jungle due to its uncontrollable growth with its variety of shapes and contrast.
As weeks passed by, I added a few rasbora fish since this aquarium resembles closely to their natural habitat in the wild. The growth of plants has covered the tank and now it functions like a scene from the Amazon rainforest.
Iwagumi Scape 1
11/17/18
The traditional Iwagumi scape style originated from Japan and is a way of designing aquariums using balance between open space and hardscape. One of the main components of this strategy is carpeting plants because this will help contrast the stones; the stones on the same hand will be the theme of the tank. To start this project, I chose to use a five-gallon aquarium and Fluval Plant Stratum soil as the substrate. And as for the aquascape itself, I wanted to use natural stones from the creek and monte carlo plants as the carpet. Fortunately, I was already growing a carpet of Monte Carlo plants on the window side as an experiment. In this small bin, it was tested how fast the plant could grow with fresh garden soil and sunlight. And the results were quite satisfying. To make this part, I wrapped a piece of plastic wrap above the small bin to assure the plants wouldn’t dry out and to stimulate the greenhouse cycle. I planted a few stems inside and spread them around the soil evenly, then I sprayed it with water and sealed the top. Two weeks later, after sitting on the kitchen window counter, the bin has become a bushy garden. With its abundance of monte carlo plants, I could supply this upcoming project by propagating it among the dirt patches. After searching for some stones in the creek, I arranged the stones in a way where it seemed like a mountain descending. I made sure to add more dirt to the back to allow the aquarium to have more height in the design.
After an hour has passed, I finished planting the plants in the aquarium. Now I needed to let the plants grow strong roots before submerging the fish tank in water, otherwise, the plants would float freely and all the time used for planting would go to waste. Similar to the process that the windowsill plant bin has undergone, I will be covering the aquarium with plastic wrap and fixate constant lighting. This will allow the plants to have a head start in their growth because they will have access to CO2, which is crucial to a plant's function of growth. A few weeks later, the plants rooted well and I added in the water, along with some cloud minnow fish. With the dim lighting of the aquarium, you may see the texture and shapes of the rocks as it contrasts with the black background and the green carpeting plants.
Once I was comfortable with the looks, I used my scissors and trimmed parts of the stems into the aquarium. In this process, I made sure to spread the stems evenly and not overlap them amongst each other.
Island Scape
11/8/17
Around the world, there are beautiful mountains that look over the lush fields of grass. Standing with the mountains are the trees that reach into the sky, creating a paradise where creatures may hide. I want to recreate this scene in my aquarium using natural materials like stone and live aquatic plants. Similar to the small 3d models of cities or landscapes, I will be arranging these items to reveal the common complexity that may be held in aquariums. For this project, I planned to use an old 10-gallon fish tank. The past design has grown old and I decided to redesign it for this case. I first took out all the stones and plants and placed them in another tank.
Then I replaced the dirt with new soil called Fluval Plant Stratum. I pushed the dirt to the back to make the second half seem higher- this allows more levels for prospective. Once this is done, I gathered roughly eight pieces of dragon stone as my stone selection. When you are dealing with prospective, having bigger things in the front will make it seem closer than the smaller items in the back. Just like when you look at some mountains in a national park, the mountains farther away would seem smaller and the ones close up would seem enormous. Keeping this in mind, I placed the largest rock in the middle left pointing to the right, to placemark the main focal point. After, I placed the second largest rock behind the main stone but a little to the right. The point of this action is to add balance since there will be a large patch of greens on the bottom right. Then I added the rest of the smaller fragments around the large stones to balance out the aquascape.
Once the hardscape was positioned, I replanted the monte carlo carpet that I was growing in this tank previously. This will be the “grassy field” of the scape. I also planted a bunch of stem plants in the back, these will be the “trees” of the island. On the stones, I have attached a bundle of bucephalandra and anubias plants to signify the bushes growing on the mountainsides. After placing the plants, I covered the top with plastic wrap to begin the “dry start” technique. The point is to keep the aquarium humid enough for the plants to not dry out. This technique helps plants receive good light and natural CO2, allowing the plants to process the nutrients in its roots faster. This will help the plants develop strong roots and leaves before submerging.
After a week of consistent light, I decided to fill the aquarium with fresh water. The plants have developed nice bright vivid colors, and to keep this, I have to use CO2 injection. Basically, I will be attaching a system where CO2 gas is released and dissolved in the aquarium. This is will increase the amount of dissolved CO2 in the water, allowing the plants to thrive better. The small white stone to the bottom right is the CO2 emitter, and it will release small bubbles which will be absorbed into the water column.
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A few weeks later, there has been visible progress in the plant's growth. The plant stems have grown a few inches and the monte carlo carpet has expanded. Once I was comfortable with the plant's growth, I moved focus to the fish and added some tetra fish. Now both plants and fish may live in harmony on the colorful island of lush.
Dutch Scape 3
9/24/17 • 12/7/17 • 10/13/17
A Dutch-style aquarium imitates and resembles the heavily planted English gardens. The main principles of these designs are depth, harmony, and simplicity through the growth and arrangement of the aquatic plants. I wanted to experience making my own garden so I started this project with an already existing aquarium. This aquarium is a five-gallon aquarium with few species of plants and fish. With the aquarium, I have a fifteen-watt heater and an exterior filter that hangs on the back of the fish tank. I also have an aquarium LED light attached on the top and this will be the source of light for the plants. I also already have Fluval Plant Stratum soil as the substrate and this will help stimulate the plant's growth.
To begin, I needed to add more plants to help fill the background, so I trimmed many plants from my other existing aquariums and planted them in this aquarium. But I couldn’t just simply plant the stems randomly, I still needed to keep in mind of color composition and contrast of the overall design. I tried to create a focal point using red plants on the back left part of the tank. To help contrast this point, I positioned the greener plants surrounding the area.
Although, there was still space in the foreground of the design. Since the existing plants aren’t as tall, I needed to use small plants to cover up the space. I decided to use the monte carlo plant because this plant will only grow and propagate horizontally like grass. I thought that this would be an excellent choice because it closely resembles the patches of grass in the English gardens.
With these results, I have grown comfortable to use more “high-tech” plants since I have access to CO2. High-tech plants are plants with higher difficulty that require more resources. Examples of these plants are those that produce dark ripe colors of red. To assure that all the plants receive their needs, I added two small water pumps that will help circulate the aquarium water in a circular motion to help distribute the nutrients and the dissolved CO2. The water movement will also allow the CO2 bubbles to dissolve quicker. After ensuring maximum CO2 efficiency, I bought new red stem plants and planted them in the middle left of the aquarium. With the deep rich colors of this plant, the focal point of the Dutch style will shift to that area.
However, as weeks went by the growth of plants began to slow down. This could either mean that the plants aren’t receiving enough nutrients or light. This bothered me because the plants within the aquarium are already receiving large amounts of both. Then what could be halting the plant's growth? This leads back to the basic processes of photosynthesis in plants. For plants to achieve healthy growth, they need to be able to make their food using 3 factors: light, nutrients, and CO2. I was already supplementing the plants with the required nutrients in the commercially sold soil substrate and provided much light with the bright LED strip. The only thing that is lacking is the abundance of dissolved CO2. As time went by, I realized that the plant’s progression of growth is slowing down because there is less CO2 in the water column. To solve this issue, I purchased an aquarium CO2 injection kit and assembled it. CO2 will be blown into a white stone with minuscule holes, leaving only streams of tiny bubbles to flow within the current. With bubbles this size, it is easier and quicker for the gas to be absorbed into the water.
Weeks later, the growth is clearly shown through the comparison in the image below. With the plants having access to the given resources, the plants would grow at least 2 inches in half a week. Life in this aquarium is truly flourishing and has become colorful with life. With the complex coloration and patterns of the plant's shape and growth, I am finally able to achieve the English Dutch-style garden.
Weekly trimmings of the overgrown plants
Stacking Stones
8/16/17 • 8/31/17 • 9/5/17 • 9/9/17 • 11/27/17
Stacking round stones have carried a significant meaning that is tied to peace. In the process of stone stacking, there must be patience and balance. I wanted to create a design that shows this and the main focus will be balanced- visually, symbolically, and quite literally. First I used a 2.5-gallon aquarium and gathered light and filter. Then I added in the patch of dwarf hair grass that I have been growing in a small pond outside with the same dirt base. For the first few weeks, I wanted to cycle the aquarium water and grow the patch of hair grass under the new given conditions. After waiting a few weeks, the aquarium became stable and I decided to begin to brainstorm how I would stack the stones without falling. I first gathered the round stones from my front yard and stacked them, seeing what orders would fit well. After I have made up my mind, I used super glue that’s made for aquarium hardscaping and connected the stones on top of each other. After I have stacked them together, I placed the stack in the aquarium. I was happy with the design because it was able to showcase the levels of stone with different shades of silhouettes.
Later on, I added some cryptocoryne becketii plants at the base of the stone towers to make the design seem more natural. The plants are hiding under the structure as if they were small animals looking for coverage. This helped further balance the overall design because it “gives more life” at the base of the tall stones. I also added Brazillian pennywort plants at the top of the stones. This plant grows broom-like roots under each leaf to absorb nutrients from the water, so it isn’t necessary to plant these greens into the ground. This plant adds a sense of freedom in the aquascape due to its behavior of growing in all directions of the water surface. Overall, this design is very heartwarming because as the stones overwatch the field of grass, you may watch the little guppy fish explore the crevices with freedom. When the sunlight is out, it is a pleasant view to watch as you’re enjoying a cup of coffee.
Creek Life
8/22/21
In this next aquascape, I wanted to recreate the scene from the local creek. Creeks are known to be peaceful both in and outside of the water from the dense plantations. Within the crevices of the rocks, little critters may find places to hide and perhaps live. That is why is it alright for the overall fish tank to be messy because we want to make it seem natural. Although, despite the need to have naturalism, everything must live in harmony. In this aquarium, I chose to use materials from the creek. This will allow me to avoid using artificially made objects as hardscapes. First I used an empty 5-gallon fish tank with a filter that provides light. Then I filled the base using real natural garden soil then covered it over with creek sand. After the base is made, I placed small rocks along the middle of the tank to resemble the sand bedside in the creek.
After doing so, I fill in the aquarium with water and placed two twigs of wood along the rocks. The twigs signify the plants growing in the creekside that have been sunken by the rising waters.
But I realized that there aren’t enough stones to make the tank truly seem like a creekside, so I temporarily removed the twigs and inserted a large stone to the middle left part of the aquarium facing inwards to the right. Then I added a secondary piece right next to it to help compliment the stones as the focal point. The large stones didn’t fit in quite as well so i dropped some stone fragments in to get that natural scattered formation of a riverbed. After I was comfortable with the hardscape of the stones. I added some cryptocoryne plants behind the rocks on the left and right to stimulate the “shrubbery” appearance. Now I needed to wait for the water to clear up and for the plants to grow in a bit.
The throughout the week, I added some more plants along the rock crevices and the naturalistic appearance of the creek ecosystem began to take shape.
