C
csmith
Guest
Hey guys, it's been quite a while. I've returned from my taxpayer funded vacation and after taking some time to reacquaint myself with home life I've decided to get back into my tanks. I have the 20 gallon high in my bedroom and a 55 gallon in the living room. Before I left I took both down, minus substrate and foreground plants. I set both up to DSM in my absence, with my wife misting once or twice a week.
The results with the 20 gallon (black flourite and staurogyne) weren't anything spectacular, as there was some good upward growth (6-8 inches where the glass could support the weight) but nearly no lateral off-shoots. I've come to the conclusion I'm going to scrap the stauro and turn this tank into a functional (read: decent looking but utilitarian) hospital tank. What happened in my 55 gallon, in comparison, was amazing. I left a dollar bill sized section of HC on the aqua soil, and I've returned to wall-to-wall plant growth. My wife told me the HC had melted at first and looked completely dead, but once it recovered from that it exploded in growth. The plants grew so well and so fast that yesterday I had to trim it down 3-4 inches across the entire tank because the bottoms were turning yellow from lack of light penetration. This stuff is thick. To be honest, I'm contemplating leaving the tank as is and not adding too much else in the way of flora. Opinions on that would be appreciated. In conclusion, if you can find the patience to leave a tank to DSM for 7-8 months, the results are well worth it.
The results with the 20 gallon (black flourite and staurogyne) weren't anything spectacular, as there was some good upward growth (6-8 inches where the glass could support the weight) but nearly no lateral off-shoots. I've come to the conclusion I'm going to scrap the stauro and turn this tank into a functional (read: decent looking but utilitarian) hospital tank. What happened in my 55 gallon, in comparison, was amazing. I left a dollar bill sized section of HC on the aqua soil, and I've returned to wall-to-wall plant growth. My wife told me the HC had melted at first and looked completely dead, but once it recovered from that it exploded in growth. The plants grew so well and so fast that yesterday I had to trim it down 3-4 inches across the entire tank because the bottoms were turning yellow from lack of light penetration. This stuff is thick. To be honest, I'm contemplating leaving the tank as is and not adding too much else in the way of flora. Opinions on that would be appreciated. In conclusion, if you can find the patience to leave a tank to DSM for 7-8 months, the results are well worth it.
