#83: 284L Aquatic Garden La Ceiba

Luis Navarro Houston, United States

Awards and Comments

Second Place
I hate this job! Why can't we have two first place tanks!<g> This is a truly lovely tank carefully designed for the long term. The photos are the proof that it works! I had a hard time deciding whether to put this tank first or #75. In the end I gave the nod to the other tank based on the tremendous eye appeal of the other tank AT THIS MOMENT. This aquarist however has proven that their tank is not only beautifully designed and maintained but sustainable in a clearly recognizable form over the long term.
— Karen
Good use of shapes and texture. The last photo shows much better - you should have stuck with layout two for the entry.
— George
All of the designs on this tank were nicely done with the last being the best due to the touch of red to draw attention to the tank. The Lileopsis doesn't look completely filled in just yet detracting a little from the completeness of this last layout. Also I would have preferred a final shot of the mature tank versus seeing the transition. Nice tank.
— Bailin

Aquascape Details

Dimensions 122 × 51 × 46 cm
Title La Ceiba
Volume 284L
Background black
Lighting 6x55w light house 10000K and 6700K, 2 x 55W lighthouse 10,000K
Filtration 2028 Eheim, 2026 Eheim
Plants First layout: Glossostigma elatinoides, Gymnocoronis spilanthoides, Hygrophila augustifolia, H. sp., Echinodorus tenellus, E. quadracostatus, Microsorum pteropus, M. sp., Bolbitis heudelotti, Cryptocoryne lucens, Lobelia cardinalis, Eusteralis stellata, Rotala walichii, Hemianthus micranthemoides.
Second Layout: Hygrophila lacustris, H. augustifolia "red", Rotala indica, Ammannia gracilis, Cyperus helferi, Lilaeopsis sp.
Materials Malaysian driftwood, Rocks
Additional Information On this layout I tried to make a long term design. Many plants were changed
over time due to their fast growing nature. the Glossostigma carpet
was replaced with Lileopsis sp. to give a more "old" touch. The stem plants
were also replaced with Cyperus and Ammannia sp. and the ferns were allowed to
grow more, as well as the Anubias. The technique used was based on the Ryuboku
style, so driftwood was arranged to look like one piece. There are actually three
pieces, and with the help of the ferns and anubias I was able to make it look
like one. The rocks in the tank function as support for the driftwood so they
cannot be seen.
The changes were made to refresh the layout and enjoy the different stages of
development. The hygrophilias in the back were prune heavily so an empty-to-full background was always changing therfore never looked the same.
The tank is now 14 months old and still running.

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