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Re: Aquascaping question



Duane, your question can be approached from two directions - as an aquatic
gardener or as an aquascaper. From an aquatic gardener's perspective, it
might be a shame to lose two well grown plants that you have nutured for a
while. You say that your swords take up a lot of lateral space, rather than
vertical space but in a standard 29 gallon tank ((I'm assuming that you are
speaking of a tank which is only 12" front to back???) you will probably
never be able to adequately display these plants - you just don't have the
room. From an aquascaping point of view, you should be looking at the space
you have and then working out a scheme which fits within it. Any plant (or
other decorative element) which doesn't "fit" should not be used. The plants
used in an aquascape should be scaled in accordance with the space within
which they will have to fit.

Can you use a larger tank, possibly one with more front to back space? 18"
allows much more leeway than 12", and 24" wide tanks can be downright
luxurious. It really doesn't cost very much extra to have a tank built to
custom sizes - especially considering that a tank can last at least 10
years. Most tank manufacturers will custom build a tank to your size needs
and your local fish store should be able to help you out. Large Amazon
Swords can display beautifully in square tanks, especially if your lighting
allows for an open top tank.

If you can't use another tank, what about trading those big swords to
someone with the space to display them properly, in return for other plants
more suitable to your display area?

James Purchase
Toronto