I’ve been quite busy this week with a number of non-aquarium related things going on, so it’s no surprise that I haven’t been able to post, or tend my aquariums as much as I would normally like to. I have continued to dose my 75G every morning, however, and when I do that, without much attention, it soon turns into this overgrown jungle.

Click for larger image

The Stargrass, in particular, in the back right/middle has completely taken over the area, shading out everything in front of it. Fortunately, all I have are a bunch of crypts, anubias, and other non-light-hungry plants there. I hope to be able to clean up this tank a bit this weekend, so that it’s back in tip-top shape in a week or two. If I’m really ambitious, I might change up the aquascape a little bit because I’ve been wanting to do that for awhile. We’ll see. I’ll post an updated picture once I have it back to a more presentable state.

I’ve changed a few things around in my 75G since my previous update last month. Most noticeably, I have thinned out a ton of the Blyxa japonica that was in the front right. Overall, I think this gives the right side a little bit more definition because it allows a small amount of foreground all the way across the front of the tank. I’ve been continuing my extra attention to this tank, ensuring weekly water changes, consistent CO2 output, and regular dosing. The payoff has been increased growth and a small reduction of the black brush algae that seems to love the rocks, wood, and Anubias leaves in this tank.

75G - August 27, 2008. Click for larger image.

As you can tell, however, I still probably need to dose more fertilizers, nitrates in particular. That is evident in the bright pink color of the Limnophila aromatica and Ludwigia glandulosa on the right side of the tank. In addition, I probably have too many species of plants in this tank. I’ve recently added Vallisneria americana var. ‘natans’ to the right side of the tank, which is supposed to be a shorter and thinner version of the otherwise monster grassy plant that is Vallisneria americana. I also planted Hygrophila sp. ‘Porto Velho‘ in the front-right of the foreground, and have a number of other species of plants jammed in, particularly on the right side. All of this said, I’m pretty happy with the direction that this aquascape is going in. I wish the Eleocharis sp. ‘Japan’ hairgrass would pick up it’s growth rate, and actually create a lush lawn in the foreground, but I suppose it’s just a matter of time for that. Comments welcome!

It’s time that I post an updated picture of my 75G tank. (Previous version here.) Besides my recent disaster with not quarantining fish, I haven’t worked too much on this tank. I removed one of the pieces of driftwood in the front middle to make the scape flow a little bit better. The Blyxa japonica in the front right has grown by leaps and bounds. The Eleocharis sp. ‘Japan’ has grown, but not filled in near as full as I’m hoping for in the left foreground. Otherwise, in the back-right I’ve removed all of the Pogostemon stellatus and put Ludwigia glandulosa in its place. I still have a stem of Ludwigia sp. ‘Cuba’ back there, but I’ll likely move that to my 40G tank once it has stabilized. I’ve also added Hygrophila corymbosa ‘Kompact’ to the midground-center.

75G - July 24, 2008. Click for larger image.

I’m working to fight off a minor black brush algae attack that I believe was caused by medicating the tank. Otherwise, it’s growing fairly well. I looks a little bit unbalanced now with the hairgrass being so sparse, and the empty background on the right side, but once those plants fill in, I’ll be fairly happy with it. I’m open to comments and critiques, however. 🙂

At the last CCA meeting that I attended, I picked up a pair of Apistogramma similis that the speaker had collected himself when in Bolivia. I’m hoping that they really are this species because they don’t exactly look like the pictures in my Cichlid Atlas Vol. 2, but they aren’t that far off either. In any case, Apistogramma similis is quite similar to Apistogramma inconspicua, with a different number of dorsal spines. The extent to which this species is distributed is unknown, being found a couple jungle rivers in the Bolivian province of Beni.

I don’t expect these guys to be terribly difficult to breed in my 75G aquarium, and hope that I’m able to garner a small population of them. These aren’t the prettiest apistos available, but still have their appeal, and if my juvenile specimens color up a bit, they’ll be nice to look at nevertheless. I’ll post updated pictures of these guys as they mature.

It’s been about a month since the last shot of my 75G aquarium. Since then, the Eleocharis sp. ‘Japan’ has continued to grow in, and is still exhibiting the fantastic downward sloping growth it’s known for. The Cryptocoryne pontederiifolia in the foreground/middle has really started to explode. I suppose the roots have reached critical mass, and now there’s no getting rid of it. (not that I would want to!)

Otherwise, I have a few signs of collectoritis showing on the right-hand side of the aquascape with stems of Pogostemon stellatus, Ludwigia sp. ‘Cuba’, Eriocaulen sp. ‘Type 3’, and Ludwigia sp. ‘Pantanal’ all growing in close proximity. I ought to decide on just one of those, and go with that. Not to mention that I’ve totally mixed up Limnophila aromatica and Limnophila hippuroides in the middle of the tank! Honestly, I’m wondering if what I bought as L. hippuroides is really L. aromatica anyways because they look the same to me. Finally, the Java Fern sp. ‘Fingers’ in the top/middle/left is looking fantastic! All-in-all, for not paying much attention to this tank, I can’t really complain too much about its appearance. It could definitely benefit from a couple good trims, but otherwise, it’s maintaining itself pretty well, I think. However, suggestions are always welcome!