ok before anything...i would like to stress...what should we call the methods that we had developed?..i was told i shouldnt use MY Method!
something to think about huh..............
ok lets down to business.
what is a good planted tank and what is not? then again whats an eye pleaser and whats a normal one?
of course to be graded your set up has to be a matured one...only then can u judge the plants ,its health and the rate of growth. for a new setup with plenty of exotic plants would be NOTHING but a nicely decorated tank...some beautifully taken photos will not put your new tank in the grading line simply coz the plants havent started growing...and its always easy to spot a FAKE.
we could lie to others ...but not ourselves., so fellow planters, lets shake off that INSTANT sucess attitude in us, before we could really master the art of planting...the one important attitude u need is patience...it take years and years of hardwork and failure, mostly failure. learn from that mistake, and never once close your eyes and ears to an idea, even if it meant coming from a newbie. if u think of yourself as a master...u will learn nothing new.
the worst part is ...get rid of the attitude of learning only from masters and rubbing shoulders with them while looking down on the newbies...for all u know that master wouldnt be teaching u the right thing...while u do not improve on your method, the same newbie u had looked down aupon has improved himself three folds.
the word is...open your mind to anything new! and u would be surprise by the kinda ideas a newbie will cook up.
right...whats the right combinations for plants in a setup? well, its all a matter of taste, some like it green ,some red, or the combination of both.
IMO the best combination is the one closest to nature....and what does that mean?
...in the wild u will not find a dozen species of plants growing side by side.
if u put too many species of plants , lets say in a 4 footer setup..it looks ugly.doesnt matter if the plants are growing beautifully ...but your setup will never be a winner.
but then as a person who is new to plants, supposing u have all the right equipments...u would like to try all the plants u could lay your hands on.
nothing sinister about that..its just the normal thing that suppose to happen.
but after years and years of planting...u begin to cut down on the species u want to keep. its NOT EASY to resist the temptation of adding new plants to your established tank..
the best natural setup is the one with few species but more of the same.
ie...maximum 5 species or from the same family and plenty of it growing in close formation.
imo its better than having 12 to 15 species growing here and there...it look odd.
the plants must blend in with one and other to produce the eye pleaser setup.
and from a distant the setup looks really natural..just like in the wild
i like to let my plants grow untrim, let it grow wild like it suppose to grow and if u are stem fanatic like me...u need a tall tank ...2 feet minimum.
here is an example of a WILD LOOK setup ...we will discuss this with your questions.
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