It's all about aquascaping!

Pearling Microsorum pteropus

2012-02-12T08:48:00.000-08:00

My Microsorum pteropus plants pearling today, after I upgraded my lighting from 7w to 24w, with DIY yeast CO2.

2012-02-09T00:56:00.000-08:00

This 3ft tank was set up over 2 months ago, but is without any substrate or initial care. Its been placed near the house windows and is just using natural sunlight. The hydrocotyle luecocephala really took off and same goes with the polygonum aquaticum. I like this plant (polygonum aquaticum) because of the redness of the leaves in strong light and they tend to grow out of water. I kept this plant previously.. and dare I say, it's fast growing, easy and stunning! Though it's not so popular in planted tanks! Will update on this tank again in due course.

flowering Polygonum aquaticum

Cabomba furcata

2012-02-06T08:51:00.000-08:00

Back to same stream where I found Bucephalandra sp ... went there yesterday. The water level there is quite low. I spotted Cabomba furcata and they're quite large in size. Kept this plant 2 years ago; it did great in my tank as long as there is enough light for it, especially at the lower stem, otherwise it will melt. Also, good nutrient-rich substrate will boost growth.

Termites - Macrotermes carbonarius

2012-01-25T08:55:00.000-08:00

I was in a palm oil plantation collecting Java moss during the afternoon around 5pm .. been busy looking around without realising what I'd stepped on .. & I saw these black little insects creeping on the ground where I stood. I didn't know then what they were.. after a couple of steps on that area.. I felt my feet being nipped and it was so freakin sore.. I was in a panic and ran a couple of steps and saw more than 3-4 these black insects on my feet. I tried getting rid of them by brushing them of but their claws were left stuck in my feet, so I had to pull them out.. then I saw blood.. euwww!! .. So I took these pics. Later on, I searched on the net about these insects. They are Macrotermes carbonarius - a termite that can be found in South East Asia. So, next time you are on a field-trip or in the jungle, wear proper protection on your feet and watch out for these nasty little buggers ;-P

You can get more info at this link: termite-macrotermes-carbonarius

Macrotermes sp

Hygrophila corymbosa

2012-01-22T02:00:00.000-08:00

When I bought this H. corymbosa, each stem was only about 6-7 inches.. then kept them in my tank.. but they took off afterwards like there's no tomorrow. I cut some of the stems and planted them in an emersive set up. Out of water, they grow like a big tree!! Same goes for Hydrocotyle luecocephala (Brazilian pennywort) - a very fast growing stem plant!

flowering H. corymbosa

Brazilian pennywort

yes ... that is a 1.5L soda bottle!

Current low tech tank

2012-01-22T01:47:00.000-08:00

This is my Java fern tank.. been keeping them quite a while.. most of the plants are from the wild having collected them during my trips in West Peninsular Malaysia. Forgive the crappy pics!!

My planted tank

2012-01-22T01:38:00.000-08:00

Tiger barbs

these H. difformis never show their spikyness !!

side view

This is my previous planted tank. Flora: H. difformis, Crypt. Wendtii, Echinodorus palaefolius 'Tropica', Blyxa aubertii, H. ceylon. Fauna: Tiger barbs, & Rasboras.

Cryptocoryne affinis

2012-01-22T01:23:00.000-08:00

I forgot to tell you about my previous trip to Pahang last month for Java ferns, when I took some photos of Cryptocoryne affinis that grows in the stream. But I only have a couple of shots of it using my crap phone camera. From what I read on the net, C. affinis is quite easy to keep as long as you don't move them around in your tank once it's planted there. Melting is very common for crypts, but then it will grow back after some time when they've settled down. I kept some of these plants.. and they're doin great so far!

Cryptocoryne affinis ... and my feet!

the dark area in the water are crypts!

natural habitat

Java fern (Microsorum pteropus)

Bucephalandra species

2012-01-22T01:07:00.000-08:00

I went to the local stream just for a short prowl, though I had a very crazy runny nose which I just hate! Was just looking around in the stream areas.. and found a Bucephalandra species growing abundantly there emersively.. so I got a chance to take photos of them.. took some of these and might try them out in my tank.. enjoy ;-)

natural habitat

Spathiphyllum Wallisii??

same Bucephalandra sp I think?

Bucephalandras & Pellia moss on the rock

growing on the rocks

potted this for emersive set up!

this one will be in my tank

How to tie Java moss on driftwood or bogwood

2012-01-15T00:49:00.000-08:00

This time I'm going to tell you how to go about tying Java moss onto driftwood or bogwood. It is quite a simple & easy job to do. What you need is thread or fishing line (I prefer thread as it's easier to wind), scissors, Java moss, & a piece of driftwood. I'm using an emersive form of Java moss, and you need to wet it first using a sprayer bottle for example; also spray a little bit on the wood. Place the Java moss on the driftwood, spreading it evenly until it covers the wood and using the thread, then start winding it. You can see the photos below :

some emersive Java moss

some pieces of driftwood / bogwood

how to wind the Java moss using thread

finished product

Java moss - after a month

2012-01-15T00:26:00.000-08:00

This Java moss is the same as Pellia after being submerged in my tank for about a month. The colour turned dark green underwater instead of the pale green in its emersed form.

after being submerged for a month

Pellia moss - after being submerged

2012-01-15T00:12:00.000-08:00

This is how Pellia turned out after being submerged in my tank for a while. In my previous entry, I posted about how Pellia moss grows in the wild in its emersive form. It's now looking great in the tank, but it needs more light than I previously thought in order to thrive.

Pellia (Monosolenium tenerum) ??

2011-12-13T01:17:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure if this Pellia plant is Monosolenium tenerum or Endiviifolia, but they do look similar. I never tried to keep this in my tank, as - with the plant twisting and making it difficult to tell its topside from its underside- it can be quite hard to successfully tie on to driftwood. I did however, prove some of this type of Pellia was aquatic by keeping it in a plastic container for 2 weeks ... and it appeared to be growing nicely, sending out new shoots & spores. These pics are of an emersive form.

Java Moss (Vesicularia dubyana)

2011-12-13T00:43:00.000-08:00

Java Moss its quite an easy plant to keep. They prefer cold water and less light, but their growth is very slow. I went to collect some in the wild where it was growing in its emersive form. This moss was located just behind my house in a palm oil plantation. To find this moss, they only grow under the shade of trees and in very wet conditions. This plant can be tied to driftwood or rocks, or can be laid on the substrate like carpet; but it can sometimes get messy.

More infos about Java moss, you can go to: aqua moss

Enjoy the pics!

Java Fern (Microsorum Pteropus)

2011-12-12T21:55:00.001-08:00

Java fern (Microsorum pteropus) is an easy plant to grow in your tank; but based on my experience, I've failed to keep this plant previously. The plants turn brownish and melt away, but some plantlets appeared on the malted leaves. This is how Java fern reproduces new plants. Some aquarists argue that Java fern dislikes strong light, prefering low or dim light instead; whereas others have proved that Java fern do like high light and can thrive sucessfully ... perhaps it depends on water chemistry (but I'm not a chemist!). I went to Pahang recently and saw this Java fern growing in their natural habitat. Here are some of my photos of Java fern in their natural habitat:

Crypt. affinis growing in the water, but out of view

took some of these for my tank

these are growing on the edge of the stream

For more info of Java fern, you can go to this link : http://www.javafern.com/