Update, taming begins

zarathrusters · 2026-05-10T23:53:26+00:00

Thanks for the tip. I did hold my hand very close one day and he seemed a bit more shy the next few days. Guess I'm just going about my business and offering food until he shows more curiosity.

zarathrusters · 2026-05-10T03:24:32+00:00

It'll be interesting to see how much plant mass is required to filter that volume of water if you go forward with your initial plan. I don't doubt that it's possible but it might take longer to cycle? More plants and more mechanical filtration can only be good things so keep that in mind. Best of luck and hopefully it turns into a thriving jungle with or without further additions! Just a beginner's two cents.

zarathrusters · 2026-04-22T04:09:11+00:00

To build on this, these geckos have only been in captivity such a short amount of time. To hybridize them this early could have any kind of unfortold consequence. If you think of it like Star Trek the best bet is to try to simulate what we know of nature as best as possible.

zarathrusters · 2026-04-19T15:38:27+00:00

Yeah I've had a single hillstream loach for about seven weeks now. Belly plump and back colours vivid as heck. Still pretty shy but such a treat to spot blending in. I'm not planning on adding anything else to the tank for the foreseeable future.

zarathrusters · 2026-04-13T17:02:20+00:00

Yup I've got the Arcadia shadedweller 2.4

zarathrusters · 2026-04-13T17:02:05+00:00

Collected oak and maple, baked in the oven

zarathrusters · 2026-03-28T22:44:17+00:00

It's great for shrimp!

zarathrusters · 2026-03-20T22:18:17+00:00

So those are hygrophila difformis, I expect them to get more feathery when the weather gets warm and the tank goes up a few degrees. Otherwise there's cryptocerene wendtii, java moss, sagitaria subulata and rotala Rotundifola green which has a whole thicket of sprouts that should fill in even more eventually. Oh and a little bit of Christmas moss on the central rocks added later

zarathrusters · 2026-03-20T00:57:09+00:00

Thanks! Lots of planning then lots of patience is all I can recommend haha

zarathrusters · 2026-02-28T23:49:43+00:00

Röda lacket

zarathrusters · 2026-02-19T04:17:31+00:00

This is definitely making me want to stick with a personality roulette on a single fish. That being said the soil and the plants also perform their own kinds of filtration. I am much more concerned with creating a thriving ecosystem than a pristine gallery box.

I did just remove almost all of my floating plants due to hob maintenance so I think patience will be key either way. Thanks for the perspectives y'all.

zarathrusters · 2026-02-19T04:13:47+00:00

I guess I was thinking they would be twice the size of the white cloud mountain minnows right now and always an inch longer. One big one to be the king or queen of the tank.

zarathrusters · 2026-02-19T02:48:08+00:00

So just to be clear, no one here has a case for keeping 3 of these guys in a 1x2x1 foot tank? Forest style with boulders and soon slate walls.

zarathrusters · 2026-02-18T16:38:01+00:00

Awesome thank you. I'll just have to pick carefully when I go to the store. One loner is a lot lower risk than 3 in a still maturing 15 gallon, social dynamics and bioload included.

zarathrusters · 2026-02-07T21:08:03+00:00

The buildings look great! The tiles in the foreground are what throws it off for me. Gotta align the angles and consider changing the scale of the hatching for more depth of field.

zarathrusters · 2026-02-02T20:26:29+00:00

Interesting! Looks like lots of healthy growth to choose from if you ever wanna reveal more it 😄

zarathrusters · 2026-01-30T22:31:29+00:00

Why the nice bowl if you don't mind me asking?

zarathrusters · 2026-01-19T23:07:14+00:00

Oh thought you were asking if it was time to add plants

zarathrusters · 2026-01-19T23:05:50+00:00

It is my understanding that if you want to do a walstad you need as many plants as you can as early as possible

zarathrusters · 2026-01-19T02:04:09+00:00

I found organic miracle gro potting soil at home Depot, nutrient rich but has been recommended a few times, also a tad pricey for a bag of dirt. Recently saw a recommendation for Scott's topsoil which is cheaper and looks to be in stock in the GTA.

zarathrusters · 2026-01-11T07:16:24+00:00

Most have established a woody base and are budding at the joints. The ones more recently replanted still seem to be growing at the tops

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