The aim of this project is to exploit the great potential of Wabikusa cultivation techniques combined with the art of Aquascaping, to be able to reproduce nature as faithfully as possible, and to be able to realise our ideas without constraints, allowing us to express our creative flair to the full.
The concept of Shallow and the art of Wabiscaping is to be able to represent a complete ecosystem by exploiting both the emerged and submerged parts, recreating two completely different habitats, where living conditions change radically, but which are complementary to each other.
Characteristics of the Tank and Technique Used
Tank
Shallow Tank measures 90x45x27cm – net litres 80.
Lighting
Fluorescent ceiling light T5 4x39W 6500°K, we will also later develop a test with a new LED ceiling light.
Filtering
External filter, loaded with Stilla for the biological part, and simple perlon wool for mechanical filtration.
Construction technique of the Hardscape
When you start building the hardscape of your tank, one piece of advice I can give you is to take your cue from a photograph of a natural landscape or ravine that has caught your attention. In fact, I often find myself walking through the undergrowth in my area, and it is in these places that I have found the beautiful roots that I have used for this composition.
The structure had to try to be a guiding thread between the development of the emerged and submerged parts, and it also had to act as a support to be able to place the plants in the emerged part, ensuring that the root part always remains in contact with the water.
The composition you see in the photographs looks like a single root… because the type of wood is the same for all 4 pieces that I collected in nature, in fact a trick to set up a Scape as natural as possible is to use wood and rocks of the same species and texture.
In order to ensure the solidity of the root structure, I used some hardscape construction techniques that are very common in aquascaping, in particular I used
0 Electrical ties of various sizes, black in colour.
0 Steel rings screwed into the wood.
0 Green plastic-coated iron wire.
A dispassionate piece of advice I can give you at this stage is to try to join the roots using the means I have described above, but being careful not to show too much of the technique, i.e. apply jumprings and ties so that they remain as hidden as possible.
Don’t be afraid, in case any ties remain visible, we will cover them with moss or plants during the planting phase.
When we do live shows, and show people these hardscape construction techniques, I always try to refer to Photography, you get the picture. Photography and Wabiscaping must travel on the same wavelength
the positioning of the main furnishings in the tank is never left to chance…. there are certain rules that determine the focal points that a composition must have in order to guarantee a homogeneous and natural vision to the human eye.
The most commonly used technique in photography when framing a scene is the rule of thirds, which consists of virtually drawing vertical and horizontal lines that divide the image into thirds, and it is precisely at the points where these lines intertwine that the human eye unconsciously goes in search of the focal point of the image.
It should be noted that the tank in question, being particularly disproportionate in terms of height, does not allow us to create who knows what great depth in the submerged part.
Even the choice of light sand was not obvious, in Aquascaping the colors and contrasts created between the various materials are very important, as is the alternation of shaded areas and areas of full lighting, and the homogeneity between the solids and voids of the structure.
A piece of advice when choosing the furnishing material for your tanks, always wet the rock and wood you intend to use, because the color changes considerably compared to dry conditions, and you could find colors in the tank that clash with each other.
In this composition I therefore wanted to create a strong contrast between the rocks and the root in relation to the light sand.
The submerged part of the tank will be managed and planted in a minimal and essential way, in order to highlight the vigor and explosion of color of the emerging plants, but this part will be explored in depth in the next article, where we will go into the details of the planting.
Composition of the Substrate in the rear part of the tankIt often happens during live shows that I repeat several times that the substantial difference between a stable aquarium and a non-stable one depends on the level of biological activation of the biosystem.
The use of biological activators both in the substrate and in the column most of the time determines the success of establishing good bacterial colonies in the tank, which in turn determine a stable and long-lasting ecosystem, despite being enclosed in 5 glasses.
For this reason the substrate of the tank in question was constructed as follows: First layer (directly in contact with the bottom glass)
Bio-Soil is an effective biological activator formed by a mixture of selected bacterial cultures of Nitrosomonas spp., Nitrobacter spp. and facultative anaerobic Bacillus dispersed in very pure sand, these bacteria will completely colonize the substrate and the entire contact surface inside the tank, and above all they will enter into symbiosis with the root system of the plants, guaranteeing healthy and luxuriant growth by inhibiting the attack of fungi and/or pathogens.
The biological activation in this tank is very fundamental because it will give me a big hand in preventing mold and root rot linked to the dynamics of the emerged cultivation.
Second layer Vigor Plus + Florido Tabs
Vigor Plus a mixture of highly porous organic and inorganic materials, which allow gas exchange and water circulation within the substrate. Furthermore, the presence of clay minerals and humified organic substance gives it a high cation exchange capacity.
Vigor Plus it retains precious cations from the water for mineral nutrition, such as potassium, magnesium, calcium and ammonium, slowly transferring them to the plants. Humic acids finally give a Vigor Plus the ability to maintain small but constant doses of low-solubility microelements in solution which are thus available for plant nutrition.
Florido Tabs it is a source of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, mixed in the correct proportions, in the form of tablets that allow the slow and controlled release of these elements directly into the bottom of the aquarium.
Third and final layer Terra Nera Fine
A porous and light Allofana earth with great cation exchange capacity, completes the composition of the substrate, and guarantees an excellent support for planting even the most difficult species to plant.
Irrigation technique for planting on wood:
The project in question wants to show a new technique used for this specific purpose, which will allow us to be able to grow mosses and plants by rooting them directly on the wood that comes out of the water.
This very simple, flexible and functional technique consists in the use of a porous tube, anchored to the wooden structure.
The porous tube, as you can well understand from the name itself, has the ability to carry water, dispersing it across its entire contact surface, transforming itself into an ideal support for the rooting of mosses and plants.
The technique involves the use of a pump appropriately sized for the purpose and equipped in the water suction part with a mechanical pre-filter which protects the porous pipe from the risk of clogging in case debris and/or decomposing material is sucked in.
A fundamental premise of emergent cultivation is to NEVER wet the leaf part of the plants.. this is to prevent the formation of mold and prevent fungal attacks, therefore the use of the porous tube determines a suitable solution for the purpose of keeping only roots and mosses applied to wood.
In the next article we will go into detail about planting, both the submerged area and the emerged area with the aid of the porous tube system.
Stay tuned to this channel…
this type of tub arouses a lot of curiosity, it is now a consolidated standard in the East, but in Italy it still gives amazement and the desire to get involved!
until next time!..
Roberto Bielli
