# 40 hex riparium



## EdC (Mar 5, 2009)

I just put water in this one last Friday. Substrate is 4 lbs red Mexican clay, topped with 1/8" SafeTSorb, then on top of that aa 50/50 mix of MGO and SafeTSorb, and a red fluorite cap. Filter was precycled, and I soaked then dried the MGO once (took forever) and then did three 24 hour soaks, skimming out all the floaters each time.
Riparium baskets are shower caddies, except the one under the filter, which is a cholla round. I have 3 more to add. All but one have half rounds of cholla attached to the front, on which I will attach mosses and ferns. Other plants i have planned for planters include a prayer plant and some emersed crypts. The floating breeding trap is full of riccia, which I am using to help control the initial nutrient surge. I know the planters look to be all death and desolation, but the wandering Jew (purple and green plant) is rooting nicely, the impatiens clippings are putting out new leaves as the big ones die off, and some little shoots of emersed dwarf hairgrass are starting to spring up. 
A lot of the plants were floating until this weekend, as I haven't had a ton of time, but they are in now. The floating pennywort will remain floating I think. I had a ton more, but somehow lost the bag I had it in. I am worried I may have thrown it out by mistake. The marsilea needs to be pulled up, separated into plantlets and replanted. Have to pick up some tweezers for that job. So far the pellia (in the shell and the short cholla) is thriving, as are some of the moss patches. The crypts haven't melted yet, by some miracle, so that is good. I am hoping to get some background stem plants in soon. Hygros/water sprite/Egeria maybe. Has to be something that can tolerate some shade because of the planters. 
The second shell will likely be removed, or at least moved. Many of the plants may end up in different spots or removed as well. Waiting to see what will thrive first. Not sure about the lighting yet, but it is a hanging fixture, so I can raise or lower as necessary. Fauna currently consists of a dozen or so MTS and three mystery snails. Glass is filthy, between clay smears, water marks, and a few spots of algae, but I am not too worried about that yet. Too much other work to be done.


----------



## EdC (Mar 5, 2009)

Tons of gas buildup in the substrate. Gave it a good poking with a stick tonight, but there's still lots in there. Realized too that there is a baby Victorian cichlid in that floating breeding trap. It was floating in my cichlid tank with the pellia until I got this tank setup and I guess the little cichlid jumped in. If it has been living in there since setup on Friday, the ammonia levels must never have spiked too badly, between the cycled filter and the plants.

I have a minor outbreak of pond snails in there, which are chewing up some of the hydrocotyle leaves. I have caught about seven so far, but they keep appearing. Mystery snails might have been a mistake this early. They kind of bulldoze through and uproot things like baby's tears that aren't really established yet, just due to their sheer bulk. No algae outbreak yet, so either the plants are winning, the 5 hours of darkness in the middle of the day to break up the photoperiod is working, or the light is too high above the tank and not lighting it enough. We will see I guess.


----------

