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    • IMScotty wrote:

      My first ever 'Planted Tank.' Top photo is at planting, bottom is one month later. I have some plant growth, a few failures. Fighting the algae is a battle. Overall I am pretty happy with my first try. Fish will be added slowly.
      [IMG:https://scontent-lga3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/12645069_10207362192006196_1951238332135583127_n.jpg?oh=c367f092ebdce7b38b20625e10da708a&oe=57395022]
      that's way cool, I guess you have to trim or prune just like a garden?
    • IMScotty wrote:

      My first ever 'Planted Tank.' Top photo is at planting, bottom is one month later. I have some plant growth, a few failures. Fighting the algae is a battle. Overall I am pretty happy with my first try. Fish will be added slowly.
      [IMG:https://scontent-lga3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/12645069_10207362192006196_1951238332135583127_n.jpg?oh=c367f092ebdce7b38b20625e10da708a&oe=57395022]
      My husband has some fish(?) called algae eaters in his tank.
    • When I was a little kid my aunt and uncle had sea anemones and a lion fish. I was told never to stick my hand in the tank or I'd get stung and could die. Well you know I wanted to stick my hand in there so bad, but never did. I credit this time in my life as my first remembered experience for developing common sense.
    • socks wrote:

      that's way cool, I guess you have to trim or prune just like a garden?
      Yes, I will have to do some trimming of my underwater garden. There are different styles of 'Aquascaping.' I suppose mine is a 'Nature' style, but I like the 'Jungle' style also, so I plan on letting mine grow fairly wild.

      If you would like to see the absolute pinnacle of the art form, Google the tanks of Takashi Amano. His 'Iwagumi' style tanks are unbelievable. He was an artist.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • I've read thousands of books. I love to read. Fantasy, Science fiction, history, astronomy, geography, geology, computers, arduino, camping, odd events, and hiking.

      I used to collect stamps, but when I started paying more for the stamps than they were worth I stopped. That was back last century.
      --
      "What do you mean its sunrise already ?!", me.
    • IMScotty wrote:

      socks wrote:

      that's way cool, I guess you have to trim or prune just like a garden?
      Yes, I will have to do some trimming of my underwater garden. There are different styles of 'Aquascaping.' I suppose mine is a 'Nature' style, but I like the 'Jungle' style also, so I plan on letting mine grow fairly wild.
      If you would like to see the absolute pinnacle of the art form, Google the tanks of Takashi Amano. His 'Iwagumi' style tanks are unbelievable. He was an artist.
      I will most certainly look at them, didn't even know that was a thing.
    • IMScotty wrote:

      My first ever 'Planted Tank.' Top photo is at planting, bottom is one month later. I have some plant growth, a few failures. Fighting the algae is a battle. Overall I am pretty happy with my first try. Fish will be added slowly.
      [IMG:https://scontent-lga3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/12645069_10207362192006196_1951238332135583127_n.jpg?oh=c367f092ebdce7b38b20625e10da708a&oe=57395022]
      That is very pretty. I can't wait to see it with fish.
      Lost in the right direction.
    • IMScotty wrote:

      My first ever 'Planted Tank.' Top photo is at planting, bottom is one month later. I have some plant growth, a few failures. Fighting the algae is a battle. Overall I am pretty happy with my first try. Fish will be added slowly.
      [IMG:https://scontent-lga3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/12645069_10207362192006196_1951238332135583127_n.jpg?oh=c367f092ebdce7b38b20625e10da708a&oe=57395022]
      Do not get any Mollies. Two Mollies will become twenty. Twenty will be two hundred. Impossible to get under control without taking your tank apart and letting the rock dry out in the sun to kill the tiny babies that are swimming around under the rocks.
      Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.
      Dr. Seuss Cof123
    • Drybones wrote:

      When the kids were small we had a tank stocked with critters we seined from the Roanoke River, had a lot of very different fish, crawdads, hellgramites, etc., was cheaper than buying fish and a lot of fun catching them.
      Native tanks are great fun. My last tank was a native tank, I started out with a bunch of 1 inch juvenile fish I caught with a hand net. At the end of the first year all I had left was one fat largemouth bass.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier

      The post was edited 1 time, last by IMScotty ().

    • Rasty wrote:

      IMScotty wrote:

      My first ever 'Planted Tank.' Top photo is at planting, bottom is one month later. I have some plant growth, a few failures. Fighting the algae is a battle. Overall I am pretty happy with my first try. Fish will be added slowly.
      Do not get any Mollies. Two Mollies will become twenty. Twenty will be two hundred. Impossible to get under control without taking your tank apart and letting the rock dry out in the sun to kill the tiny babies that are swimming around under the rocks.
      Oh, you have some beauties in there. There are worse problems to have in life than too many Mollies :)
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • IMScotty wrote:

      Drybones wrote:

      When the kids were small we had a tank stocked with critters we seined from the Roanoke River, had a lot of very different fish, crawdads, hellgramites, etc., was cheaper than buying fish and a lot of fun catching them.
      Native tanks are great fun. My last tank was a native tank, I started out with a bunco of 1 inch juvenile fish I caught with a hand net. At the end of the first year all I had left was one fat largemouth bass.
      The wife and kids would hold the net across fast moving water and I would go up stream and turn over rocks...folks in the next county could my wife when a helgramite hit her leg.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.
    • Drybones wrote:

      IMScotty wrote:

      Drybones wrote:

      When the kids were small we had a tank stocked with critters we seined from the Roanoke River, had a lot of very different fish, crawdads, hellgramites, etc., was cheaper than buying fish and a lot of fun catching them.
      Native tanks are great fun. My last tank was a native tank, I started out with a bunco of 1 inch juvenile fish I caught with a hand net. At the end of the first year all I had left was one fat largemouth bass.
      The wife and kids would hold the net across fast moving water and I would go up stream and turn over rocks...folks in the next county could my wife when a helgramite hit her leg.
      When I first started fly fishing I had a tank set up with nymphs which then hatched to mayflies from my favorite trout stream...fun stuff. I enjoyed collecting bugs almost as much as catching fish...almost! ;)
    • TrafficJam wrote:

      Ewok11 wrote:

      Well, after reading through this whole thread my "hobbies" seem so mundane. My husband is the thrill seeking, death defying, adrenaline junkie in the relationship. I mainly just watch and pray to anyone or anything listening that he doesn't get hurt.

      1. Mountain Biking (I'm mediocre at this.)
      2. Skiing (I've tried exactly once so far and I was terrible but that just makes me want to try again.)
      3. Rock Climbing (Another mediocre rating.)
      4. Ice Climbing (Still learning.)
      5. Weight Lifting (I've sadly gotten way, way too slack on this one in the last year, so it kind of feels like I'm starting over.)
      6. Running/Jogging (It's a necessary evil.)
      7. Reading (I nerd out hardcore with books. I hesitate to guess the many thousands in both digital and traditional format that I've read.)
      8. Puzzles (Don't judge. I never outgrew that part of my childhood.)
      9. Photography (I'm not a photographer. I'm just someone with a super nice camera who gets lucky sometimes.)

      Cool list. My list would be very short if we only included the things we were good at. I stink at the physical stuff but enjoy it anyway.
      Puzzles! I've always loved them, Ravensburger's are the best. Most of my puzzles are on the computer but I've been thinking about getting one out of the closet. I took this picture yesterday of my grand pup while I was working a puzzle.



      My mom is an art teacher and the queen of all things artsy or crafty. I've yet to find something she can't do. My older sister inherited those talents from her. I, however, can barely draw a stick figure and end up getting severely pissed off and throwing everything in a closet if I try to be crafty. I would like to learn to quilt. I have one quilt that my paternal grandmother made and one that my maternal great-grandmother made. Both could use some patching up here and there. That's as close to having a domestic type hobby as I could probably manage.

      I hadn't even considered online puzzles. Now, I will have to look that up.
      “Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.” - T. S. Eliot
    • Rasty wrote:

      IMScotty wrote:

      My first ever 'Planted Tank.' Top photo is at planting, bottom is one month later. I have some plant growth, a few failures. Fighting the algae is a battle. Overall I am pretty happy with my first try. Fish will be added slowly.
      [IMG:https://scontent-lga3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/12645069_10207362192006196_1951238332135583127_n.jpg?oh=c367f092ebdce7b38b20625e10da708a&oe=57395022]
      Do not get any Mollies. Two Mollies will become twenty. Twenty will be two hundred. Impossible to get under control without taking your tank apart and letting the rock dry out in the sun to kill the tiny babies that are swimming around under the rocks.
      add a piranha, problem solved. :D
    • lol, i've never heard of online puzzles but i'll try anything once. google took me to jigzone where i did the daily. fastest time 2 minutes (these are rounded), average time 7 minutes, my time 27 minutes. :( i think i'll stick to sudoku for my online puzzling; i'm a numbers guy anyway.
      2,000 miler
    • socks wrote:

      Drybones wrote:

      IMScotty wrote:

      Drybones wrote:

      When the kids were small we had a tank stocked with critters we seined from the Roanoke River, had a lot of very different fish, crawdads, hellgramites, etc., was cheaper than buying fish and a lot of fun catching them.
      Native tanks are great fun. My last tank was a native tank, I started out with a bunco of 1 inch juvenile fish I caught with a hand net. At the end of the first year all I had left was one fat largemouth bass.
      The wife and kids would hold the net across fast moving water and I would go up stream and turn over rocks...folks in the next county could my wife when a helgramite hit her leg.
      When I first started fly fishing I had a tank set up with nymphs which then hatched to mayflies from my favorite trout stream...fun stuff. I enjoyed collecting bugs almost as much as catching fish...almost! ;)
      I had a large pond behind the house we lived in when I was young...er, we'd catch 6-8" red fins to use as bass bait, I did enjoy catching them as much as the bass, there was an art to it, not just anyone could catch them. I had one on one day and I saw a very large wake coming from the other side of the pond, it took my shiner and straitened my hook, I've caught several 7-8 pounders, and dropped a 10 pounder back in (jumped in to get it, had it in my hands, but it got away), but I believe the one that got the shiner was the grandaddy of'm all.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.
    • socks wrote:

      When I was a little kid my aunt and uncle had sea anemones and a lion fish. I was told never to stick my hand in the tank or I'd get stung and could die. Well you know I wanted to stick my hand in there so bad, but never did. I credit this time in my life as my first remembered experience for developing common sense.
      When I was in kindergarten, some older boys tried to talk me into sticking my finger in the entry hole to a yellow jacket nest. I guess I had some common sense.
      I am human and I need to be loved - just like everybody else does
    • I too am an home brewer. I started more than 30 years before it was trendy and followed the rise of the craft beer industry as that was driven mostly by home brewers whose hobby got out of control. However it's been a couple of years since I made any beer. It's now to the point that I can buy good beer at the store and microbreweries so I don't have to make my own any more.

      I also like to travel. One of my unusual hobbies is to plan trips I know I won't ever take. I like to read about very obscure and out of the way places that would be undoubtedly very cool to visit, such as Socotra, the Wakhan Corridor, and Rotuma, but due to time, money, family priorities, and better judgement, I just won't be able to go there. But I use travel info on-line to plan the details of a trip I would take, if I could.
    • odd man out wrote:

      I too am an home brewer. I started more than 30 years before it was trendy and followed the rise of the craft beer industry as that was driven mostly by home brewers whose hobby got out of control. However it's been a couple of years since I made any beer. It's now to the point that I can buy good beer at the store and microbreweries so I don't have to make my own any more.

      I also like to travel. One of my unusual hobbies is to plan trips I know I won't ever take. I like to read about very obscure and out of the way places that would be undoubtedly very cool to visit, such as Socotra, the Wakhan Corridor, and Rotuma, but due to time, money, family priorities, and better judgement, I just won't be able to go there. But I use travel info on-line to plan the details of a trip I would take, if I could.
      if I only had frequent flyer miles for all the google earth trips I've taken. :)
    • max.patch wrote:

      i tried to make wine at home years ago when i was in college using welchs grape juice but the balloon kept popping. just as well, i'm sure it would have tasted just a step above what prisoners make in the big house.
      An old friend of mine used to make "wine sprintzers" to take fishing. It was grape juice with a lot of vodka.
      "Dazed and Confused"
      Recycle, re-use, re-purpose
      Plant a tree
      Take a kid hiking
      Make a difference
    • On our hike this week end we passed what I thought was a fire ring for a camp site but was in a place you could not camp, I asked my buddy who in the world would camp there, he told me that was an old still and not a camp site....good location for that.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.
    • odd man out wrote:

      I too am an home brewer. I started more than 30 years before it was trendy and followed the rise of the craft beer industry as that was driven mostly by home brewers whose hobby got out of control. However it's been a couple of years since I made any beer. It's now to the point that I can buy good beer at the store and microbreweries so I don't have to make my own any more.

      I also like to travel. One of my unusual hobbies is to plan trips I know I won't ever take. I like to read about very obscure and out of the way places that would be undoubtedly very cool to visit, such as Socotra, the Wakhan Corridor, and Rotuma, but due to time, money, family priorities, and better judgement, I just won't be able to go there. But I use travel info on-line to plan the details of a trip I would take, if I could.
      A man behind the counter in a gas station asked me about my pack. I told him I had hiked the southern two thirds of the Appalachian Trail. He told me he wants to hike the Ural mountains.
      I am human and I need to be loved - just like everybody else does
    • WanderingStovie wrote:

      odd man out wrote:

      I too am an home brewer. I started more than 30 years before it was trendy and followed the rise of the craft beer industry as that was driven mostly by home brewers whose hobby got out of control. However it's been a couple of years since I made any beer. It's now to the point that I can buy good beer at the store and microbreweries so I don't have to make my own any more.

      I also like to travel. One of my unusual hobbies is to plan trips I know I won't ever take. I like to read about very obscure and out of the way places that would be undoubtedly very cool to visit, such as Socotra, the Wakhan Corridor, and Rotuma, but due to time, money, family priorities, and better judgement, I just won't be able to go there. But I use travel info on-line to plan the details of a trip I would take, if I could.
      A man behind the counter in a gas station asked me about my pack. I told him I had hiked the southern two thirds of the Appalachian Trail. He told me he wants to hike the Ural mountains.
      My dream exotic trek right now would be in the Pamir Mountains or SE Tajikistan. Physically and logistically a challenge, but not unreasonable, if you know what you are doing. Info can be hard to get. This is the best book (maybe the only book). I got it for my birthday last year.
      amazon.com/Tajikistan-High-Pam…Illustrated/dp/9622178189

      Some of the same info is available on-line from this web site.
      pamirs.org/index.htm

      The Pamirs Eco-Cultural Tourism Association can help can you plan your trek.
      pecta.tj/
    • Planted tank update: I've been a bit neglectful and now my tank has grown into a jungle! The trimming starts today if anyone would like we to send them some clippings (but, some snails will inevitably hitch along for the ride).



      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • Looks lovely, but the only tank I've got going at the moment has koi, and you can't plant a koi tank. (They eat everything!) I do have a breeder tank hanging off the side with a big clump of Pothos in it, to consume nitrate.

      I can't see the water level clearly in the upper picture. Are those plants growing emersed? I seem to recall that a lot of plants don't like being fully immersed long-term, but yours are obviously doing spectacularly well.
      I'm not lost. I know where I am. I'm right here.
    • They are growing emersed, or at least they were. As soon as some of them made it to the surface then the growth really exploded. I have....

      Bacopa carolinia
      Rotala roundofolia
      Hemianthus callitrocoides
      Vallisneria (corkscrew)
      Pygmy chain sword plant
      Anubias nana
      Hygrophilia difformis
      and a few others
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier