If you walk into your typical fish shop you’re likely to find two completely different types of fish keeping happening. Rows of pragmatic tanks full of fish that are healthy…
I’ve always got excited about teaching projects and then realised I had committed too much of myself. That’s basically been my relationship with classroom aquascaping. I began with one simple…
One of the first questions I had when I started getting serious about marine aquariums was “what can I grow”? After years of successfully keeping “okay” freshwater plants, I wanted…
When people think planted tanks, they automatically assume freshwater tanks with carpeting plants and CO2 dosing. However, there is a whole world of marine planted aquariums that I knew nothing…
What’s funny is I used to think of Aquascaping like underwater gardening with super specific pH needs. I had this little book full of all the plant species I was…
When searching for aquarium inspiration online, it doesn’t take long to come across photos of aquariums that look effortlessly beautiful. Perfect even spreads of mosses extending into the distance, stones…
I’ll admit that when I started looking into reef tanks, I spent countless hours looking at pictures of gorgeous coral reefs completely enamored. “Coral trees? Brain coral? These things look…
For the longest time I tried to figure out why my first colony of cherry shrimp wasn’t growing. The water parameters were perfect, the tank was fully cycled, and I…
If you’ve never seen a good Iwagumi aquascape up close, they can seem deceivingly simple. Some strategically placed rocks, a perfect green carpet, maybe a pair of tiny fish darting…
The Definitive Ranking: Best Aquarium Plant Fertilisers That Actually Work Ok so we finally got around to doing it. Four whole meetings, three arguments about liquid carbon, Bobby nearly quitting…
Establishing a planted tank is one thing. Maintaining that tank is something else entirely. More often than not the tanks that stay stable long term have a predictable weekly maintenance…
Keep mangroves! That’s right you vegetarians who inhale Marineland® vegetable slickcover™. I know mangroves seem intimidating, reserved for people with saltwater fishrooms and money to burn. I thought so too…
# The Complete Guide to Setting Up a Planted Aquarium From Scratch > **TL;DR: Start Here** > > Set up your planted aquarium in three foundational steps: First, establish proper…
Few things make or break a planted aquarium like your hardscape design. Nothing screams “this isn’t a natural habitat” quite like poor planning and haphazard placement of rocks and driftwood.…
Go into any aquatics store today and you’ll find aquariums arranged as Japanese rock gardens or stacked mountain cliffs of stone. What you won’t find is tanks planted in the…
# The Complete Guide to Growing and Caring for Aquarium Plants ## TL;DR: Start Here > **The Essential Three Steps for Plant Success:** > 1. **Get the basics right first**:…
# The Complete Guide to Aquarium Plants and Fish That Work Together > **TL;DR: Start Here** > > Get your tank fundamentals right first: establish proper filtration, cycle for 4-6…
There’s a certain pride that comes with watching your Anubias attach itself to your chosen driftwood after patiently waiting weeks for it to start doing so. Watching moss slowly soften…
Living in San Jose means your flats aren’t always big. After setting up my reef in just four square feet of living space, I learned to appreciate every piece of…
# The Complete Guide to Dealing With Algae on Aquarium Plants > **TL;DR: Start Here** > > 1. **Prevention first**: Start new planted tanks with 4-6 hours of light daily,…
It’s easy to look at those brown or yellow leaves decorating your aquarium plants and decide to leave them be for now. After all, there’s no need to stress your…
Walk into any halfway decent aquatics shop and you’ll find tanks labelled as “Nature Style” or “Amano Style” that have no business wearing that name. To complete ignoramuses, they will…
I spent weeks lurking on aquascaping forums trying to figure out what made some hardscapes appear natural and seamless while others looked like rocks dumped in a corner. It wasn’t…
Walk into any aquarium shop and you’ll be forgiven for thinking you’ve stumbled into a chemistry lab’s marketing department. Bottles upon bottles of every imaginable supplement promising faster growth, healthier…
Don’t worry. I know that feeling too. Eighteen months ago I walked into that aquatics shop clueless about what was about to happen. Spending £340 on a tank you decide…
Building your reef tank hardscape correctly is what decides if your corals will flourish or suffer for the coming years. Do it wrong and you’ll be battling algae outbreaks for…
Marine Refugium Plants: How a Separate Growing Chamber Cleans Your Water The first time I actually watched my refugium working I was astounded by how effective it was. This thing…
Aquarium Planting Ideas and Layouts That Use Rule Of Thirds Properly It took me ages to build the same tank over and over again trying dozens of plant placements, hardscape…
Saltwater vs Freshwater Planted Aquariums (and why the approaches are completely different) I stopped dead the first time I walked past a proper reef tank display. Here were corals swaying…
There’s nothing quite like trying out a style of aquascaping before you’ve even looked at what styles are available. It’s kind of like deciding you want to program in Go,…
While many reef keepers associate macroalgae with refugiums, not display tanks. Growing it out of sight in its own chamber and utilising it to pull nutrients without competing with their…
Planning Your Layout Before Spending Any Money If you ask me what makes the difference between an aquascape making somebody thousands of pounds happy and thousands of pounds poorer, the…
I approach most hobbies through the back door. Spend significant time learning everything I can about it from people who are already passionate, dive head first, fail miserably, and start…
Saltwater Aquarium Plants: The Honest Beginner’s Guide (& What Works) TL;DR: Click Here Plant keeps turning brown in saltwater? Want marine aquarium plants that actually work? Add Chaetomorpha to your…
Many people who have spent time on saltwater aquarium forums or watching YouTube videos about marine tank setups are probably familiar with Caulerpa. Often touted as one of the best…