Dawn's pony garden.

[teenyreef]

I just caught up from right before you did the DSB, and it's really funny because when I saw your last bare bottom picture, I thought "I just love that nice clean look". And then you started posting about doing a DSB...and now I like the DSB even better! The high dune/cliff in the right looks just right to me. And I think that as the gorgs and macros grow higher everything will look correctly proportioned.

 

I've never tried oolite but everybody who has posted about it said they couldn't keep it in place. Hopefully when you put the later of coarser sand on top that will help.

[vlangel]

25 minutes ago, teenyreef said:

I just caught up from right before you did the DSB, and it's really funny because when I saw your last bare bottom picture, I thought "I just love that nice clean look". And then you started posting about doing a DSB...and now I like the DSB even better! The high dune/cliff in the right looks just right to me. And I think that as the gorgs and macros grow higher everything will look correctly proportioned.

 

I've never tried oolite but everybody who has posted about it said they couldn't keep it in place. Hopefully when you put the later of coarser sand on top that will help.

LOL, that is hilarious that you just loved the clean look...and then I changed it!  That would have been awkward if you hated the new look, ha ha.  Or maybe to spare me you are lying to me. JK  

 

Actually I also liked it for quite a while too but it was so clean that not only did it look sterile to me but it got boring.  I just kept looking at lush macro algae dominant tanks with sand and I was restless for a change. Finally I formed a plan and went for it.  I hope my ponies don't suffer but I had to try.  I am not beinng wreckless, just a little daring.

[teenyreef]

I think the key to retaining interest and excitement in this hobby is to be willing to change things up regularly. But remember, stability is key, so don't ever change anything 

[Subsea]

With respect to denitrification, with a well stocked reef tank, your corals would need nitrogen to grow.  Some coral, like some macro, prefer ammonia uptake to nitrate.  Also, with your new interest in macros, they would also need nitrogen.  I see little need to export nitrate from a thriving system.

 

I have always stirred the top portion of sandbed to watch feeding polyps come out.  The Sea Apple was my favorite to watch.  The video was made six years ago.  The back wall was bare then.  It is now completely covered with GSP that came  from a baseball size rock in this video.

 

 

[vlangel]

On 2/4/2018 at 7:20 AM, Subsea said:

With respect to denitrification, with a well stocked reef tank, your corals would need nitrogen to grow.  Some coral, like some macro, prefer ammonia uptake to nitrate.  Also, with your new interest in macros, they would also need nitrogen.  I see little need to export nitrate from a thriving system.

 

I have always stirred the top portion of sandbed to watch feeding polyps come out.  The Sea Apple was my favorite to watch.  The video was made six years ago.  The back wall was bare then.  It is now completely covered with GSP that came  from a baseball size rock in this video.

 

 

Sorry subsea for not answering sooner, I was out of town for a week.

Seahorses can really add a huge bioload.  Now with the addition of sand to my tank, I plan to add some fish to my tank as well.  I want to give the sand a chance to become live first. I love gobies for their pert personalities.  Hopefully the addition of livestock will feed the macros and coral, even with some dinitrification happening.

 

[Subsea]

24 minutes ago, vlangel said:

Sorry subsea for not answering sooner, I was out of town for a week.

Seahorses can really add a huge bioload.  Now with the addition of sand to my tank, I plan to add some fish to my tank as well.  I want to give the sand a chance to become live first. I love gobies for their pert personalities.  Hopefully the addition of livestock will feed the macros and coral, even with some dinitrification happening.

 

I kind of said that backwards.  Depending on your coral & macro bioload, they could conceivable uptake ammonia before nitrification bacteria.  It really is academic.  You want a dsb for the well being of your goby. 

[vlangel]

9 hours ago, Subsea said:

I kind of said that backwards.  Depending on your coral & macro bioload, they could conceivable uptake ammonia before nitrification bacteria.  It really is academic.  You want a dsb for the well being of your goby. 

I do partly want the DSB for my fish.  I really like yellowhead jawfish too.

Some of why I want it is purely aesthetics, I just like having the multi-level look.

I will confess, that I do not have a grip on the chemistry science end.  My plan (good or bad) is to just keep an eye on the coral and macros while first trying to meet the needs of the seahorses and other fish and hoping to strike a balance, ha ha.  Not very scientific but it has worked for me pretty well for a lot of years. 

I do read as much as I can in an effort to get a better handle on the science.

[Sharbuckle]

12 minutes ago, vlangel said:

I do partly want the DSB for my fish.  I really like yellowhead jawfish too.

Some of why I want it is purely aesthetics, I just like having the multi-level look.

I will confess, that I do not have a grip on the chemistry science end.  My plan (good or bad) is to just keep an eye on the coral and macros while first trying to meet the needs of the seahorses and other fish and hoping to strike a balance, ha ha.  Not very scientific but it has worked for me pretty well for a lot of years. 

I do read as much as I can in an effort to get a better handle on the science.

Omg yes get a jawfish. One of my all time favorites. Although i had to dig out 6 utter chaos from a burtow last night. 

[vlangel]

23 hours ago, Sharbuckle said:

Omg yes get a jawfish. One of my all time favorites. Although i had to dig out 6 utter chaos from a burtow last night. 

I do worry a little that they will undermine some of my rock.  Fortunately the retaining wall is very large rock that is sitting on the glass.

 

I noticed that Eve has been quite the cougar this morning pursuing Adam.  He's not resisting but he's not totally into her either.

[Subsea]

“Eve has been quite the Cougar this morning pursuing Adam.  He is not resisting but he is not into her either.”

 

 

Sounds like sex therapy.  Our tanks are indeed fun.

[William]

Have you checked out www.live-plants.com ? I got a bunch of my gorgonias from them and they have done very well and have grown pretty fast 

[vlangel]

6 hours ago, Subsea said:

“Eve has been quite the Cougar this morning pursuing Adam.  He is not resisting but he is not into her either.”

 

 

Sounds like sex therapy.  Our tanks are indeed fun.

Ha ha, it's like a soap opera.  Eve, the cougar loves Samson the very young stud. (In human years Eve is 60 to Samson's 15 just to give you an idea how wrong this is).

Meantime Samson loves Delilah (they are the same age) but Delilah says she is not ready to make fry!  It's really quite dramatic!

[vlangel]

6 hours ago, William said:

Have you checked out www.live-plants.com ? I got a bunch of my gorgonias from them and they have done very well and have grown pretty fast 

I have and I hope to order from them.

[vlangel]

5 minutes ago, vlangel said:

Ha ha, it's like a soap opera.  Eve, the cougar loves Samson the very young stud. (In human years Eve is 60 to Samson's 15 just to give you an idea how wrong this is).

Meantime Samson loves Delilah (they are the same age) but Delilah says she is not ready to make fry!  It's really quite dramatic!

 

Samson is flexing his pouch for Delilah but notice who comes a callin'.

 

[Subsea]

That is so neat the way the ponies use the gorgonions for hitching post.  

 

Yes, to tank entertainment.

[vlangel]

8 minutes ago, Subsea said:

That is so neat the way the ponies use the gorgonions for hitching post.  

 

Yes, to tank entertainment.

Gorgonians are for sure their favorite hitches, even more than macro algae.

[vlangel]

HERES LOOKING AT YOU, DELILAH!

 

 

 

 

[Subsea]

Love the pictures.  How patient to get the second picture with side by side twins framed with twin gorgonions branches?  That picture needs to be enlarged and detailed.  Really great picture with texture and color.  On the first picture, what is the red plating thing?

[vlangel]

 

2 hours ago, Subsea said:

Love the pictures.  How patient to get the second picture with side by side twins framed with twin gorgonions branches?  That picture needs to be enlarged and detailed.  Really great picture with texture and color.  On the first picture, what is the red plating thing?

Thanks subsea.  I took a lot of pics, just snapping away hoping to get 1 or 2 that were worth keeping.  I liked the pic with the reflection of Delilah and the gorgonian too.  The reddish purple-ish plating thing is a photosynthetic sponge.  Its fast growing and super easy.

[vlangel]

 

Another but shorter video of the tank and ponies!

[vlangel]

My hubby took me to a lfs that is a bit of a drive for my birthday. They had lots of captive bred fish which is what I was looking for.  I came home with 2 mandarin gobies, (hopefully a male and a female), a yellow watchman goby and a pajama cardinalfish.  They are in QT now and in hiding.  I also got some green grape caulerpa.

[sublunary]

I've been following your thread because my next tank upgrade will be planned around seahorses and mandarins. I'm excited I now get to learn from your experiences with both of them. I really admire your care if your horses, so I'm sure the mandarins will be well taken care of.  Are all of the new fish joining the horses or going into other tanks?

[vlangel]

17 hours ago, sublunary said:

I've been following your thread because my next tank upgrade will be planned around seahorses and mandarins. I'm excited I now get to learn from your experiences with both of them. I really admire your care if your horses, so I'm sure the mandarins will be well taken care of.  Are all of the new fish joining the horses or going into other tanks?

Thank you for following.  I hope my experience with adding fish is positive.  All my fish were picked to go in the seahorse tank but that is all of them.  I will not be adding anymore.  I learned a long time ago that continuously adding fish is a recipe for disaster due to disease.  I always try to add all the fish at one shot.  The seahorse tank is my only tank other than the contest reef jar and a feeder shrimp tank.  I will be combining the contents of the jar into the feeder shrimp tank when the contest ends since I am not good at maintaining too many tanks.

 

I will be so excited to see your seahorse/ mandarine tank.  There are not many seahorse tanks on here.

[Felicia]

I love the addition of the sand! The tank has always been beautiful but now it has a more natural feel. I always admire the sleek, minimalist look of bare bottom tanks, but sand just gives such a natural feel. I think that rock ledge area would look awesome with a few tall gorgonians. As you know KPA sells the large sizes. I also ordered some from Gulf Coast Ecosystems, which only sells one size. They sent huge ones though, and they're very inexpensive.

 

Glad to see all three seahorses are so healthy and happy! I love the love triangle. Too funny!

[vlangel]

3 hours ago, Felicia said:

I love the addition of the sand! The tank has always been beautiful but now it has a more natural feel. I always admire the sleek, minimalist look of bare bottom tanks, but sand just gives such a natural feel. I think that rock ledge area would look awesome with a few tall gorgonians. As you know KPA sells the large sizes. I also ordered some from Gulf Coast Ecosystems, which only sells one size. They sent huge ones though, and they're very inexpensive.

 

Glad to see all three seahorses are so healthy and happy! I love the love triangle. Too funny!

Thanks Felicia.  I feel like the tank now looks like something a diver might see.  You would know about that!  I really like the multi-level look.

 

Yes, I agree that some tall gorgs would be great on the plateau.  No money for gorgs since I just got the 4 new fish last night at a lfs.  I hope the seahorses stay healthy and happy.  I am pushing my comfort zone with sand and fish.