MANILA, Philippines — Aquascaping is the art and science of arranging aquatic plants, rocks or driftwood in an aquarium. It’s creating and maintaining a garden that happens to be underwater. Hobbyists specializing in aquascapes are called aquarium gardeners.
This is an easy way to do gardening since you don’t need to water the plants. They aren’t prone to diseases and pests are never a problem. But the plants will need sufficient natural or artificial light, a source of carbon dioxide and fertilization to survive.
It is possible to create an aquascape without fish. Plants or even just rocks will suffice. Although the primary aim is to create an artful underwater landscape, the technical aspects of aquatic plant maintenance must be considered. For professional aquarium hobbyists, this would include a system for water filtration, maintaining dissolved carbon dioxide, substrate and fertilization for plant growth, lights to promote plant photosynthesis and algae control. There are “natural” methods of meeting these requirements. For instance, a few small fish and a snail in the tank can clean the algae in the glass.
More than a hundred plants species can thrive underwater. They’ve been tested to survive in water and under artificial light. These plants are collectible and belong to different plant families like ferns, aroids and even carnivorous plants.
There are a number of designs to choose from. There’s the Dutch style which features a lush arrangement of various types of plants. They’re arranged like terrestrial plants in a flower garden or a dish garden. This style was developed in the Netherlands in the 1930s when freshwater aquarium equipment became commercially available. Plants are emphasized and placed on terraces of varying heights. Rocks and driftwood aren’t used. Plants are grouped based on their size and color, with the small plants placed on the front and the much taller plants ensconced behind to hide the tank’s equipment. More than 80 percent of the aquarium floor is covered with plants, and little or no substrate is left visible.
The Nature style is fitted with multiple large gray stones to simulate natural mountain peaks or cliffs. Small stones or rocks are arranged upfront while the larger rocks are placed in the back. Some of the stones are carpeted with small, low, fine green plants to simulate a forest as viewed from a distance.
The Jungle style is very similar though it requires a bigger tank. It’s brightly lit from above and is densely populated with plants of varying leaf shapes, as if growing in a tangle. Most plants are green while a few have red or yellow foliage. Low green plants are on the front, with taller, differently colored plants placed behind them. Driftwood and rocks are incorporated. Bold, coarser leaf shapes such as Echinodorus bleheri are used to provide a wild-like appearance. Small brightly-colored blue or red fish complete the look.
Another design is the Biotopes which replicates the aquatic habitat of a particular geographic location. Plants and fish aren’t a must but if you insist on having them you’ll have to find the same types found in the habitat you’re trying to emulate. This also goes for the gravel, hardscape materials and chemical composition of the water. An example is the habitat in fast running streams. You’ll be required to use course gravel, a few large stones and driftwood.
If you want to have a miniature Amazon River, you’ll be doing a representation of lush vegetation and submerged roots of trees. You can capture this look with driftwood and a school of gentle moving Discus fishes.
One colorful, yet challenging design is the Saltwater reefs design. This one mimics a marine ecosystem and contains actual marine fish and animals. An arrangement of rocks, corals and other marine invertebrates and coralline algae can effectively represent freshwater plants.
A home aquarium could certainly be more than decorative. It’s a mini-garden that offers the chance to tend some unique water plants and a few fish. It also adds a lot of serenity to a room and is therefore a form of relief from stress.
