My first attempt at a planted tank - Positive criticism and advise welcome

Hello Everybody

I recently got plant cuttings from Gerhard @gdt78 . I decided to remove all the plastic plants from my tank. Hy gave me Ambulia , Hygrophilia Polysperma, HM and Mayaca Fluviatilis cuttings
Here is a view of the completed tank (Driftwood will soon get Java Moss)



In this picture: To the complete left of the tank I planted a hedge of the HM
At the back of the tank I planted the Hygrophilia Polysperma in a row about 5cm apart
On the right in the middle of the tank i plante two bundles of the Mayaca Fluviatilis
The two plant to the left- I GOT FROM A LFS, AND I NEED YOU TO PLEASE ID IT FOR ME?
The following picture I planted a bundle of the Ambulia in the right fron corner of the tank, with a piece of Hygrophilia Polysperma next to it. At the back of the tank you will see a pale colour plant directly behind the tip of the driftwood. I will show this in the next picture. I bought this months ago from a LFS, and don't know what this is ( The bright green plants is the background picture LOL)


Please help me identify this


I will try and post more pics in a couple of months to show progress.

 

looking good. great first attempt . there is two things that i have learnt from some of the great aquascapers on tasa


1: the background makes a huge impact on the scape, so try for a plain background. i use a plain black background and i am concidering a plain blue for my next scape.

2: have a focal spot for your scape. in your case it is the driftwood so plant around that. i would split the swords to either side of the wood just to creat a balance.

all in all , great work. i am just sharing what i have learnt on the forum, i am also still learning so this is just my opinion .

 

very very nice! the 2 plants on the left look like amazon swords to me.

do yourself a favour and see what that tank would look like with no background.. you may be pleasantly surprised..

also i see you have a clown loach, note that they need to be in a shoal of at least 5 and can get very big, like 30cm, but, having said that, it takes them years and years to get to that size.

also the clown loaches need warmer water than normal, i would say absolute minimum of 27 deg, preferably 30 deg.

with the loach in there, go very very light on the chemicals / ferts etc that you put in your tank for the plants, their skin is very sensitive to what you might add to your tank..

cheers

 

@ASHMAN - Thank you- Noted and apreciated
@mydummyname - Thanks for the advise. Hmmm Amazon Swords. No I know as well ? About the loaches. They will be going to a friend with a much bigger tank. They are way too naughty for my liking

 

naughty but so much fun to watch!! hehe