42 Hex Done Finally *Pics*

[Frogtofall]

This time I'm just gonna post a couple pics of the tank. I have the whole process photographed, but by now I'm sure we all know how a false bottom is setup and how Great Stuff and Sillicone is used. Heh.







All the broms and 1 of the Aroids are from Tropiflora. They have excellent broms there. I'll be going back in 2 weeks for more. 8) I managed to shove 19 broms in there. The viv has a waterfall feater that comes out of the piece of wood thats in the pool to the right. The photo I took of it was kinda crappy so I'll have to post that one later.

The plants are as follows:

Neoregelia inca x fireball
Neo. Angel face x midget
Neo. "Chiquita Linda"
Neo. ampullacea
Neo. crispata "Tigrina"
Neo. olens "696"
Neo. midget
Vriesea racinae Brazil
A few of the other Neo's I didn't have the names for...

Alocasia "Rugosa" (cf. chaii)
Pepperomia
Creeping fig
Begonia
Philodendron
Birdnest Fern

The viv is about 90% done. I still need to add large dead leaves and put some more Philo. around the top to fill it in a bit better. The water needs to settle too. I MIGHT try to squeeze one more brom in there on the left... heh...

Thanks for looking.

[mack]

really beautiful tank design. can you tell me what is the dark green and silver plant with the big leaves? also, you might wait to add broms because you'll have pups coming in no time, and you'll probably find yourself weeding them out.

[Cindy Dicken]

Mack,
it looks like a begonia.

[Frogtofall]

Yep, it is a Begonia. I don't know the variety b/c I got it at Wal-mart and they aren't the best at ID'ing their stuff, so you might have to Image Google and just compare pics.

Here is another pic that I forgot to throw in.

[mack]

thanks ya'll,

cindy, are you willing to venture a guess as to which begonia it is, or to recommend viv-hardy begonias?

[Cindy Dicken]

Mack,
I don't recognize that one.

Some of the ones that we like and have used with success are,
Buttercup
Little Red
Nimbaensis
Bowerae nigramargra
Thelmae
All of these will stay fairly small and managable, and love the humidity and temprature in the vivariums

And I have a couple of other unidentified species.

[Frogtofall]

I can vouch for the nigramargra. I just got some in a trade from someone and once it gets "going" its gonna be tossed into quite a few vivs. A very beautiful Begonia.

[Frogtofall]

Oh yeah... 99% complete shot...

[Patricia Slayton]

I hate nay-sayers myself, because I've always ignored them and crashed ahead to do my own thing and learn from experience. The tank is beautiful now, but is way over-planted. In six months it will be a mess., and the bromes will lose their color. You need to leave room for each plant to grow, and all of these bromes will want to put out pups and will grow larger themselves. In that size tank, perhaps four or five of these lovely bromes would be appropirate, as well as adequate for your dart frogs. I've been there, done that, so I know where you are coming from. But in the beginning, one should err on the sparse side.

The begonias will do O.K. for awhile, but they won't prosper for long. They generally need more space, even the miniatures, and more ventilation than a tank suitable for dart frogs will provide, even if the light is right. Your more adaptable plants will eventually smother them in any case. But go for it, anyway and see for yourself. The experiment isn't fatal, as long as you can trim and remove anything that doesn't work out.

I hope I am not "insulting" your lovely set up, because it is quite pretty and you obvously attempted a real display of some of the best of the most colorful bromeliads. My point is that it can be only temporary, because it is too crowded to begin with in that size set up.

[Frogtofall]

I don't mind if it overgrows, thats what I'm sorta hoping it does. I want it to the point where I have to search for like 10 minutes straight just to find one frog. I think a super over crowded brom infested viv would be good for those "rare" pums or thumbnails that I might obtain later. Even if for some reason I obtained wild caught pums I feel they would be most comfortable in an overgrown "mess". Make sense?

This viv will be empty for probably at LEAST a month before it gets inhabitants. I've got a few others to put frogs into still that are ahead of this one.

Here are some of the vivs that inspired the setup of mine...






I don't know what it is, but I love the overgrown/cluttered look. Thanks for your input Patty!

[Patricia Slayton]

I too, like the overgrown look, but at the present time, in my overgrown tanks, I cannot find all of my P. vittatus, haven't seen a single castanioticus in a month, and have difficulty knowing if all of the reticulatus are still alive or if they have reduced themselves to one pair, which they are prone to do, because someone in there is still laying eggs, although I see perhaps one or at most two of the original four at one time, and because they are bold frogs and don't tend to hide, I should be seeing them all. It's not as if you can always spot them and identify individuals in an overgrown tank. It's not that it's bad for the frogs either, but you may miss out on the show, which is a major part of the pleasure of keeping dart frogs--watching them do their interesting things in a relatively open space with "just enough" cover. You also won't know if one is sick or dies, because you won't be able to see it, or probably ever find it.

I think you are starting out with an extreme over-planting, however striking it is right now. You have crowded too much stuff in together to last very long. A rain forest isn't nearly that dense. It needs more open ground space. You will try it anyway, and find out for yourself. That's what I did.

[Frogtofall]

Patty you're very right. I will try it anyway b/c I'm stubborn. You-><- Me

I agree that finding sick frogs is gonna be very difficult. I do enjoy viewing my frogs which is why my other vivs are planted pretty much to your recommendation...




I just had to have one that was gonna be crazy. Haha.

As for the growth, I expect the Begonia to dwindle off and the Pepperomia is gonna get leggy, its okay. The Alocasia rugosa will be okay b/c I left it a "hole" to grow out of. If broms cover the hole, rest assured, I WILL be moving them. Its gonna get pretty hectic in there, I can't wait. A handful of them have already started to grow holder roots (if thats what they are called) and are beginning to change color. Some are getting a bit more red and others are losing some of their red. Kinda funny. Thankfully I have new lighting coming within the week. In a couple of months (probably weeks haha) I'll have to post a, "Patty told me so" post of the tank completely overgrown and hectic. Haha. Thankfully, there won't be any frogs in it for quite a while.

[Patricia Slayton]

In the mean time, have fun with it. That's what I did, and don't really regret it, in spite of my many mistakes. Do it yourself, full speed ahead! Damn the torpedos! I've forgotten exactly who first "told me so," but I too, ignored them. 8)

[Frogtofall]

Do you have any pics of the vivs you overplanted? I'm curious. :wink:

[Patricia Slayton]

I have one of an 80 gallon bow front (original planting) and if you can give me a day or two, I'll take one of it's ultimate collapse. The 6 leucs are still in this mess, waiting for some warmer weather so I can move them and totally re-do it. I'm in no hurry because the frogs are happier than pigs in a mud bath. It's just really ugly to look at now.

[Frogtofall]

Wow. Well, when you get the chance, I look forward to seeing it. Thanks.

[alexislake]

You might have trouble with the birdnest fern later on. They get about three to four foot across and tall. I've seen one in person and they do get big. And the bromeliads do need some space for the pups that will come in the future. I've heard that you can cut the tops off of Alocasia plants if they get too tall.

[Frogtofall]

This viv has already been taken down. Haha.

Patty told me so!

[Philsuma]

4 1/2 years later....this is still a very cool thread and Viv.