Over twenty people turned up to the April GWAPA meeting. Before the presentation began, the president talked about having possible group buys for wood and plants. GWAPA also is offering a liquid fertilizer mix to members now.
March’s meeting was hosted by engineer John at his fabulous home in Reston. Congratulations to Luis and Damien who won the raffle! After a pizza lunch 25 lucky attendees heard a talk from Jacob Waters, an expert in breeding ornamental shrimp for the aquarium hobby. He gave us complete step-by-step instructions on how to set-up and run a successful shrimp tank. In addition to the beginner talk he gave he also went in-depth on shrimp genetics and the process used for developing lines. Jacob actually brought 2 of his own lines with him and we were fortunate enough to have in the club auction. Other unique auction items were crystal red caridina for those inspired by the talk and some microsorum Black Forest, a rare and expensive species online but was available for less in our auction. We hope to see everyone at the April meeting. Click “more” to see some photos
Over thirty people attended our February meeting, which was hosted by Splashy Fish. Jen Williams, an established aquascaper, gave a talk about planted tank basics. During the talk, some of the members chimed in with their experiences, which made the discussion very lively. Jen talked about the importance of connecting with local clubs, which can provide a wealth of information. She pointed out that getting the right equipment the first time can save some trouble down the line. Then she went into detail about tanks, stands, lights, filters, and various other supplies. Afterwards she discussed various substrates, including the mineralized soil, to which a whole meeting will be devoted later this year. Then came the hardscape materials, such as rocks and wood. Jen talked about using sulfuric acid for testing rocks to make sure they don’t leach anything into the tank. Also, never boil rocks as they might blow up due to air pockets in them. After spending some time on general tank maintenance, she discussed the various types of plants and how to grow them. Finally, Jen pointed out that algae happens to everyone, and a good resource about how to combat this nuisance can be found on our site here.
Jeff Ucciardo
29 Gallon
Filter: Filstar XP1
Substrate: Eco-Complete
Dosing: Daily dosing of KNO3, PO4, K, 2ml Flourish, 1 ml Flourish Iron
Lighting: 65 watts PC 9 hours, with an additional dual Coralife T-5s for 7 hours in the middle total 101 watts
CO2 diffusion: Glass diffusor
CO2: Azoo regulator, 5lb. tank
Fauna: Harlquin radboras, neons, ottos, cherry and bee shrimp, nerite snails
Featured Tank – Robert T Ricketts
Robert T Ricketts
55 Gallon Low-Maintenance Tank
Substrate: Plenum based with mixed Estes' Nutmeg and Flourite
Filtration: Two internal Eheims for mechanical filtration, plus a prefiltered external Eheim 2213 for bio.
Lighting: 1-Two-tube strip light, 1 single-strip light. 12 hours/day.
Plants: Val, Crinum, Anubias nana and a couple of other small nana cultivars, A. nana petite, Marimo balls, and Java Moss
Fauna: school of glass cats, a school of Debaui cats, Otos, one male cherry Barb, Amano and Red Cherry shrimp, ramshorn and common pond snails.
Featured Tank – Sean Murphy
Sean Murphy's 8-inch cube tank
2.2 gallons.
13 Watts.
Soil Substrate with Tahitian Moon Sand.
Plants: Hemianthus callicthoides, Microcarpea minima, Bacopa var. fagilis, unidentified microsword
The Greater Washington Aquatic Plant Association is a place for those interested in aquatic plants to gather together to exchange information, plants, and just spend some time having fun with fellow aquatic plant enthusiasts. More »