Aquascaping - The Home
Planted Mbuna Tank - Useful Tips
Written by Thursday, 15 March 2001 01:00
Microsorium pteropus (Java fern) is tied with fishing line on a driftwood. Mbuna like the shade and feel of security this plant offers. A Labidochromis caeruleus is under the plant while a female Haplochromis nyererei (lake Victoria rock fish) inspects the plant.
A Nymphaea lotus bulb is sending out its first leaves. Protected against moving around by three big rocks and a bogwood, it is still covered with sand every now and then by the cichlids. This plant has spent more than two years in my haps tank.
As we just saw in the previous article, the planted mbuna (or African Rift lake cichlid) tank is far from impossible. In fact it is feasible although it takes a bit of time, careful planning and effort. However, it is true that African cichlids have two nasty habits (shared with most cichlids): they dig a lot and they try to re-decorate their environment to suit their own needs. Therefore in order to be successful, the hobbyist who wants to add some green shades in his tank must think carefully and plan in advance.
Cichlids will dig and uproot a plant if they can. This is a rule. They will also eat a plant if they can but there is only one thing we can do to avoid this : choose plants which taste terribly (like Anubia sp. or Microsorium pteropterus). Recently, I found one more nasty habit. Some of my haps (and most notably Cyrtocara moorii) like to play with the leaves. They will try to cut a leaf and then chase it along the tank. A nice sight but doesn't help plant growth - neither their appearance. If your cichlids play with your plants, you can only hope that they will get bored or that the plant growth will compensate for the loss of leaves. However, the most common disaster in a cichlid planted tank is uprooting.
Cichlids like to dig and they do that simply because it is part of their natural life. They dig in order to use the sand to clean their gills or help digestion. They also dig to form their spawning pit and clean it from stones that could be confused with eggs (especially mouthbrooders). They also dig to change their environment. As a conclusion, cichlids and digging just go together.
Of course, the first thing we can do is not to allow enough space for the cichlid to uproot our plant. In this case you can use two rocks to "bracket" your plant or use a rock to cover the base of the stem. This will not allow your fish to uproot it but it is only suitable for stem plants (like Hygrophila corymbosa). Stem plants increase primarily in length and will eventually lose all their lower leaves so they do not need "space" around their root. In the lower photo at the top of the page you can see a "natural" pot created by 3 large stones and a piece of bogwood. Between them stands a bulb of Nymphaea lotus which has just produced some leaves. Of course, the cichlids will spit sand on it every now and then - as you can see on the leaves. This bulb has been kept for almost three years in my 1300 liter haps tank. In contrast, rosette plants (like Amazon swordplants - Echinodorus sp., Crypts etc) need space to grow and what is more important is that their base diameter increases as the plant grows. In this case you can use an alternative. If the plant will attach to rocks or bogwood (like Microsorium pteropus or most Anubia species) you can tie the young plant on the rock or driftwood, let it grow like that for a couple of months (till the roots attach strongly on the support) and then cut the line. This is clearly shown on the top photo in which you can see three rosettes of java fern tied on a piece of driftwood. In the photo below you can see a part of my mbuna tank which was just a rockpile, after the intervention. There are 4 Java fern roots, one Anubia sp and two Alternathera reineckii roots in the bottom. The difference in height is a necessity because the Alterhathera reineckii will not attach to the rocks so it needs the gravel and secondly, because of the difference in growth style. Thus, while the Alternathera reineckii will gain height (reaching a maximum of 50 cm), the Anubia and the Java fern will increase in width only (maximum height 20 and 35 cm respectively). If an overall pleasing and symmetrical effect is to be obtained, then this pattern has to be followed.
In this shot you can see the results of the intervention. This part was just a rock pile an hour ago. Now there are three roots of Alternathera reineckii (front, bottom) four roots of Microsorium pteropus (three on the bogwood and one on the white rock just over it) and one root of Anubia nana (attached on the white rock behind the Java fern).
Three roots of Alternathera reineckii are kept in place by rocks. As you can see, the correct placement of the plant "hides" the rock. As the plant will grow, the attention of the viewer will focus on the plant itself and the rock becomes less visible.
If the plant will not attach on a firm support, the only way around is to create a "natural" pot which is not easily accessible to cichlids. One way I have tried it to use a pot and surround it with high rocks in a close arrangement. The advantage is that the cichlids must turn almost vertically to access the roots and - even if they do - it is not their favorite position for digging. The disadvantage is that visually, you will lose the lower part of the plant. This means that you should apply this method only with rosette plants that have a maximum height over 30 cm. Otherwise you will be the only one who knows there is an Anubia nana "back there".Another thing to keep in mind: Study about your plants before placing them in your tank. For example, a very common addition to Rift Lake cichlid tanks is Valissneria gigantea. This plant is a rosette plant but should be used like a stem plant. Indeed it grows to more than 1.5 meters in length while its width is less than 5 cm. So you can easily bracket this plant. However, this plant grows with runners (a single plant can produce up to 10 runners). To allow for that, you should bracket it on the substrate and not use rocks deeply dipped in the sand as this will block the formation of the runners.
A last word about arranging your plants and "rock-plant" or "wood-plant" formations. Take your time when preparing them. Be patient, use thin fishing line, try to make small combs using a pair of tonsils, cut back the old roots to promote the growth of new ones. Think of the combination before proceeding. Try to visualize the final result. Take height differences into account. Experiment again and again. Always keep in mind that a beautiful and "natural" looking plant - wood combination will soon become a central point in your display tank and will last for years. Choose plants which will adapt to the lighting conditions in your tank. You do not need six rows of fluorescent tubes for a successful tank. On the contrary, plants like Cryptocorines, Java fern and Anubias do far best in low lighting conditions. Which will also keep the algal growth at bay.
You don't need to spend a fortune in order to create a beautiful planted African Cichlid tank. However, you do need to spend some time. It is not much to ask for.
Two roots of Microsorium pteropus attached on a stone. The plant is tied with fishing line on the rock. When the plant grows the fishing line will be cut and removed. Please note the natural look of the combination. Paying a little attention and some planning will reward you with a live jewel.
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