Design Aquascape Ideas

Various designs to beautify the aquarium

Aquarium design in the present era already includes various forms and types, one of which is aquascape. Aquascape itself is the art of arranging water plants and stones, coral, coral, or driftwood, naturally and beautifully in the aquarium so as to give effect like gardening under water.

Aquascape usually consists of fish as well as plants. Although it can also create aquascape with plants only, or only with stone or other components without any plants.

The main goal of aquascape is to create an "underwater" picture, so the technical aspects of water plant maintenance should also be considered. Many factors must be balanced in the ecosystem of an aquarium tank to ensure the successful creation of a beauty of aquascape art.

These factors include filtration, maintaining carbon dioxide (CO2) levels at a level sufficient to support underwater photosynthesis, substrate and fertilization, lighting, and algae control (moss). The design of Aquascape itself includes a number of different styles.

Below, there are several types of styles in arranging aquascape:

1. DUTCH STYLE

Dutch Style aquarium usually arranges several types of plants that have the color of leaves, sizes, and textures of a variety that is displayed more as a flower garden as we often encounter on land. This style developed in the Netherlands began in the 1930s, along with the increasing availability of commercially sold plant equipment. This Dutch Style emphasizes plants located on the front of aquariums of different heights, and often ignores the use of stones and driftwood. Usually the plants are arranged in order of march from left to right and likened to "Dutch streets". Because the row of roads in the Netherlands are usually neat and straight lined up. Another characteristic of Dutch style is that more than 80% of the aquarium floor is covered with plants, so very few substrate is visible. The height of the growing plant usually covers the glass behind the aquarium with the aim of covering the large equipment hiding behind the tank.

2. JAPANESE STYLE (NATURE STYLE)

One style with contrasting arrangement is the nature style or Japanese style, which was introduced in the 1990s by Takashi Amano. Amano's compelling compositions of Japanese gardening techniques that try to mimic nature's landscape with asymmetrical arrangements of relatively few aquatic plants and selective selection of selective floating stones or wood. The goal is to create waves (landscape) in miniature, rather than a colorful garden. This style draws mainly from the Japanese aesthetic concept of Wabi-Sabi which focuses on minimalism as a source of beauty, and Iwagumi's concept of setting stone rules.

In Iwagumi system, Oyaishi or main stone, placed in the middle of the aquarium tank. Soeishi or additional stones, grouped nearby, while the Fukuseki or secondary stone, arranged underneath. The main focus that is considered important is determined by the asymmetrical placement of Oyaishi.dan following the composition balance ratio. Plants with small leaves, such as the Eleocharis acicularis, elatinoides Glossostigma, callitrichoides Hemianthus, Riccia fluitans, small water ferns, are usually emphasized, with a more limited color than in Dutch style. Fish, or freshwater shrimp such as multidentata Caridina and Neocaridina heteropods, are usually selected to complement the plant.

Dutch style and Japanese Style is a traditional aquarium arrangement system using freshwater that is most favored by many aquascaper in the world.