# Checking In



## goldielovr (Apr 12, 2006)

Looks like you haven't decided on a place for May yet. I fear I may not make it this time. Been fairly ill. Despite that, I wanted to let you know what has been happening:
My 100 is planted and most things have either recovered from that initial freak-out and melt period and are now growing, or they never looked back and are now doubled in size. I have started a second low-light, low-tech type tank, a 5 gallon, with the kindly donated Endler's one member donated and Matt delivered to the last meeting, along with the cheerful little cherry shrimp a fellow APC member sent me.

The Blyxa plants one of you fellows brought to the april meeting, in spite of its advertised difficulty, is doing well enough. The goldfish love to pull at it but don't seem to eat it--maybe it tastes bad. I weighted it so all they really accomplish is moving it around. It's always fun to see how they've re-decorated overnight.

I had an upsetting crisis as I was putting the goldies into the big tank, I suddenly spotted spots on one of them--EEK! the dread ich. So I had to delay AND treat the hundred gallon since I'd actually put a filter I'd been aging on the back of the infected tank to the big one before I realised. Anyway, came through all that fairly well and am now in process of putting the fish into the big tank. It's kind of an experiment I'm doing here: Diane Walstad's always recommended against critters that grub in the gravel for her natural type tanks, I thought if I gave the plants a head start and added just a tad more gravel, maybe, just maybe...obviously mine will never be a picture perfect tank with those fat brutes pulling at things all the time, but now the 55, ah...

Someone _gave_me a 55 gallon tank, so I'm just going to have to make a planted neon tetra tank out of it, aren't I?

And I'm trying the 'tubbin' stuff out too. In my own way. Got a 3 gallon container on the porch (well, not right _now,_ not in this weather! but whatever the goldies break off or pull up, if it's a floater or has roots on it, I take it out and plop it in the bucket, with a couple of Endler's to eat the mosquitoes, and Bob's your uncle. Or rather, I double my plants. For the 55. With the neons.

Staying busy, clearly. Matt, I'm interested in what we talked about last. Mayhaps you and I can work something out via pm?


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