Back to basics: Aquascaping

What is Aquascaping?

A hobby, a skill, an art form. Aquascaping is a way of keeping aquaria, creating underwater gardens to either replicate real life scenery and biotopes or something more extraordinary. Popularised by world leading aquascapers and photographers like Takashi Amano in the east during the 1980's, then brought into the modern age via people like George Farmer in the UK (circa 2000), and finally brought into the digital age by people such as MD Fish Tanks and Serpa Designs on YouTube and other social media platforms. It is becoming the driving force behind the aquarium trade today. Obviously this is a very narrowed down history of aquascaping, but a full history of the hobby would need an article, video, or several of each to really explore its rich and interesting history.

How do I start?

So you want to try aquascaping? good, it's an art form fully worthwhile investing in, relieving stress and anxiety, while giving space for artistic visions to thrive in various different scales. If you're still on the fence then check out our videos on why keeping aquariums has never been easier than now, and why keeping aquariums is such a good idea!

If you're set on giving this wonderful hobby a go, then i would start by doing some research. Look into people like Takashi Amano, Looking on Tropica's Website, or simply by picking up a copy of practical fishkeeping and reading the article that are posted there. You will get some great ideas on how to structure an aquascape, and i would encourage first timers to try and copy an aquascape you see there! Tropica's website in particular is a great resource for inspiration and gives a rating for the difficulty on how to set up that aquascape. Remember, aquascaping is a skill, to get good at it you have to put the practice in. Just look at what Tom Ryan said in this months issue of PFK "I knew it would take time, but as long as I moved forward every step of the way I knew I was on the right path" - Tom Ryan 2025 You wouldn't just walk into a gym and expect to be able to do a perfect deadlift without someone showing you, or having at least watched a YouTube video first, put the reps in, do your research, and success will come.

What size?

Now size doesn't always matter. That being said, it does when it comes to aquascapes. Personally I think a perfect size for most beginners to work off is about 60L. Most reputable brands have excellent kits at this size point, and there's a reason for that. It's realistically easier to work with a 60l than it is a 20l for a first timer. There's more margin for error, and it opens up more options for stocking. The Fluval Flex 57L, SuperFish Scaper 60, or Dennerle Scaper Cubes are all excellent options for this. All of these kits have excellent lighting and good filtration and allow for lots of experimenting without absolutely breaking the bank (the dennerle is slightly more expensive because of the glass quality and lighting but if you have the budget it is definitely worth it).

However, In recent years i've come to love experimenting and creating aquascapes with much smaller options, a recent aquascape i made using a SuperFish Scaper Qube 15 might have been my favourite i've ever made, and the ease of being able to put it practically anywhere means that I can create them with very little space constraints. Additionally because they are smaller they often cost much less to install, meaning I can realistically make more of them without having to break down an old aquascape, remember what I said about getting the reps in?

Ultimately, choosing an aquascapes size is very individual and is often dictated by space and budget. Work with what you've got and find inspiration based on your size constraint and be prepared that you'll probably end up with many more aquariums once you've caught the aquascaping itch.

Choosing Hardscape and Planting

Choosing hardscape is ultimately dictated by the inspiration you have chosen to base your aquascape off of, weather that's just from your minds eye or the resources i've discussed earlier. A good tip, I would always buy more hardscape than you think is necessary. That's not just me saying that as a shop owner, Alex Bell (Practical FishKeeping Magazine) articulated this particularly well in one of his Instagram Shorts and I think it's well worth checking out.

https://www.instagram.com/practicalfishkeeping/reel/DGlbDO7v_fi

Choosing plants is a bit more nuanced than hardscape and is dictated much more from what aquarium and lighting you've gone for. For example, you don't want to be filling a SuperFish Start 60 with Ludwigia Diamond Red (A bright red stem plant with high lighting requirements and CO2 injection) as this is fool hardy and can only lead to disaster. You could however get away with it in a SuperFish Scaper 60 or even a Fluval Flex 57 if you were willing to supplement your aquarium with either liquid CO2 or even CO2 injection. Although this seems scary for a lot of beginners, I have begun to strongly suggest using some form of CO2 in most people's aquariums. I won't delve into it too much here as it deserves it's own article, but CO2 is the secret sauce, as it were , when it comes to having really impressive plant growth.

If CO2 is too much of a commitment to you, don't despair. You can still make an amazing looking aquascape using plants such as cryptocoryne, Limnophilia Sesiphlora, and various different epiphytes and mosses. Two of my aquascapes at home are currently low-ish tech, no fertilizer, no CO2 setups and they've given me a huge amount of joy and plant growth. It's just taken 3 years to get there. More experienced men than me have discussed more eloquently the joys of keeping an aquarium long term, George Farmer does so regularly and honestly and is definitely worth checking out.

Substrates

Choosing an appropriate substrate can seem confusing to a lot of beginners. To cap or not to cap? What brand? How much? It can obviously seem confusing. Personally I would go for a well known brand like Oase ScaperSoil, Colombo Florabase, Fluval Stratum, the list goes on. But I would buy a comprehensive soil that can be planted directly into with a minimum level of about 1 inch at the lowest point. This isn't for any particular reason, I think it takes the guesswork out of it, and although working with substrates like sand are easy enough. Removing a barrier to entry can only be a good thing. Plus, scaper soils look lovely.

Getting Started

Aquascaping should ultimately be a relaxing venture. Gather your materials and dive straight in. Remember, you don't need to be perfect immediately, in fact you probably won't be. That should be liberating to you, like everything in life, learning and growing is the main joy to be found. This is a constantly evolving medium with new and exciting techniques and tech being created all the time. Keep your mind open to new inspiration, and when it hits you let your creativity run free. It's one of the best things in the whole world.

Final Thoughts and Considerations

A shopping list of sorts for your first aquascape:

• A tank (remember to choose this first and then work inspiration backwards)

• A filter (check out our back to basics video) or be bold and go filterless.

• Heater (if necessary for your stocking choice)

• Lighting

• Substrate (go for a comprehensive scaper soil if you're a begginer)

• Hardscape

• Plants

• Water Conditioner and Bacteria (NT Labs Optimus and Satus are my favourite right now)

• Bucket, nets, aquascaping tweezers, soil leveler, aquascaping scissors, glues, and anything else specific to your vision.

Remember you're creating a living and breathing ecosystem potentially to be populated by other living things. So make sure when you finally flood your new creation, you allow it to fully cycle before filling it with appropriate fish or crustaceans.

If you're still worried, or you're a veteran and reading this has made you amped up for your next aquascape. Then think about joining me on our first ever aquascaping workshop at the end of April. You'll be able to create your own aquascape in store, with access to hardscape, plants, and knowledge in a relaxed and friendly environment. I'll be able to talk you through the basics of aquascaping and help guide you through if you need help, or if you're a veteran you'll be able to create something truly special in a fun environment around people who share the love of aquascaping with you. Tickets are on sale here. There are limited tickets and depending on how well the workshop is received it may only be a one off.

Until then, I hope this article has helped guide you in the right direction. If you do read this and end up creating a new aquascape, please send it to me either on instagram or our email address. I'd love to see them.

Harris Bard

Pond Life Aquatics

Company Director

Aquascape Lover.

P.s. if you want the video version of this then check it out here!