It’s amazing how a serious of events, and being on the receiving end of attitudes- can take you into the darkness- and back into the light- better off for the journey..

When our fishes “spontaneously” spawn in a botanical style/blackwater aquarium, it’s easy to rush to the conclusion that it was “something” released by the botanicals. I mean, sure- it could have been.. could there be “something” In the water? Or perhaps...a,combination of factors?

When we relax a bit in our aquarium design and aquascaping- and allow Nature to do some of the work- we can create works which are as compelling, intriguing, and beautiful as any “high concept” ‘scape around.. We just need to get out of the way, right?

Nature is an imperfect place...And our interpretations of Nature involves making some mental shifts and adjusting our aesthetic expectations. It’s a quantum shift in our hobby...it compels is to find the beauty in things that we previously might have looked at as “dirty”, “unkempt” , or just plain “ugly.” It makes us review what we’ve previously thought about as “Authentic” in this regard...

Ever wonder why we don’t see rock in igapo habitats? Are any rocks found in blackwater habitats? Well, they are, but the rocks likely didn’t form there.. the story of their formation and how they arrived in these habitats is a fascinating tale of incongruous elements coming together... so, yeah- You CAN have rocks and leaves together and be faithful to Nature...in context.

All of the processes which occur in our aquariums are dictated by Nature- yet comprise a sort of “dance”- a combination of moves that require our monitoring, understanding, and on occasion- intervention. But, how much?

Like most of you, I’m set in my ways in some aspects of the hobby. I have a definite “comfort zone”, and when I’m forced to make quick changes.. well, it can be “challenging.” Yeah, we’re all like this....

What would happen if you let your natural, botanical-style aquarium “go” for a bit.? You know, skip a water exchange or two, etc... would it “crash”, or simply continue to operate? Well, a lot of what happens during such periods of time is predicated upon how you set up the aquarium in the first place...

The bodies of water collectively known as “streams” are probably one of the most fascinating, diverse, and ecologically complex habitats that we can replicate in our aquariums! Let’s think about them a bit differently!

We love utilizing natural materials in our aquariums. However, we try not to get too carried away at making sure that every item in our biotope-themed aquarium is the EXACT material found in the habitat we seek to represent. Rather, we rely on the power of “Generic Tropical!”