Planted 65g tank question

[WBAC88]

So I've been slowly working on a 65g planted tank with PFS as substrate. This was my first real tank, so I just wanted to get it up and running before I had any real chance of thinking about what kind of planting I wanted. I got a random assortment of low light plants from online and tried vaguely to put them in some kind of order.

What I'm asking is for any tips from you more experienced aquascapers on what I could do to start putting this into some better shape. It's a low light, low tech setup, but I dose with excel and root tabs. I have a couple more rocks that I'm going to add to give my fish more places to hide, but other than that I'm really open to suggestions.

The other question I have is what people do when they have a tank that's so tall. Would you use floating plants at the top to make the background less obvious, or plants with taller stems. Or possibly suggestions for backgrounds for the tank itself, I don't really know anything about those, either. Any help people could give would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Fishkeeper88]

here you go...

i would let the plants grow a bit so you know what they will be like in the future. i usually buy larger peices of drift wood and pick one side of the tank to put them. i would put the large plants on the side without drift wood. the drift wood should be used to bring the attention to the back of the tank leaving an open space in front of it. this gives the fish a place to swim. also use smaller plants and small drift wood to create an attractive area that still leaves room for swimming. large plants in back small plants in front. large drift wood in back small drift wood in front.

 

[Fishkeeper88]

here you go

here is my 36 gallon maybe it can help you understand what im talking about. also black backgrounds bring out the colors.

 

[Aquarium_Lover04]

Nice setup! It's a good start, wisteria is a good plant for beginners as are java ferns(attach to rocks or wood).
Keep us updated on the progress

 

[WBAC88]

Fishkeeper, thanks, I see what you mean about the background. What material did you use and how did you attach it? Also, what are low light plants that tend to get bushy? It seems that most of mine have the tendency to grow straight up, like grasses, which I like, but it would be nice to have a contrast.

Aquarium Lover, thanks! I've been looking at wisteria, just need to get around to ordering it. I have some java ferns in there now (I know it's hard to tell from the shots). I'll keep posting as things grow or I re-arrange or add.

 

[Fishkeeper88]

background

i usually use the backgrounds found at local area petstores. usually one side is deep blue and the others side completely black. i use clear or transparent tape. be careful when cutting it line up all the sides of the background and tape one edge before you start cutting.

 

[Fishkeeper88]

oh yeah and take the demensions of the back wall of the aquarium with you to the store so you get enough to cover it.