The Tint

Yeah, it’s been a while since we’ve touched on the “hows and why’s” of starting a transition to a botanical-style aquariums. Here ya go!

An aquarium is not just a glass box filled with water, wood, sand and fishes. It’s a microcosm. A vibrant, dynamic, interconnected system, influenced by the materials and life forms-seen and unseen-within it- and the external influences which surround it.

Today, my co-host Johnny Ciotti and I welcome the one and only Jen Williams- Aquatic plant lover, award-winning aquascaper, Uber-hobbyists and lecturer, "Aqua Girl", and all-around cool person! We talk planted aquariums, contests, aquascaping, answer a few listener's questions, and just have the usual ongoing irreverent commentary! A straight-up "fire" episode we're pretty certain you'll love!&nbs...

I had to address an oft-asked business question I receive: how to deal with competitors. I have a simple answer- Be a bricoleur- a person who makes use of what they’ve got to innovate, improve, and create. Yeah, that’s YOU! If you’re in the aquarium biz, thinking of getting into it, or just curious about the “inner game”- you’ll like today’s episode!

What happens if you take a more hands-off approach to managing your aquarium over the long term??!

We have to revisit the idea of how seasonal changes impact the way botanical materials find their way into aquatic environments... And how the aquatic habitats themselves form as a result of the seasonal changes. Something to consider when creating your next natural botanical-style aquarium!

Perhaps the most elegant and compelling aspect of Nature is how aquatic environments are profoundly influenced by their surrounding terrestrial habitats. What can we learn by studying this that can help us create amazing functionally-aesthetic aquariums?

Some of the most compelling natural aquatic habitats occur when a tree or its branches or roots fall into the water. To see how they impact the aquatic environment and it’s inhabitants offers compelling and inspiring lessons on Nature. Lessons that we can use to transform our aquariums into functional-aesthetic masterpieces!

You think that you’re not a “pioneer” of sorts when you set up a botanical-style aquarium? You think it’s all predictable and fully in our control? Don’t want to cede some of the work to Nature and accept her aesthetic input? Thinking about starting one of these tanks with that mindset will trip you up. Don’t even THINK about setting one up.. really!

We all have a responsibility in this hobby. A responsibility to educate ourselves, to ask questions.. to share experiences. It’s how we grow. How we create process, and manage and understand expectations.

Scott And Johnny Ciotti dive deep into some of our fave topics, and then answer some listener’s questions in a podcast that’s full of fire! AND- a first look at “Shade”- Tannin’s upcoming new product!!

Don’t get stuck if you’re trying to replicate a certain environmental niche in your aquarium and you just can’t find that exact plant, wood, leaf, etc... study your habitat well, think about how it formed... and look for “analogs!”

You can’t guarantee too many things in this hobby.. or can you? Here’s a look at what happens when you temp fate- and the aquarium “gods” by pushing your luck too far!

There is something very compelling about taking a small tank that’s working well and “scaling it up” to something bigger. In this quick one, I share one of my fave tanks and the idea I have of replicating it on a larger scale!

I think it’s time to look at natural aquatic habitats and ask ourselves WHY various fishes live in them. It’s time to examine what dress them to a certain habitat at a certain time. It’s a key “unlock” that we can all learn from.. and it’s an interesting way to develop a stocking plan- or sequence- for your botanical- style aquarium!

On this special edition of “The Tint”, we’re joined by my good friend and fellow botanical- style aquarium geek, James Sheen! Just a fun, wide-ranging discussion on all sorts of botanical stuff! Join in the geekiness!

Have you ever thought about how water reaches your favorite aquatic ecosystem? Moreover, have you considered how the surrounding geography and geology impacts the composition of the water? What are the implications for studying and replicating some of these processes in the aquarium?

How hard is a botanical-style aquarium to create, operate, and maintain? Not that hard... at least, not if you follow some basic rules...

It’s about time to double back and focus more on brackish water botanical-style aquariums! We’ve been working hard with our “Estuary” collection over the past few years to really make unique brackish water systems more accessible to everyone! Let’s tease you a bit about this interesting ecological niche.:.

We’re going to be a bit slower in shipping this week.. but wait until you see what’s coming!

As we push out into uncharted waters, testing new hobby ideas, we face the scrutiny- and on occasion, the criticism-of our peers. No need to fear this. Fortune favors the bold...

What do you need to do to maintain a botanical style aquarium with a bed of leaf litter? Let’s talk about it!

The bottom- not just sand, gravel or other traditional substrate materials.. it can be comprised of twigs, leaves, and botanicals. It can foster a huge dynamic aquatic ecology! Let’s talk about it for a bit....

Every botanical-style aquarium reaches a stage, early in its existence- where our initial work is done, and Nature takes over. Accepting and savoring this moment, and the transformations which begin to occur from this point- is foundational to our philosophy of the botanical-style aquarium.

With so many hobbyists getting into botanical-style aquariums, there’s a lot of talk- a lot of ideas floating around out there in the hobby. Not all of them are correct. Let’s look at a few and try to clear up a few things!