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Ecology of the Planted Aquarium: A Practical Manual and Scientific Treatise for the Home Aquarist
by
This book presents novel scientific information in a way that beginning hobbyists can use it to set up and maintain planted freshwater aquaria
About The Author:
The author is a medical research technician, former technical advisor for the Aquatic Gardeners Association, and a long time aquarium hobbyist.
About The Author:
The author is a medical research technician, former technical advisor for the Aquatic Gardeners Association, and a long time aquarium hobbyist.
Get A Copy
Hardcover, Second Edition, 194 pages
Published
June 1st 2003
by Echinodorus Publishing
(first published 1999)
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Start your review of Ecology of the Planted Aquarium: A Practical Manual and Scientific Treatise for the Home Aquarist
To those of you who know, I’m hardly one to agree with the most anyone on anything. Not out of an intrinsic appeal of contrarianism or neck-beard styled trolling, just good ol’ critical thinking is my weapon of choice. So, I found myself in a completely surprising position to agree with the 3rd review here for Walstad’s Ecology of the Planted Aquarium: “Extremely technical.”
I’m sure a lot of us have come across Diane’s paean toward a more “naturally” styled tank via probably one of the greatest ...more
I’m sure a lot of us have come across Diane’s paean toward a more “naturally” styled tank via probably one of the greatest ...more
This is the aquarium book I was looking for. It really discusses "why" anything happens in the aquarium and how to balance it. I was tired of "do a water change", "buy these chemical additives", "charcoal!". This book gives you the tools to actually balance your aquarium in a low tech way.
I'm rereading and will probably reread over and over again. ...more
I'm rereading and will probably reread over and over again. ...more
This is one of the most important books on freshwater aquariums. Don't be fooled, it is a graduate level book for those with substantial experience and a genuine interest\talent for science. If this is you, few books will reward as much and be as necessary as Walstad's.
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I finished this book ages ago. Dog's ages. It was incredibly useful and got me off to a good start, learning about aquatic and soil ecosystems, and now I've gone on to learn about other microbes than bacteria have several years now of practical experience. I've found much of what Walstad says useful, but not always consistent with what I've found in practice. Especially where she describes starting an aquarium with a layer of topsoil topped by gravel, planting it heavily and throwing fish in. In
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This book was just a Wow!!! So much that you read about aquariums is just nonsense. This is a scientifically well founded book, that changed my understanding about fish keeping. I use her method and am very pleased by the results.
Extremely technical. The average or beginner hobbyist might want to avoid the book, because it can make the hobby seem intimidating.
If you have only 20 minutes with this book, I recommend the chapter nine about the algae combat mechanics.
Perfect combination of technical and practical. It wasn't an easy read, to be honest, but it gave me what I needed.
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The book underlines the concept of a ‘Low-Tech’ Aquarium. The author suggests ways to set up one using a moderate number of fish, reduced filtration and cleaning, a large number of healthy plants and diverse microorganisms. She also highlights the attributes of such an aquarium, where the pH remains stable, maintenance required is low, and how the fish behavior is normal.
If you have toyed with the idea of setting up a natural ecosystem in your aquarium where the fish and the plants live and grow ...more
If you have toyed with the idea of setting up a natural ecosystem in your aquarium where the fish and the plants live and grow ...more
I did read this book cover to cover, not just using it as a text. As a text book, you almost need to know more about keeping aquarium plants than I do to treat as a text. All in all worth it for the aquarist interested in planted tanks.
Very informational, and has been working out great so far!
THE book for planted aquarium enthusiasts. Accept no substitute.
Great book! I will be referring to it often!.
a good introduction to the topic, relatively easy to understand, gives explanations for different chemical reactions that (may) happen in an aquarium. refreshingly critical of high-tech tanks.
Great book!
Great knowledge for beginners! I was doing so many things incorrectly, now my tanks have gotten better. I will suggest to anyone!
Great knowledge for beginners! I was doing so many things incorrectly, now my tanks have gotten better. I will suggest to anyone!
Must read
If you want to stand a chance at successfully keeping aquarium plants in a low-tech environment, you absolutely must read this book.
If you want to stand a chance at successfully keeping aquarium plants in a low-tech environment, you absolutely must read this book.
Useful, but a very dry read. Definitely written more like a scientific text than the alternative "Aquariums for Dummies" guide!
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Great
I learned so much so quickly, it was amazing. The facts and information does a good job of dispelling myths that have been around a long time. GO DIRT!
I learned so much so quickly, it was amazing. The facts and information does a good job of dispelling myths that have been around a long time. GO DIRT!
I knew that this was a particularly influential book for hobbyist so I read it before I set up my 36 gallon planted tank. As others have said, it's very much a "why" book and is a good place to begin to learn about planted aquariums. Its dry, it's not an "easy" read, but it got me started on what I needed to research to maintain my tank. The books now 20 years old and I'm told by more experienced hobbyist that a lot of the things Walstad has written are not sustainable or even correct (alleopath
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Too much science, not enough how to. College chemistry textbooks are easier to read. This is way too much for a beginner hobbyist wanting to take a natural approach to aquarium keeping. There’s a tiny section at the end that has beginner how to but it’s ironically lacking in detail while the rest of the book is drowning in excessive scientific detail.
Loved it! Can't wait to start my own planted aquarium. Years ago, I owned an aquarium without any plants but seeing how much is going on inside when you add plants makes it much more interesting. This book is often very technical in its writing with regards to the chemistry and I struggled to keep up at times but it's worth trying even when you don't understand all the chemistry.
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Extraordinary book for all aquarists. In detail explanation of processes that take place in the aquarium with real life example and experiments. Tremendous amount of research job done here. But beware, it is not an easy book. Knowledge of chemistry is mandatory to understand it. I am planning at least one re-read.
Every recommendation I get for this says they read the whole thing which seems doubtful. I skipped over some sections that clearly didn't apply to my tank and I did some external research to understand better. Definitely made easier if you have a good understanding of chemistry already, since it presents some difficult information.
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This book is filled with valuable information regarding the planning, preparation, and maintaining of an aquarium with a soil substrate.
A little dry at times, but surprisingly engaging and informative.
I've been meaning to read this since 2012; looking forward to building some more planted tanks soon!
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I learned many new things from this book . I should have read it a long time ago , highly recommend.
Extremely useful. I'm running two tanks based on this knowledge
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Very academic. If you don't know your chemistry it is still useful for the last part on setting up a solid planted aquarium. If you didn't sleep through chemistry the author really did her homework and her conclusions are really interesting.
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Mandatory reading for the hobbyists.
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“My point is that plants readily take up ammonium from aquarium water and probably grow better using ammonium. This means that biological filtration (nitrification) can be de-emphasized in aquariums that contain healthy aquatic plants.”
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