Intro:

So hopefully during the summer i will be setting up an Iwagumi style tank in a 5 or 10 gallon. It will probably be in a 5, but there is always the chance that i do it in a 10. It will be cool to do an iwagumi style tank and i think it will be a lot of fun to try out.

Substrate:

I'm most likely going to be using a mixture of flourite red on the bottom layer and then a cap of flourite black sand. I think that this will look good and will also give me some good plant growth. The flourite red is in a gravel size too which helps allow beneficial bacteria to settle and also allows for more area between the grains so that the bottom can still have oxygen. This is important so i don't have any gas buildup and i also believe that the plants like to have a good amount of oxygen down by their roots. 

Flourite Red:

http://www.aquariumplants.com/SeaChem_Flourite_Red_Gravel_15_4_LB_p...

Flourite Black Sand: http://www.aquariumplants.com/SeaChem_Flourite_Black_Sand_15_4_LB_p...

You can see that they both have good nutrients and the flourite red has a good amount of iron too. I may use root tabs if necessary, but i feel like this makes for a pretty good substrate and as long as i have good lighting, and fertilizers, i don't think that it will be necessary. I also have some eco complete in my other tanks that i could also add.

Lighting:

Lighting is fairly easy for a 5 gallon as it is short and allows for a lot of penetration. It is also just a small size in general which allows it to get a good amount of light on a little tank. Here is the fixture i'm looking at...

http://www.aquatraders.com/14-inch-1x24W-Power-Compact-Light-Fixtur...

It's made by Odyssea and it is 24 watts of power compact light. It seems like that would give me a good amount of light to grow the two plants that i will be most likely using which is dwarf hairgrass and dwarf baby tears. It looks like the bulb is meant for reef tanks so i may need to look around for a 6500k or 6700k bulb.

If i have a 10 gallon then i will probably use this fixture...

http://www.aquatraders.com/20-inch-4x18W-T5-Aquarium-Light-Fixture-...

The good thing about this fixture is that the bulbs are meant for planted aquariums so i wouldn't have to buy new bulbs.

If anybody has any other lighting options i'm glad to hear what you have to reccomend. Also if anybody has any reviews of this or knows of any experience with it, please share!

Plants:

In Iwagumi, the plants are typically very limited and lots of iIwagumi style tanks only use 2 or 3 species. Some other Iwagumi tanks have stem plants and other things but i'm going to keep mine fairly simple. I'm planning on doing some Dwarf hairgrass in the back and dwarf baby tears in the front. I may use small plastic dividers in the substrate to help separate the two so it will be easier to maintain and so they don't invade each other and cause problems.

Dwarf Hairgrass:

http://www.aquariumplants.com/Dwarf_Hairgrass_Eleocharis_acicularis...

Dwarf Baby Tears: http://www.aquariumplants.com/Baby_Tears_Dwarf_grown_on_plantable_M...

I will probably purchase them on mats and pots. Which one would you reccomend? I feel like the mats might be easier to cut up and put in small areas but the pots might be easier to remove all of the stone wool. I feel like with the mat  you are getting more for your money as pots are almost 4 dollars which is basically half of the price of the mat. I might get a mat of each and then a few pots of each and see which one i like better for future reference.

Aqua-Scaping:

I plan on making the tank lower on the left side with substrate and slightly raised on the right side to create a hilly effect and make some depth in the tank. I'm then planning to have dwarf hairgrass in the back right corner and have it coming down the slope towards the left side. Then i will have the dwarf baby tears in the front and mid-ground. As mentioned above, i might use plastic dividers to help separate the dwarf hairgrass and the dwarf baby tears.

Rock/Stones are an important part of an Iwagumi style tank. So instead of finding some rocks in my backyard, i'm going to actually order some online that are ment for iwagumi style tanks like ryuoh stone, Manten stone, Seiryu stone, etc.

Co2/Fertilizers:

I have never used ferts in the aquarium so it it rather new to me. Since I am using some of the more difficult to grow aquarium plants, i'm going to need some good additives in the water. I'm also not planning on doing a pressurized co2 system. If i did do a pressurized co2 system, then it would most likely be something cheap like this... http://www.amazon.com/Fluval-Mini-Pressurized-20g-CO2-Kit/dp/B0049R...

I may be getting a job over the summer and if I do then i will most likely get a co2 system.

As far as ferts are concerned i will probably just purchase these to packs...

http://www.aquariumplants.com/SeaChem_Plant_Pack_Fundamentals_Flour...

http://www.aquariumplants.com/SeaChem_Plant_Pack_Enhancer_NPK_Flour...

This will last me for a while as it will probably be used only on a 5 gallon. I figure these will work well and will help my plants grow great!

Thanks for reading and please give me any suggestions or recommendations you have!

Sincerely, Braden