# Vivarium Design



## Rusty_Shackleford

This is a bit of a different thread. I wanted to focus on principles of design and "landsacping" a viv. I'm hardly artistic unless it comes to music. I don't have the gift of just being able to put a plant here and there and having it turn out beautiful. I've seen many many beautiful vivs here on DB and I want to hear from some of you who have created such beautiful vivs. GRIMM is one of the first names that comes to mind to build really aesthetically pleasing vivs. 
I'm sure that some of the principles of landscape design will also apply to vivs. There is only a couple of rules I can think of off the top of my head.
1. Always use an odd number of plants. In other words plant them in singles, or groups of 3, 5, etc.
2. Tall plants in the rear, short plants up front.

Who else has some tips to make our vivs truly pleasing to our eyes? 
Thanks to everyone for contributing.


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## heyduke

I just keep mine pretty basic and simple. A few broms, some tillies, pilea, a fern or some other upright plant. And some wood and lots of leaf litter. I like the way they look.


















Sean


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## kitcolebay

I'd be interested in some proper landscaping tips myself. It's been mentioned that mine may be a bit overcrowded. Of course, now I start to doubt myself and been wondering if I should start pulling plants out. 
It'd be nice to get some general rules that might help fine tune my build and help guide me on future builds.


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## therizman2

Some other things I like to keep in mind:
1. Final size of the plant
2. Texture of the leaves
3. Color of the leaves
4. Overall growth habit
5. Ability to handle frogs (laying eggs, pooping, hopping around, etc)
6. Growth rate


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## grantska

When it comes to landscape design and compositions that are astheticaly pleasing to the eye, a simple rule that can be applied is the "Golden Ratio" (Google it). The ratio is supposed to yield harmonios proportions. 








For those that might not necessarily have the feel this can be a good way to set the parameters of the hardscape and plantings.


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## Rusty_Shackleford

grantska said:


> When it comes to landscape design and compositions that are astheticaly pleasing to the eye, a simple rule that can be applied is the "Golden Ratio" (Google it). The ratio is supposed to yield harmonios proportions.
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Thanks that totally clears things up  You're an engineer aren't you?
I'm better at sticking plants in at random than I am at math lol.


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## Azurel

One of the things I have gotten away from as I continue to build more vivs for my expanding collection is reducing the number of plants being used especially the number of different broms.

I have now started using clusters of the same neoregelia hybrids or culvers as opposed to 4-5+ differant broms. After doing a bunch of reading and looking at pictures of broms in the habitat is seems more natural to have clusters of the same broms then a Hodgepodge of differant ones. Then I add 3-4 differant plants usually vines to grow on the background and some plants to grow as ground cover. I have found them now to be more pleasing to the eye.


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## Rusty_Shackleford

I think that's a good point and it goes along with using clusters of plants in odd numbers. Instead of having 12 different kinds of plants in a viv, use 5 and use them in bigger clusters/bunches.


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## fieldnstream

I totally agree with James...I prefer to use multiples of a few types of plant than a bunch of different ones, just seems more "natural" plus its less distracting (I mean, the frogs are the main attraction right? Plant nerds...don't answer that one  ).


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## james67

this is quite important to creating a natural looking viv. the vast majority of my 30+ tanks have 1-3 different species of flora and thats it! a natural looking viv will almost never have the type of plant variety most try to squeeze into their tanks. also while "pops" of color are nice a mostly green appearance provides a very natural feel. like mentioned above 10 different neo. cultivars will look like a patchwork mess. i max out at 2 different types of broms in one tank and actually try to stray away from the very colorful ones (unless its being used as a focal point) because they look unnatural in small spaces like terrariums. a good hardscape is as important as plant selection, and plant placement is the most impostant aspect of creating the natural feel IMO.









some thoughts
james


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## kitcolebay

I'm already tweaking, moving, adding, and removing plants just about every weekend or so. Now, after reading all this, then I'm thinking I'm just going to pull out all the plants out and replant from scratch! Well, maybe not...maybe new lessons applied to next viv and not past viv! Maybe someday I'll have to post a thread begging for criticism and suggestions for plant placement. 
I'll keep researching and following this thread. Still trying to learn more about the golden ratio and rule of thirds!
Thanks for starting this Jon!


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## fieldnstream

Hey Chris...you wouldn't be learning if you weren't already correcting mistakes and planning how to make the next one better...thats part of the fun.


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## kitcolebay

fieldnstream said:


> Hey Chris...you wouldn't be learning if you weren't already correcting mistakes and planning how to make the next one better...thats part of the fun.


Very true Field! I'm hooked and lovin' it!


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## goof901

grantska said:


> When it comes to landscape design and compositions that are astheticaly pleasing to the eye, a simple rule that can be applied is the "Golden Ratio" (Google it). The ratio is supposed to yield harmonios proportions.
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what is this pic of because it's not showing up for me?


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## Rusty_Shackleford

James, thanks for posting that photo and your tip, it's very much appreciated.


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## grantska

Im not and engineer, far from it actually (not a big fan of math). But I did study landscape architecture for a while. The image might have made it look confusing, its really just a simple rule taught in most design fields that helps guide distribution of objects to get asthetically pleasing proportions. Its used quite a bit in the aquarium hobby. 

goof901 the image was a diagram of the golden ratio. Heres a link with a simple description and some more understandable pics. Proportion - Golden Ratio and Rule of Thirds

Im actually more of a fan of planting by feel and the methods described by James. Just thought it post that for those that might struggle with the "feel" method.


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## Rusty_Shackleford

I googled it and the first thing that came up was the wiki page. It had a ton of algebraic equations on it which made the concept look way more complicated than it really is. I was just razzin ya about being an engineer.


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## goof901

i remember learning about the golden ratio. i just have to figure out how to apply it to vivs. the only thing i can think of is making the size of the viv in the golden ratio.


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## SmallScaleDan

Of course there is nothing wrong with a viv that is a tangled mass of plants fighting for survival. The frogs don't care... to a point. I never give people crap for having a wild tangled mass of plants, AND

Since your question was about aesthetics... 
One coud argue that aesthetics are relative. Some people may *prefer* the tangled mass of plants look, for example. 

BUT, 

When you are trying to achieve the manicured aesthetic, or the natural aesthetic, there are a few rules I think help. 

The biggest mistakes I see people make are: 

*Not thinking about light:* They will plant a plant with a huge spread toward the top of the tank, and it will shade everything out below. Or, they will not prune their vines and other spreading plants to help get light to the lower part of the viv. This creates what I call "the cave" look. You get a dark understory, and a tangled mass of plants across the top. 

*Planting too many plants:*
Many people want their viv to look filled out and complete the day it is set up. That's fine, but if you don't consider that the plants will immediately begin to grow, and fight for space, you'll be at tangled mass stage very quickly. I like to plant a viv sparsely and see what thrives, and let it fill in on its own. You can make suggestions to the plants on where to go while letting them shape themselves naturally. This also gives you the opportunity to let the plants tell you if they are getting what they need. 

If you pay attention to the direction the leaves are pointing or the rate of growth of the plant, or the plant's color, you can figure out if it is happy where it is. Is it too wet? Is there enough light? Is there enough food? If things aren't working out, you can move the plant and try again. 

*Not considering FROGS: *

This manifests itself in putting plants in the tank that the frog can trample, or plants that may hurt the frog... Also, failing to leave space for hopping about, eating and breeding. Put the cage fixtures in first, then add plants. So, I always add the coco huts, feeding logs (I use pieces of bark as feeding stations, and rocks etc to the tank before the plants. The frogs needs are fufilled, and the plants are added to compliment that. 

*Planting too many species*

There is nothing technically wrong with that, but as it was mentioned above, if you look at natural settings you will often find that the diversity in one 3ft by 3ft place is not crazy high. Plants which are thriving (Like broms) often live in colonies in ideal habitat. If you plant your tank that way, you will get a more natural look. 

For example, I never plant two different species of vine in one viv. (I realize this is just my opinion) I think the two plants fighting for the same niche looks messy and unnatural. There are exceptions to that, but I meant it as a basic example. 

*Failing to consider the biology of the plant:*

A great example of this is planting a cryptanthus on the top of the back wall of your viv and planting a tillandsia in the moist soil at the bottom. A little research into the needs of your plants will keep them healthy, and (I THINK) when they are planted where they are supposed to be, they look more natural. 

*Finally, TANK MAINTANENCE: *

If you set your plants up correctly, with great light, in the perfect part of the terrarium, and they have all the food they need, and in a super high humidity environment....THEY ARE GOING TO GROW LIKE CRAZY. This requires you to prune and train like crazy. Once the plants are shaped and growing you just have to decide where they are allowed to grow, and don't spare the shears. Especially with vines. They must be controlled, or the balance of your tank will quickly shift. 

A great example of this is pothos. I actually love pothos, Ficus pumilio (repens), and Philodendron scandens in taller vivaria. You often hear people say," Never plant those plants, because they will push the lid off of your tank, and take over completely." This is true to an extent, but if you keep up on your pruning, even these invasive plants can be quite lovely and balanced. 

Anyway, that's all I could think of off the top of my head. Hope it helps. 

Dan


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## Rusty_Shackleford

Thanks Dan, those are all great points you made. 
Just a couple of comments/questions, first, many of the frogs we keep come from areas with a lot of canopy overhead and sparse vegetation on the forest floor, that kinds of lends itself to the "cave" look you mentioned. It probably is more realistic though I'm not sure about aesthetic to create a viv that is somewhat shaded on the floor with lots of leaf litter and sparse vegetation.

I like your point about putting in the tank decor first as opposed to last. What about planting from the top down? In other words planting your higher up plants first, taking a step back to look where you have light hitting the lower levels and then planting those areas?


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## BlueRidge

Nice Dan, thanks for that. I like the keep is simple method myself.


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## Pumilo

FTS. It's a tragedy we've all seen. It has affected some of our loved ones, maybe even some of us. Well I have good news for you. With a healthy diet, a good exercise regimen, and a little planning with your vivs bottom, you can avoid FTS forever. 
Flat Tank Syndrome...only you can prevent it.


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## GRIMM

Here are some of the guidelines I try to follow for aesthetics. Obviously the frog and plant needs are to be met in addition to how good a tank looks, but this discussion isn’t about that.

Try to be consistent throughout any aspect of a tank. Use materials that go together (color/texture), and have the same overall structure. A piece of Mopani next to a piece of Malaysian looks terrible. A fat chuck of Malaysian next to a thin twig-like piece of Malaysian also looks off. This also applies to other materials such as stones, or even background coverings. 

Leading/complimenting lines, focal points, and an overall “flow” or theme all play a large part of an aesthetically pleasing layout. It is difficult for me to describe or give a set of guidelines for this, because it is so subjective to the individual layout. The rule of thirds is a great tool, however tanks with central focus can also look amazing. If a tank you have seen holds your interest, try to figure out why and use what you have learned on your next layout. 

Something I have learned is that aesthetics are not always about what has been added to a layout. When done correctly, negative space and relatively boring areas can help give a layout some breathing room and direct the viewer’s eyes where you want them to look.

One of the most important aspects of a successful layout is scale, the large side of the spectrum usually being the cause of problems. If a hardscape material or plant is too large for a tank, it will make it look smaller then it is. You can go overboard with tiny plants, but it isn’t as much of an issue when aesthetics are the main concern. 

While on the topic of plants…This seems to be an area where I am torn on following the minimalistic approach or not. I think scale, placement, and health are more important then the specific quantity used. Some of the nicest vivs of all time have an overwhelmingly long plant list, so I do not agree with only using a limited number of species all the time. Creating a "natural" looking tank, and asthetically pleasing one are two different things. I would say though, using plants with similar leaf structure does look the best, and keeping growth under control is necessary. Like previously mentioned, think of what the plants will look like 1-2 years down the road. Plant and prune accordingly to what you want the final plant density to look like. 

Plant density is also important, and something people dont really think about. A tank with a focal point created mainly by the hardscape will benefit from fewer plants, and the opposite is true for a tank with minimal hardscape work.

As for the more obvious things that everyone knows….Keep all gadgets hidden, and unnatural materials out of sight. Best bad example would be a visible false bottom, with mechanical parts out in the open, and using those god awful looking LECA spheres below the substrate. (Im not saying dont use them, just dont let everyone see them  )


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## Dane

I'm sure some of this has been said, but I've put together a few hundred tanks over the years, and these are some thoughts from a strictly aesthetic perspective;

Vary your substrate depth. A flat, level substrate line looks really unnatural. I usually incorporate a low point or two somewhere in front, with a gentle slope up to the sides/back.

Avoid symmetry. Skew things slightly right or left of center, and don't put two plants of the same type in similar spots on opposite sides of the tank. The "Golden Ratio" applies here.

Natural stuff always looks better than artificial stuff. There are some pretty amazing products and techniques that can pull off fantastic looking fake rocks, branches, etc. Still, nothing compares to a perfectly twisted and weathered piece of ghost wood, or a particularly memorable chunk of rock that you may pass on a hike.

Don't forget to use some of the front-to-back depth of the enclosure. If you are creating a false background, use some branches/protrusions that approach the viewing pane. This will bring the scene closer to the viewer, and add more interest.

Lastly, have a plan. Keeping an idea of your ultimate design, along with some inspirational pictures will help you stay on track for re-creating that root buttress, or that Peruvian cloud forest biotope. While suitability for the animals should be your primary concern, don't forget that you (and anyone else in your home) will have to look at the thing!


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## skanderson

a bit late in the reply here but i disagree with one of your origenal points. i think it is important not to put the short plants in the front and the tall plants in the back. this leads to the grocery shelf look which is very unnatural. lots of reefers make that mistake. you can never go wrong observing lots of small scale natural settings that you like and trying to incorporate the essence of what makes it look good to you. that being said im far too big of a collector to properly scape my vivs. there are also lots of good scaping hints and ideas to steal on the freshwater planted tank forums.


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## Azurel

skanderson said:


> a bit late in the reply here but i disagree with one of your origenal points. i think it is important not to put the short plants in the front and the tall plants in the back. this leads to the grocery shelf look which is very unnatural. lots of reefers make that mistake. you can never go wrong observing lots of small scale natural settings that you like and trying to incorporate the essence of what makes it look good to you. that being said im far too big of a collector to properly scape my vivs. there are also lots of good scaping hints and ideas to steal on the freshwater planted tank forums.


That is one of the rules I don't follow although I may trim taller plants in the front a bit more often then if they were in the back I do let them grow and block some of the veiw. I have noticed in my R. sirensis tank that it has help them come out more. 
Plus in the wild there all differant heights and shapes that grow in front of and behind others.... I feel like that is one rule that can be broken and still have it be pleasing. If the plant is scraggly and looks awful that is another issue all together.

sent from my Galaxy S lll


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## Rusty_Shackleford

Thank you both for your replies. I like the tip about the freshwater planted aquarium forums. I've always loved how natural and beautiful the Japanese waterscapes are, talk about taking it to an art wow!


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## MeiKVR6

So many good posts on this thread. Tons of good suggestions. Lots of placement stuff has already been covered, so I'll touch on the effect of lighting.

Lighting plays a huge role both long and short term. If you have a florescent tube fixture mounted all the way _towards the back_ of the enclosure, all the plants will grow up & back towards it. If you have all your light focused from one tight light spot (more common on small vivariums), your plants will grow to to point at it over the course of a couple months.  Evenly spread lighting usually looks best, and having it placed slightly towards the front of the vivarium will encourage plants to grow _towards_ the viewer, which makes it appear to "pop out" at you. This will also encourage more broad leafed plants to show the tops of the leaves, as opposed to them growing up & away. You want the plants to grow with your eye, not against it. Doing this can also make keeping the vivarium trimming easier.

Light temperature plays a huge role, too. Using _only_ 6500K+ lighting will look cold to the eye, whereas 5000-6000K will look warmer. Mixing high & low looks excellent.

Brightness is also a huge factor. Work with shadows. In the vast majority of the really memorable vivarium builds, you see HUGE contrasts between light & dark. (James67's post earlier is an example) That won't happen if you've got 10,000 lumens worth of lighting above a 20 gallon vivarium. _ More isn't always better._ Super-bright vivariums often look flat, so try to aim for contrast. Shadows won't grow plants, but that _doesn't _make dark spots your enemy. On the jungle floor, every single plant competes for a speck of light. If 100% of the vivarium is illuminated perfectly, it's not super natural looking. You can create shadows with hardscaping, larger plants, and _light placement_. Move your lighting around after you set up your vivarium and see how shadows are thrown.

Just my $0.02!


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## Rusty_Shackleford

Thanks for contributing Mike, those are all great points. 
In reasearching plants I believe I read that some plants like Prayer Plants for example, prefer a bit more shade. They could be used in areas of a vivarium that are not as well lit such as in the "shade" created by a bromeliad.


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## diggenem

james67 said:


> this is quite important to creating a natural looking viv. the vast majority of my 30+ tanks have 1-3 different species of flora and thats it! a natural looking viv will almost never have the type of plant variety most try to squeeze into their tanks. also while "pops" of color are nice a mostly green appearance provides a very natural feel. like mentioned above 10 different neo. cultivars will look like a patchwork mess. i max out at 2 different types of broms in one tank and actually try to stray away from the very colorful ones (unless its being used as a focal point) because they look unnatural in small spaces like terrariums. a good hardscape is as important as plant selection, and plant placement is the most impostant aspect of creating the natural feel IMO.
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That is a good amount of info and your viv looks awesome and very natural.

My question is are most of us too concern about light penetrating to the viv floor? Would a more dimmer lower area be more natural?


Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2


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## Azurel

Here is a picture of my main display lit by a single 24w 6500k LED spot light and supplimented by a 9w LED goose neck for 6hrs a day.... In this picture the goose neck is not on.

Some of the plants in this picture have been pulled This was my first build and have since reduced the amount of differant plants in it. But the over all look is the same.










I really like how the LED spot has the beam of light into the tank and just highlights the surrounding area and creates shadow areas.....Looks a bit more natural then this picture of the same tank lit by a 26w CFL.


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## Lake

Use the fibonacci spiral when designing its shape. It is naturally pleasing to the eye. (large hill at the left, smaller one at the right. maybe a little overhang on the left hill) its used in pretty things in nature like shells.


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## Dane

Lake said:


> Use the fibonacci spiral when designing its shape. It is naturally pleasing to the eye. (large hill at the left, smaller one at the right. maybe a little overhang on the left hill) its used in pretty things in nature like shells.


This was mentioned a few times in this thread previously.


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## Bighurt

Lake said:


> Use the fibonacci spiral when designing its shape. It is naturally pleasing to the eye. (large hill at the left, smaller one at the right. maybe a little overhang on the left hill) its used in pretty things in nature like shells.


That shell is not a Fibonacci Spiral a logarithmic spiral but certainly not a Fibonacci, don't fall prey to miss leading text books.

The Fibonacci Spiral is used in art but nature doesn't follow poorly written text books.

Sorry


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## InfiniteDR3AMER

james67 said:


> this is quite important to creating a natural looking viv. the vast majority of my 30+ tanks have 1-3 different species of flora and thats it! a natural looking viv will almost never have the type of plant variety most try to squeeze into their tanks. also while "pops" of color are nice a mostly green appearance provides a very natural feel. like mentioned above 10 different neo. cultivars will look like a patchwork mess. i max out at 2 different types of broms in one tank and actually try to stray away from the very colorful ones (unless its being used as a focal point) because they look unnatural in small spaces like terrariums. a good hardscape is as important as plant selection, and plant placement is the most impostant aspect of creating the natural feel IMO.
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What plants did you use in this one?


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## Boboluke

Thank you for bumping this back to life.


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## MasterT

So one up above someone stated that nature does not follow the sequence, which you are correct, kinda. The sequence follows nature, and closer to the center you would see that mathematically it is the sequence and has been proven countless times but that is neither here nor there *also followed by sunflower seeds, many human ears, and a bunch of other things found naturally*

However I think the concept is quite nice. I am building my first viv and I have a few different things and did not even consider the golden ratio until now. I may have to scratch my current plans to do this.


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## Greasy

I would suggest looking at nature aquariums, vivariums designing still rely on the same principles. I relied heavily on nature aquariums for ideas, since vivariums are not as popular. Be great if we could get more people to design tanks as an art form, perhaps one day this forum will be as popular as plantedtank.net. =)

Getting Started with Aquascaping â€¢ Aquascaping Love

Aquatic Layout Guide- Rules of Composition: The Golden Ratio, Creating Perspective and Layout Shapes - The Green Machine


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## titus oates

InfiniteDR3AMER said:


> What plants did you use in this one?


I too would like to know what plants were used

Kevin


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