# 90 Gallons of Mints



## notEZbeingGREEN (Sep 17, 2012)

I got a beautiful group of 8, 5 month old mint terribilis recently(thanks Matt!).
I also acquired a free 90 gallon tank and stand...SO...
Here's a quick "build thread."

Eggcrate false bottom covered in fiberglass screen
Locally found rocks(baked in the sun for several months)
(Aquarium) filter foam under/in between/behind rocks in the water feature
Homemade ABG-like substrate

Lights: 4 t8 6500k bulbs

Plants:
justicia carnea 'holanda'
pseuderanthemum atropurpureum 'rubrum'
pseuderanthemum 'stainless steel'
begonia(cane/eyelash) 'sophia'
begonia acetosa
begonia soli mutata
begonia glabra
dwarf mondo grass
black mondo grass
fittonia albivenis 'black star'


----------



## notEZbeingGREEN (Sep 17, 2012)

Future inhabitants:


----------



## notEZbeingGREEN (Sep 17, 2012)

I tried to use darker green, deep red/purple plants so the mints will stand out more. I may replace a portion of the leaf litter with gravel, but still debating that...while this is not a biotype viv per say, I did use some plants that are more tree/shrub like to simulate what little is known of their "natural" habitat(hence, the gravel idea...).

Let me know your thoughts and/or suggestions.

Thanks,
Tim


----------



## srrrio (May 12, 2007)

It's beautiful, I get what you are doing with the habit idea, nicely done. I would not be as brave to put in the pond, I'm always worried about terribilis substrate getting too wet. Yet I can see you have planned for good drainage. Do you foresee them transporting tads to the pond ? I sure do


----------



## Adam R (Jun 26, 2013)

water filtration? not to come right out with a negative but have you given it much thought? i have a 10gallon with a water feature and i have self filtering gravel plus an external filter and im doing water changes constantly. i would recommend getting that water moving if you can. otherwise its an attractive tank, have fun with it


----------



## notEZbeingGREEN (Sep 17, 2012)

Adam R said:


> water filtration? not to come right out with a negative but have you given it much thought? i have a 10gallon with a water feature and i have self filtering gravel plus an external filter and im doing water changes constantly. i would recommend getting that water moving if you can. otherwise its an attractive tank, have fun with it


There is actually an airline bubbling in the water feature. I will put java moss and maybe another plant in there...all my vivs are set up this way. I've had no issues with periodic partial water changes/topping off.


----------



## tinkgirl77 (Dec 30, 2012)

Looks great!



Sent from my Surface with Windows RT using Tapatalk


----------



## notEZbeingGREEN (Sep 17, 2012)

So...I decided to give the whole gravel idea a try...

What I've read about their "natural habitat" says its mostly on an incline, lots of gravel, saplings/trees and intermittent leaf litter and lower growing vegetation.

This is my take on that...





The gravel shows up in pics somewhat lighter/brighter in color than it really is.
It's much closer to the color of the larger rocks in real life... Lol

Thoughts?


----------



## mongo77 (Apr 28, 2008)

Looks great! You can always throw moss or leaf litter over the gravel if you decide you don't like the way it looks anymore.


----------



## Medic1 (Jan 18, 2013)

Love the look of this tank. Those mints are going to look really awesome in there!


----------



## rigel10 (Jun 1, 2012)

It is of no doubt original the use of gravel as a bottom. If one of the biggest risks to terribilis are rot feet, with this system, I think, you can avoid it. 
I'm curious to know how it goes. In fact, I've never seen gravel used as bottom - expanded clay and leaves, yes, but never gravel.


----------



## notEZbeingGREEN (Sep 17, 2012)

Since this is about week #6 since I set this viv up, I put the now 6 month old mints in here the other day. They actually seem to be settling in pretty quickly...

Here's some "action" shots on the frogs.


----------



## lukeklos (Dec 18, 2012)

I would be concerned with the white fertilizer pellets in the soil. Especially since you have run-off into a water feature.


----------



## notEZbeingGREEN (Sep 17, 2012)

lukeklos said:


> I would be concerned with the white fertilizer pellets in the soil. Especially since you have run-off into a water feature.


It is actually a small amount of perlite in my substrate mix, not a fertilizer...


----------



## notEZbeingGREEN (Sep 17, 2012)

I added a few clumps of moss here and there. All the plants seem to be growing.
I hand mist heavily, 3 times a day...The mints are getting more bold each day! 3-4 of them already recognize me as their food source. 

Here's some frog/viv shots...


----------



## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

Viv looks really nice! I like it a lot  

Just read through some comments....I wouldnt worry about filtration much. An airline tube with some water movement should be plenty, especially if you do occasional water changes. I also think with the eggcrate drainage layer as well as having a gravel base, you shouldnt need to worry about foot rot much...just be careful how much you are misting. 3 times everyday seems to be kind of excessive but I dont know how sealed off it is or how dry it gets etc.

I also wanted to suggest grabbing yourself some black construction paper / card stock sheets (the actual name has escaped me). I use this to cover up the the visible drainage layer/eggcrate from the front as well as on the background and maybe even the sides. This will cover up all the unsightly stuff (wires, eggcrate, your wooden wall etc) and it will enclose the viv nicely. Black electrical tape works great to stick it on too. I really like doing this to give that nice finishing touch on all my vivs that dont have a full BG or have a visible drainage layer or any other unsightly things I want to cover up etc. I bought these at wal-mart for .90$ each and they are about 2'x3.5' sheets of heavy black card stock. Again, I cant remember what they actually called it. This sure beats spray painting the glass too... Just a suggestion!

All in all, I really like what youve done. Hope it grows in nicely and the frogs enjoy it! Keep us updated.


----------

