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I'm trying to get up enough nerve to activate my first ever salt water tank. I've got a 55 gallon, a protein skimmer, and a wet-dry trickle filter in place. After seeing price tags in the three hundred dollar range, we decided to build our own hood and lighting. How 'bout one of you experts out there drop me a note and let me know why "halogen" lights wouldn't work. We've got a couple of 300 watt security lights sitting around. Like metal halide, they put out some heat, but we're planning to install one or two little fans in the hood. We should have plenty of room to add two actinic fluorescent bulbs if we need to for the spectrum.
This tank will be a mini-reef. I haven't ordered my live rock yet. I'm trying to get all of my ducks in a row first. Fish will only be an accent in this tank. I'd like a clown anemonae fish, and maybe a yellow tang once I get some algae built up. I might use blue damsels (probably two of them) to cycle the tank, but I'm concerned about their aggressiveness, especially if they are the first residents. Any reefers out there, I'd love to hear from you!
We had to go to Miami a couple of weeks ago for a family emergency, so while I was there of course I had to snorkel a little at John Pennekamp State Park on Key Largo. (Doesn't everyone do that during a family emergency?) And I got some mangrove shoots that were lying (not growing) by the side of the road. I've put them in an old ten gallon tank, with a couple of cups of sand, gravel, and some driftwood. I'm going to let the filter run for awhile and then order some cheapo hermit crabs through the mail. The only problem with this little freebie tank is that it looks like the mangroves might grow. I've always wanted a mangrove swamp, but a ten gallon tank ain't gonna cut it.
Changing gears, I finally planted my little garden, about a month later than I should have. The grass/weeds were so thickly established that I felt I needed to remove them with the pitchfork before I planted. IF I could have found a tiller that even would have made a dent in that stuff the grass and weeds would still have been a problem. So I removed, by hand, an area about twenty by thirty feet - then gave it up. I decided it was getting so late that I had better plant anyway, so my garden will be a lot smaller than I had wanted it. But I've still got short little rows of sunflower, Silver Queen corn, okra, peppers, beans, lettuce, giant zinnias (love 'em), and marigolds, plus one mound each for cantaloupe, watermelon, yellow squash, zucchini, pumpkin, and cucumbers. Oh yeah, and hubby planted six tomato rings. So, we might get to eat something this summer. I did see some kind of a giant, Tasmanian rabbit in the backyard a couple of days ago, though.
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