Book Review: ECOLOGY of the PLANTED AQUARIUM

Ecology of the Planted Aquarium: A Practical Manual and Scientific Treatise for the Home Aquarist

by Diana Walstad

ISBN 13:978-0-9673773-1-5

Wow! Now here’s a book I’ll never understand. The subtitle kinda says it all. It is indeed a “Scientific Treatise”, and I’ll wager that only a biochemist can ever really understand the entire book. So was it of any value to me, a your average aquarist without a degree in biology or chemistry? Yes. But if you are a biochemist that has planted aquariums for a hobby, then this is the book to die for!

Just a listing of chapters can give you a good idea of the contents of the book:

1. Introduction
2. Plants as Water Purifiers
3. Allelopathy
4. Bacteria
5. Sources of Plant Nutrients
6. Carbon
7. Plant Nutrition and Ecology
8. Substrate
9. The Aerial Advantage
10. Algae Control
11. Practical Aquarium Setup and Maintenance

To give you a better idea of the nature of this book, let’s just list the topics discussed in a sample chapter. I’ll use topics from the Substrate chapter, because as a planted tank hobbyist, it’s a subject I would hope to know a little about. The topics in the chapter are”

Components of Soils and Sediments

1. Mineral Particles
2. Organic Matter
3. Precipitated Inorganic Matter
4. Microorganisms

Characteristics of Soil and Sediments

1. Nutrient Binding
2. Anaerobic Nature of Substrates
3. Oxidized Microzone Keeps Nutrients and Toxins in Sediments
4. Stability of Sediments and Submerged Soils

Chaos in Freshly Submerged Terrestrial Soils

Terrestrial Soils and Sediments for Growing Aquatic Plants

Problems of Sediments and Submerged Soils

1. Metal Toxicity
2. Hydrogen Sulfide Toxicity
3. Organic Matter
4. Low Redox
5. Acid Sulfate Soils
6. Turbidity

Effect of Aquatic Plants on Substrates

Substrates in Aquariums

1. Selecting Soils
2. Setting Up Tanks with Soils
3. Fertilization
4. Gravel Additives
5. Substrate Degradation over Time?

Hmmm… maybe I didn’t know as much about substrate as I though. Most of that is a bit more advanced than the typical “Is flourite really not as good as AGA Aquasoil?” conversations I have. It’s WAY deeper than that, and will be outstanding information for many people. And in fact, I could actually almost follow most of it. But it is non-trivial stuff. Planted Tanks for Dummies this book is not. But enough of the “Scientific Treatise”, what about the “Practical Manual” part? Well, it is that. But only within some clear boundaries.

The author limits practical discussion to tanks wiht low light, soil for substrate, densely planted, no CO2 injection, and lots of surface plants. I’ve never done a “low tech” tank myself. But if I ever do, this book will be indispensable. And even though I do prefer “high tech” tanks, there is still value here for me. The algae control discussion is very good and the aquarium setup and maintenance information would be beneficial to newbies.

Throughout the book the author spent a number of years as the Technical Adviser to the Aquatic Gardeners Association (AGA). She uses questions posed by hobbyist during that time, a long with her responses, as examples to demonstrate concepts explained in the text.

The book is all black and white, though later versions include 4 color photographs of the author’s tanks. Then again a lot of peer reviewed scientific publications don’t have a lot color either. They are just jam packed with great technical info. Same here. Thought it is richly illustrated with technical diagrams, charts and tables. In the 194 page book, I count 78 such technical illustrations. And the material is clearly very well researched. Each chapter has a truly extensive bibliography. And though the book was published first in 1999, it does not suffer much from obsolescence. While there is some different new thinking around some of her material, I believe most of the basic biochemistry she references is still unchanged.

I wish I was qualified to review the technical discussions in this book, but I’m not. But some very well covered subjects should be fascinating to those more academically advanced than I - allelopathic competition between plants and algae, bicarbonate uptake in alkaline water, the economies of CO2 use for aerial growth, the persistance of biofilms, and much, much more.

For me this book left me with a very deep respect for the extraordinary complexity of the chemistry and biology that drives the ecosystems in our planted aquariums. It’s a good thing that Mother Nature does such a good job of taking care of herself, because ‘cuz most of it is clearly too complicated for me. Though after reading this book, and getting a glimpse of just how much more complex things are than they appear, I’m feeling absolultely a lot less the idiot for having troble with algae in my tank.

I cannot easily recommend this book to someone without a biochemistry inclination, if not a formal background. Though I believe it is a MUST BUY for any hobbyists that does have that understanding. It should provide enough info about the complex processes that keep our planted aquariums humming along. Or not. Your increased understanding will help you discern the difference, with the added benefit knowing why.

To the best of my knowledge, Diana Walstad has produced one of the few truely technical, English language, works available to the advanced planted aquarist. And we all owe her a dept of thanks for doing so. Even if you have to go onto a forum and ask someone to explain it to you. Really.