How could I make this work?

[Stab]

So I got me a fancy to redesign my 125G tank into an asian biotope. While I swore to myself years ago that I will never get involved with live plants again, I think that a bunch (30-40) tall shoots of lucky bamboo in the background would be cool. They would extend out of the water above the tank and really add another dimension to the whole set up. Now here is the dilema: For substrate I want nothing more than a thin (1/2") layer of fine white sand. There will also be driftwood ofcourse but no rocks. How can I arrange bamboo shoots to prevent them from falling over? From what I see, most of the people keep bamboo at home by placing small pebbles tightly around the root of the plant. I however would prefer something that would hole the bambo, yet enable me to clean around the base of the shoot without having to rearange a bunch of pebbles every time. Any ideas?

 

[RS2000]

if u have a canopy u could use fishing line or similar and tie them from the bamboo to a hook in the canopy to hold them up

 

[Dr Joe]

Make several small pots (with holes to hold the bamboo and no bottom) out of a mixture of the sand and epoxy so they look the same as the surroundings.

Or some other type of stand that you could cover with sand.

Dr Joe

.

 

[Stab]

Make several small pots (with holes to hold the bamboo and no bottom) out of a mixture of the sand and epoxy so they look the same as the surroundings.

Or some other type of stand that you could cover with sand.

Dr Joe

Yes, I thought about making a stand out of plexiglass

Can you please elaborate on the "several small pots" idea? I am trying to visualize what you wrote

 

[Dr Joe]

Picture a upside down flower pot with holes in the bottom and covered with sand.

Better?

 

[Stab]

Picture a upside down flower pot with holes in the bottom and covered with sand.

Better?

Yes!

 

[schaadrak]

Cover some short lengths of 2" PVC in silicone or epoxy and roll them in sand and/or pebbles.

 

[Ric Foster]

Why not weave fishing line in and out of enough bamboo to make a carpet out of it that would roll out along the back wall. Then you would'nt have anything at the bottom of each plant. Then just have enough room at the back of the glass tops to have a row of bamboo coming up through.

 

[fishdance]

How about a false background? Those plants dont need to be in water do they? Make a long planter box BEHIND the tank and grow them there. Fish wont be able to swim through the plants but it will still look great if you do it right. I do a similar thing with a real tank. I have a beautiful planted tropical tank complete with cardinals and an arowana in front. Most visitors dont even realise they are two seperate tanks.