Diana Walstad's "Ecology of the Planted Aquarium"

[RonWill]

Dear all,

I'm interested in buying the book, "Ecology of the Planted Aquarium: A Practical Manual and Scientific Treatise for the Home Aquarist" by Diana L. Walstad.

Amazon.com seems to have better prices over other online retailers but I'd prefer to get it local. Anyone knows who stocks this title?

For those who own both the June 2003 and January 2000 editions, is there any major updates?

[TanVincent]

I just bought the 2nd edition. The difference is a 2 page worth of pictures on the front. As for the content, I am still digesting. Got a signed copy from diana herself.

If you are interested, i can get her to send another copy signed

Cheers
Vincent

[RonWill]

Vincent,
IMHO, an autographed copy inspires and adds a personal touch of commitment to the literary work. Yes, I'd like to buy a copy (yes, signed please :wink: )

Is it appropriate to know the cost, in case there're others interested and want to share shipping.

Let me know how to remit payment.

BTW, are you the same Vincent who bought my set of 4 Amano books?... just a feeling.

[TanVincent]

first, i am not the vincent that bought your book. I dun fancy amano anyway I personally like luis navarro.

Anyway, I paid USD14 for the shipping. The book is USD30.

Cheers
Vincent

[hobbit6003]

Hi Ron,

Haha, perhaps an autographed copy bring about a kind of a placebo effect?

Anyway, I've gotten the Jan 2000 edition. If you don't mind, I can lend it to you first.

It is a good book, which provides lots of info on the fundamentals of aquabotany, with good technical info, IMHO.

Cheers,

Kenny

[dts_spawn]

Can anyone lend them to me? i tried the library so many times but always not avalible. but of course, priority given to ron.

[RonWill]

It is a good book, which provides lots of info on the fundamentals of aquabotany, with good technical info, IMHO.

Kenny, thanks for the loan. It looks well-written and will probably keep me occupied for a while. Can I safe-keep it until my copy arrives?

Vincent, is it possible for Diana to ship the book via USPS's Economy Surface (Letter), which is more affordable. If that's not a problem, I'll order a copy for personal reference. Not sure if anyone else would be interested but let me know how to proceed from here.

Willy, I'm not at liberty to loan out another person's property. Better you check with Kenny or better still, order our own... share costs and we can even do Air.

[TanVincent]

Hi,

I am not sure if it is possible to ship by usps priority. Let me check with her. If there are anyone who wants to buy a book, please do let me know and maybe combine shipping will be cheaper.

Cheers
Vincent

[dts_spawn]

Willy, I'm not at liberty to loan out another person's property. Better you check with Kenny or better still, order our own... share costs and we can even do Air.

haha.. i know.. i was asking kenny. and i'm just a poor little student who is damn broke.. sorry..

[RonWill]

Willy, I don't know who is poorer, a student receiving pocket money or a father of 3 with home mortgage to service. Still, that does not excuse me from addressing the person to which the posting is directed.

Meanwhile, if you want, I do have a keyboard with working CAPs key... and the first letter in a person's name is usually capitalized.

Vincent, thanks for doing this on my behalf. Will you be ordering directly from Diana herself? I've been flipping through Kenny's copy and it's a keeper!

[FC]

Willy,

If you find "Caps Lock" troublesome, I have a left "Shift" key to spare since I use only the right "Shift" key. I sound offensive but so is your lazy typing.

I would appreciate if you make an effort to change that.

[FC]

Ronnie,

It was interesting to see your tanks, the way to handle them reminds me of what I read in Diana's book. You are already practicing her idealogies. May I ask again, how do you keep plants with 1 cm thick of gravel (there is no base fertiliser, right?)? *amazed*

[TanVincent]

Vincent, thanks for doing this on my behalf. Will you be ordering directly from Diana herself? I've been flipping through Kenny's copy and it's a keeper!

Hey Ron,

I'll be ordering firectly from her.

Cheers
Vincent

[RonWill]

May I ask again, how do you keep plants with 1 cm thick of gravel (there is no base fertiliser, right?)?

Freddy, with such a thin substrate bed, there's no room for additional fertilizers.

Newly introduced plants will have their roots spread out and weighed down with rocks. As new roots develope and digs into the substrate, the rocks can be removed without having the plant float up.

I did the same thing to the Barclaya longifolia you collected, as well as that thick jungle of Vallisneria. It was an experiment to try achieve a massive network of roots, becoming a 'living and active' base. Sometimes, when the roots hit bottom, these grow out of the gravel and into the water column... looking like mangroves.

The 4th pic in the beginning of the thread, with the AUS Gold, has roots popping out everywhere.

[hammy]

Hi all,

Have I missed the boat? :P Has the order been made yet? If not, can I be included in the 'list-of-buyers' as well?

And Freddy, what is your personal take on the book?

[PohSan]

Hi Ronnie and Vincent,
I am poor too but I would like to buy the book also. Please include me in the list. Any kind of shipment will be fine with me.Thanks.

Regards,
Ong Poh San

[TanVincent]

hmm...

how about we allow till end of the week (friday) to consolidate the number of books to order. Then I will forward the order to Diana and then we shall see how much each will have to fork out. Sounds cool?

Cheers
Vincent

[FC]

Selwyn,

This Diana's book is very interesting but just like any books/theory/beleive, it is subject to individual perspective.

What I like about her version of handling planted tank is the care less regime. However, I am sceptical about putting away CO2. CO2 definately improve plants in term of plant's colour, size and texture.

Her books are easy to understand in the beginning but start to turn very dry when she touch on bilogical and chemistry part which readers with good foundation on them to appreciate her analysis.

[dts_spawn]

Willy, I don't know who is poorer, a student receiving pocket money or a father of 3 with home mortgage to service. Still, that does not excuse me from addressing the person to which the posting is directed.

Meanwhile, if you want, I do have a keyboard with working CAPs key... and the first letter in a person's name is usually capitalized.

Haha.. Sorry.. Let me rephrase myself.. I'm just a student taking hard earned money from my parents which I don't not want to waste. The money I have now are not mine and I feel that I do not have the right to spend so much of their money. I know how hard my parents work and I do not want them to see me spending so much of their money. You are also a father and I'm also very sure you won't want your children to spend your hard earned money like nobody's business. By borrowing the book, I just want to know more about planted tanks and also trying to save my parent's money. As they say, "it is easier to save a dollar than to earn one" And as for the second part, I'm also sorry as i didn't know about such ruling and now know, i will abid by it. i'm here just to learn and i don't mean to offend anyone. Sorry, Kenny.

[hammy]

hmm...

how about we allow till end of the week (friday) to consolidate the number of books to order. Then I will forward the order to Diana and then we shall see how much each will have to fork out. Sounds cool?

Cheers
Vincent

Hi Vincent,

COOL!!