Light source to shape your scape - By StanChung the Master.

Using Lighting as a Design Element for Aquascaping
The intensity of the lighting & photoperiod[duration it's on] can affect the shape of the plant's growth & colour.
Knowing this can help you 'design' the plants to your objectives.
Takashi Amano was one of the first if not the first to segregate plants into Shade and Brighty[sun loving] plants.
I'd like to add there are some versatile plants that can do well[look good] in both low intensity lighting & high intensity lighting. I call them the Midty- just kidding- I'll just use The Adaptables  


*I'll be using some short forms such as
LIL-Low Intensity Lighting_______________eg- 100-120W+ for a standard 3X1.5X1.5 feet tank. 
MIL-Medium Intensity Lighting__________eg- 140-180W+ for a standard 3X1.5X1.5 feet tank. 
MHIL-Medium High Intensity Lighting___eg- 200-220W for a standard 3X1.5X1.5 feet tank.
HIL-High Intensity Lighting_____________eg- 250W+ for a standard 3X1.5X1.5 feet tank.
[these are my definitions and depending on the quality/type of the bulbs, reflectors & water clarity- your mileage may vary GREATLY!] For example 120W is not low if you use super efficient LED lighting.
The above would refer mostly to fluorescent lighting and MH/HQI[metal halide & modified metal halide-Mercury Quartz Iodide] combinations.


Ok let's dig in to the topic-

SHADE PLANTS
Shade plants include Ferns, Mosses, Cryptocoryne, Anubias and other dark green leaved plant species.
If you're making a tank for shade plants- LIL to MIL is sufficient but if you have a lot of driftwood blocking lighting from reaching the bottom then you might not be able to grow carpet plants like dwarf hairgrasses in the shade.
Although shade plants need less light to survive, it will actually look much better in my opinion with MIL to MHIL. With HIL, mosses tend to turn yellowish and ferns close to the light will look bleached almost.

Java fern sp, Spiky moss- Grown in MHIL, 3ft tank, 8 hours. Notice the Java fern sp has leaves that are nice bright green & pointed upwards due to high oxygen saturation in the leaves. Spiky moss produce fronds that are compact and shaped nicely. Weeping moss doesn't even look like weeping moss if kept in LIL or in the shade.

Bolbitis heudelotii- I read a well known researcher said that at MHIL-HIL, their leaves 'burned'. I found this to be untrue.
Just look at this picture- 6X36W for a 3ft tank-MHIL.

The leaves are so fully oxygenated they point upwards.
I've even tried HIL- Their leaves are paler but no burning.
This would be a design element knowledge you can use to photograph your tank for posterity or Aquascaping competitions. 

IMO the leaves burned because they were adapting to a new tank-all ferns do, so just trim off all the large leaves and just use the rhizomes when planting.

Till Next post....