I believe that an interest in fish, or other animals, is a natural for hobbyists who have an interest in plants as well. Seems an appreciation for the diverse life in nature goes hand in hand. Ive had aquariums since I was a child. I now find myself with 12 freshwater aquariums and a 75 gal saltwater which houses Seahorses and lots of different types of Macro algaes which are beautiful saltwater plants. My interests have narrowed into breeding and developing rare strains of Swordtails, and keeping freshwater shrimp. Although, all the freshwater tanks are heavily planted and I have amassed quite a collection of aquatic mosses and semi rare aquatic plants as well (forever the insatiable collector!) All of it is for fun and enjoyment, although I have sold to LFS and online. Im currently working on developing 3 new swordtail color/fin forms.
Last year I bought a pair of young Platinum Halfmoon Bettas and put them in a 10 gal where I grow some variegated forms of Anubias emersed in only about 2 inches of water. I went on vacation for a week and when I came back I noticed something very tiny darting around in the gravel. I couldnt believe it when I got my spy glass and saw the tank was full of baby bettas! They had spawned and there was enough plants and places to hide that the parents hadnt managed to eat too many of them. I took the parents out immediately and the fry had managed to find enough live zooplankton to live on while I was gone! At the end of about 4 months time I had 6 females and 4 males. Here are links to see some of my tanks if you like; (In the first link, under the photo titled "Poison Dart Frogs" you can see the tank and father where they spawned!) Click on the first photo, then it will open larger; then just click on the arrow to the right to move to the next photo>>ENJOY!
aquariums pictures by miamimax - Photobucket
Seahorse Tank pictures by miamimax - Photobucket
One of the "baby" males below;