#ONFCorner | A Rainforest Between Land and Water: Inside Casa Lin’s Paludarium World

A Rainforest Between Land and Water

Some people bring a few plants into their homes.

Others build an entire rainforest.

Known affectionately as “Frog Dad,” Casa Lin grew up keeping salamanders and different species of fish. As work became increasingly demanding, the hobby gradually disappeared from his life.

Twelve years later, now a father of four, Casa finally found his way back to the world he had loved as a child—this time, bringing his children along with him.

It started with planted aquariums and small schooling fish.

Before long, however, he became fascinated by something that existed between two worlds: the paludarium, where terrestrial landscapes and aquatic environments coexist within the same enclosure.

For Casa, building a paludarium has never been about simply placing beautiful plants and animals inside a glass tank.

Where should an animal hide?

Where will a plant eventually grow?

Which leaves will become shelter?

How should the foreground, middle ground and background interact?

And from which angle might he catch a red-eyed crocodile skink sleeping—or hunting?

Every decision contributes to how this miniature rainforest will eventually live.

Over time, one ecosystem became another.

And slowly, nature began taking over the house.

What Is a Paludarium?

A paludarium is an enclosure that combines both terrestrial and aquatic environments, creating a transition between land and water within the same landscape.

Unlike a traditional aquarium, which is primarily aquatic, a paludarium may incorporate rocks, branches, mosses, tropical plants, caves and elevated terrain alongside its water area.

This makes it particularly suitable for creating environments inspired by streams, forest floors and tropical rainforests.

類型	主要環境	常見重點
水族缸 Aquarium	以水域為主	水草、魚類、水景
雨林缸 Vivarium / Terrarium	以陸域與高濕植物為主	苔蘚、熱帶植物、立體造景
水陸缸 Paludarium	陸地＋水域	植物、水景、生物棲息環境

Type	Main Environment	Common Features
Aquarium	Primarily aquatic	Aquatic plants, fish, underwater landscapes
Vivarium / Terrarium	Primarily terrestrial with high-humidity plants	Moss, tropical plants, dimensional landscapes
Paludarium	Combination of land and water	Plants, waterscapes, habitats for living organisms

Casa is particularly drawn to the third.

In his setups, the water is not simply decorative.

For red-eyed crocodile skinks, for example, he creates terrestrial hiding spaces while preserving accessible aquatic zones for movement and swimming.

Plants are selected and positioned with equal consideration.

Height, leaf shape, visual density, shelter and future growth all influence the final composition.

A convincing ecosystem is not simply one that looks like nature.

It begins with understanding why nature looks the way it does.

REASON | Why Aquascaping?

Fabian explains:

“I love aquascaping because creativity has no limits—whether in creating something new or facing new challenges. Every small ecosystem is unique, yet everything within it is deeply connected.”

That is also what makes aquascaping so compelling.

What Is Aquascaping?
Aquascaping is the art of composing aquatic plants, stones, driftwood, substrate, and aquatic life to create a natural and visually balanced landscape inside an aquarium.

It is more than simply planting aquatic plants in a tank.

Light, plant proportions, depth, materials, and the way plants continue to grow over time all influence the composition.

In that sense, an aquascape is never truly finished.

It is a living work that continues to evolve.

#INFLUENCE | Paludarium Design Is About Giving Every Living Thing Its Place

Casa has worked in design for many years, and that background strongly shapes the way he approaches his ecosystems.

“I have accumulated many perspectives through design. I tend to consider aesthetics, functionality and rationality together.”

The same principles apply inside a paludarium.

There is a foreground, a middle ground and a background.

Some plants establish visual focus.

Others create depth.

Their leaves compete for space and light, and as the plants mature, the composition inevitably changes.

When plants receive insufficient light, some species may develop stretched or weaker growth as they reach toward available light.

This means planting is not simply about filling empty space.

It is about creating relationships between light, plants, animals and spatial structure.

A Leaf Can Be More Than a Leaf
For Casa, even breeding behavior can influence how a habitat is designed.

Take Fleischmann’s glass frog (Hyalinobatrachium fleischmanni).

Glass frogs are known for depositing eggs on vegetation positioned above water. After hatching, the tadpoles fall into the aquatic environment below.

For an observer, a broad leaf might simply be part of the scenery.

For another species, it could be where an entirely new generation begins.

That distinction changes how Casa sees plants.

They are no longer merely decoration.

They are architecture.

Light Is Not Only About Making a Rainforest Brighter

Casa first discovered ONF for a simple reason: friends and professional aquascapers around him were already using the brand.

After using ONF lighting for nearly a year, what stayed with him most was the experience of controlling the lights through the app, the appearance of plants under natural-looking white light, and the growth he observed within his rainforest environments.

He particularly appreciates the way plant colors appear under the light.

If his experience with ONF could be condensed into one idea, it might be this:

A good light does not need to become the visual focus of an ecosystem. Its role is to allow the plants and animals to become the focus instead.

What Plants See Is Different From What Our Eyes See
One common misunderstanding about plant grow lights is assuming that a lamp that appears bright to people must automatically provide sufficient light for plants.

That is not necessarily the case.

Plants use light energy for photosynthesis, which means both the spectrum and the amount of usable light matter.

Two terms frequently appear when discussing plant lighting:

PAR — Photosynthetically Active Radiation

PAR refers to the range of light wavelengths commonly associated with photosynthesis.

PPFD — Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density

PPFD describes how many photosynthetically useful photons reach a given surface area each second.

In simpler terms:

PAR tells us which range of light plants can use.

PPFD helps describe how much of that light actually reaches the plant.

This is why perceived brightness alone cannot tell the entire story.

Distance from the fixture, coverage area, plant species and duration of exposure all influence the actual growing environment.

The better question is therefore not simply:

“Is this lamp bright enough?”

But:

“Is this light appropriate for the plants—and for the space I want to live in every day?”

#FASCINATION | Bringing a Rainforest Home Means Creating a Place to Slow Down

Casa describes one of his favorite moments:

“After a long day of work—or after being completely exhausted by the kids—I like having some time alone. I put on natural sounds and simply watch the animals living inside this little world we created. It is incredibly relaxing.”

This may be the hardest part of a paludarium to describe through specifications.

It is simultaneously an ecosystem and an interior landscape.

It requires maintenance, observation and knowledge.

Yet it can also become one of the quietest places in the home.

A meaningful interior does not always require another expensive piece of furniture.

Sometimes it is simply a leaf that is still growing.

A frog hidden underneath it.

And a light that appears at the same time each morning before slowly fading away at night.

#MOTIVATION | A Living Landscape Is Never Truly Finished

For Casa, creating ecosystems also provides a way to step away from his professional design work.

Ironically, he rarely feels that one of his projects is truly finished.

“Every time I am halfway through a setup, I come up with another idea. I always notice details that could be improved, so I bring those adjustments into the next project.”

That constant process of observation and refinement allows every enclosure to represent a slightly different stage of his thinking.

A living landscape is not a static decoration.

Plants grow.

Animals develop habits.

Light changes.

The relationships within the enclosure evolve.

A truly living landscape was never meant to remain exactly as it looked on the day it was finished.

#INSPIRATION | From Perfect Miniatures to the Beautiful Disorder of Nature

Casa often looks to overseas websites, videos and social media for inspiration.

His preferences, however, continue to evolve.

“I used to enjoy miniature landscapes. Later, I became more interested in realistic rainforest corners. Now I prefer something slightly more chaotic—something that feels lush and closer to an actual native habitat.”

It is an interesting progression.

When people first enter the world of aquascaping or terrarium design, there is often a desire to control everything.

Every plant has a position.

Every branch has an angle.

Every proportion is intentional.

But the more time one spends observing nature, the more attractive its apparent disorder becomes.

Fallen leaves.

Moss.

Overlapping roots.

Plants growing beyond the boundaries originally planned for them.

What appears chaotic is often simply another form of ecological order.

Sophisticated naturalism does not always come from perfect organization. Sometimes it begins when we allow living things to leave their own traces behind.

#ONFCORNER | When the Rainforest Begins to Take Over the House

Today, Casa’s ONF corners are scattered throughout his home.

The living room contains a large bioactive enclosure designed primarily around larger frog species. Sitting down in the space means occasionally witnessing them emerge, move and hunt.

In the bedroom, a Botanica ecosystem bottle creates a quieter botanical corner.

And Casa laughs when he describes the result:

“My house has gradually been occupied by all of my animals.”

Perhaps that is exactly what #ONFCorner is meant to document.

We are not simply interested in which lamp someone uses.

We are interested in what happens to an ordinary living room, study or bedroom after plants, animals and light become part of everyday life.

For Casa Lin, that space became a rainforest suspended between land and water.

And, perhaps more importantly, a place where he can return to himself after a busy day.

#ONFCORNER | When the Rainforest Begins to Take Over the House

Today, Casa’s ONF corners are scattered throughout his home.

The living room contains a large bioactive enclosure designed primarily around larger frog species. Sitting down in the space means occasionally witnessing them emerge, move and hunt.

In the bedroom, a Botanica ecosystem bottle creates a quieter botanical corner.

And Casa laughs when he describes the result:

“My house has gradually been occupied by all of my animals.”

Perhaps that is exactly what #ONFCorner is meant to document.

We are not simply interested in which lamp someone uses.

We are interested in what happens to an ordinary living room, study or bedroom after plants, animals and light become part of everyday life.

For Casa Lin, that space became a rainforest suspended between land and water.

And, perhaps more importantly, a place where he can return to himself after a busy day.

Bringing Nature Home Does Not Mean Recreating an Entire Forest

We cannot truly bring a rainforest into our homes.

But through a leaf, a stream of water, a hidden cave and carefully considered light, we can begin to understand more closely how different forms of life share the same environment.

Twelve years after stepping away from the hobby he loved as a child, Casa Lin eventually found his way back.

Now, he shares it with his four children.

From planted aquariums to aquascapes, and eventually to miniature rainforest ecosystems where land and water meet.

Perhaps this is what an #ONFCorner really is:

Finding one place in your home where the life you care about can unfold—

and choosing to stop for a moment each day to watch it happen.