You can try building a slanted "beach" with pvc eggcrate, build it so that it slants into the water, like a beach, place plastic pots on the land area where you want plants, be sure to keep them and the land part above the water level,(we'll get to that part next) then cover the whole thing with expanding foam, then when it drys fill it up with water to the desired level, mark the water level/"shore line" with a black marker, empty the water and let it dry, then use black silicone to glue gravel from the bottom of the "dry lake" to the top "shore line" then use black silicone to glue coco fiber from the shore line up, cover the pot so you cant see the outside parts, no need to do the inside as your plants will cover that once planted, what you wind up with is a kinda beach, when the whole thing dries plant your plants and place a small amount of the same type gravel used to build the "beach" in the "lake" section just as you would do a regular fish tank, youll see that it will blend in nicely with the glued in shore/beach, fill to the water line/"shore line" and whalla! coolest little "beach' ever! =)

If I choose to put driftwood in there and it's partly above and partly below water will it always mold? I really want to keep this as natural looking as possible...

Some mold may grow but will not survive if the circulation is good, and some driftwood is more likely to have mold grow on it, I used malaysian hardwood, its pretty mold resistant, and cypress too, grape vine on the other hand, grows mold like crazy! its a learn as you go process =)

Go over and see the www.blackjungle.com big four foot set up, they show you step by step a process similiar to the one I described in my last post.

Try this one instead =) http://blackjungle.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=2108

Thanks! I'll try to get some pictures up for further suggestions soon!