Hmm. I'll see what it does for a few weeks and if it starts to bend over, I'll trim it down a bit. Picked up some Flourish and the Seachem tabs. I had API root tabs, but I get better growth with the Seachem.
Byron, I believe you've mentioned across the forum that Excel contains some sort of toxin. In what sort of scenario would Excel be safe to use? I'm assuming plant-only tanks, but perhaps there is something else?
I would expect the leaves to grow fairly erect. The leaves on my lotus do until they reach the surface, they they begin winding hither and yon. What is your GH? Iron might be useful too...I was just noticing in the photos the yellowish green of the leaves.
Excel (Seachem), like the similar CO2 Booster (API), is glutaraldehyde and water. Glutaraldehyde is a powerful disinfectant that is used to sterilize instruments in hospitals, in embalming fluid, anit-freeze, and to kill bacteria in ship ballasts when they travel from one ocean to another. It carries a product caution for inhalation and skin irritation in humans. I accept that many use it, but I have a basic approach that such potentially-dangerous chemicals have no useful purpose being dumped into an aquarium. Obviously there are considerable risks. Even when used according to directions, it usually kills some plants like Vallisneria. It has the capacity to kill bacteria, plants and fish. I find it very difficult to accept that using such a chemical will not have some detrimental effect on the fish or the biological system.
I have never found a need to add CO2, but if I did want to expand from my basic low-tech natural planted tanks Ito high-tech I would much rather go with diffused CO2 which is natural. There is quite a quantity of natural CO2 occurring in most fish tanks, certainly sufficient for my plants' requirements.
Byron.