Any ideas why my plant leaves are so tiny?

[jonatheber]

I have a fairly new live plant aquarium. I decided to go "all in" and I bought a fluval light that is on 75% or so for abut 8 hours a day (I have the blue light down at 8% or so, the rest around 75%) I also treat the 46g tank with 5 "squirts" of Thrive twice a week. I've been hesitant to turn up the light ... when I first got it I had the setting brighter and the algae was out of control

Most of the plants are clearly growing vertically (about an inch a day, actually in the case of the Anacharis). The others are doing ok. I can't figure out why the leaves are growing so SMALL, though. I'd think with the light and the fertilizer the leaves would be more ... lush?

Any suggestions?

 

[Sgooosh]

I have a fairly new live plant aquarium. I decided to go "all in" and I bought a fluval light that is on 75% or so for abut 8 hours a day (I have the blue light down at 8% or so, the rest around 75%) I also treat the 46g tank with 5 "squirts" of Thrive twice a week. I've been hesitant to turn up the light ... when I first got it I had the setting brighter and the algae was out of control

Most of the plants are clearly growing vertically (about an inch a day, actually in the case of the Anacharis). The others are doing ok. I can't figure out why the leaves are growing so SMALL, though. I'd think with the light and the fertilizer the leaves would be more ... lush?

Any suggestions?

No, the wild anacharis near my area is just like that, some are thicker but i think you have to wait

 

[Fishmanic]

Perhaps @PheonixKingZ can comment on this. He has lots of experience with anacharis.

 

[StevenF]

I'd think with the light and the fertilizer the leaves would be more ... lush?

you are assuming the fertilizer has all the nutrients your plants need in the correct ratios. It doesn't. most fertilizer have a lot of some nutrients and for others very little or the nutrients simply not in the fertilizer. Based on everything I have seen in my aquarium small leaves can indicate a possible zinc deficiency.

Zinc deficiency results in stunted growth and small leaves (‘little leaf’).There is general yellowing of older leaves (bottom of plant). The rest of the plant is often light green. Symptoms seen as stunted plants showing a bleaching that can spread to the veins but the midrib and leaf edges remain green. Symptoms appear on older leaves first (unlike sulfur deficiency).

from;https://edu.rsc.org/download?ac=12604

About the only solution is to buy some zinc sulfate and make solution of it. And then add a measured amount of that to your tank when you add your regular fertilizer. You can use this fertilizer calculator to figure that out.

 

[mcordelia]

This is from terrestrial growth light experience, but I wonder if less brightness with more time (and maybe adding some of the blue back) would change the leaf size?
In my basement I have an indoor vegetable garden, and the plants that are directly under the light are shorter with redder leaves, and the ones that are on the edges farther away from the light have longer, sometimes bigger leaves that are less red. The counterintuitive aspect of this is that your anacharis is growing in height vertically with relatively long internodes, so that would almost suggest that it would be "stretching" to get to the light, so in that case I would advise more intense light at a shorter duration. I know I basically just told you to go both ways, but the point I am trying to make here is that in my indoor garden, I notice a difference even 1 ft away from the grow light, so I can imagine that playing around with the light could yield different results for you.

you could do a monthlong experiment and try it both ways, maybe 1/22-2/4 you decrease the intensity and increase the duration by a meaningful amount (maybe try 50% and add 1.5h), and then from 2/4-2/11 you go back to your current settings to "reset", and then from 2/11-2/25 you increase the intensity and decrease the duration. During the experiment I would take pictures on odd-numbered calendar days to stay consistent, and see what happens?

 

[PheonixKingZ]

The Anacharis you have in there, is the "Narrow Leaf" variety, which means the leaves will not be as lush as the "Broad Leaf" variety.

(Fertilizers will not help them get any more lush.)

 

[Sgooosh]

The Anacharis you have in there, is the "Narrow Leaf" variety, which means the leaves will not be as lush as the "Broad Leaf" variety.

(Fertilizers will not help them get any more lush.)

What is mine? I dont know since it was in a river a looong time ago, grown it a lot

 

[Sgooosh]

Sorry the ohoto didnt send

 

[PheonixKingZ]

If it was in a river, it most likely the "wild" variety, which means it will naturally have shorter leaves. If you want Anancharis that has lush, bushy leaves, I would suggest looking online, or at your LFS.

(In my experince, if the Anacharis is truly a broad leaf variety and it does not have bushy leaves, then you have planted it to crowded to some decor or other plant. That is just what I have found in my years of growing Anacharis)

 

[Sgooosh]

If it was in a river, it most likely the "wild" variety, which means it will naturally have shorter leaves. If you want Anancharis that has lush, bushy leaves, I would suggest looking online, or at your LFS.

(In my experince, if the Anacharis is truly a broad leaf variety and it does not have bushy leaves, then you have planted it to crowded to some decor or other plant. That is just what I have found in my years of growing Anacharis)

the big stem i propogated the kids off was a big broad leaf one i found floating along and i caught it. i think its broad or at least semi broad...

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Another thing I though of, was if the plant was reared in cold water. Does the tank it's in have a heater?