Moving to fertilised plants

[Aussie_Bristle]

Hey all

So yesterday I culled a lot of my jungle Val and have a good lot of area to play with in the tank. I have never had to use Fertilizers at all, just have high success growing or Val, elodea, my ambulia is also thriving but because of all the val coverage in the middle of the ambulia is a bit brown due to not enough lighting but should bounce back I hope. Anyway, I’m looking at some different variety of plants but not sure how to go with it. As I look at more higher tech plants to add in the tank it’s recommended to use Fertilizers etc which is okay but is this going to throw my whole tank parameters out of whack, harm my fish etc? I have read that you can overdose the tank on Fertilizer. Just want to get some advice before I start looking into this more

 

[AquaBarb]

It wont harm you fish or send your parameters out of whack (as long as you dont over dose)

Flourish Comprehensive supplement is what i use for my floating plants. I use half the recommend dose once a week the day after a water change. (Highly recommend this if you can get it) i tried a Fertilizer which was produced by Tetra and it wasnt half as good.

Root tabs for your substrate plants i put in every 2 to 3 months or so. Im not so fussy with brand names with these, ive had success with most ive tried but Seachem Flourish tabs are about the best. (expensive here in the uk tho)

 

[Aussie_Bristle]

I would only go the quality fertiliser too but obviously I have never used anything so abit of a step up for me here so a little worry is understandable I suppose.

 

[AquaBarb]

Totally understanderable You will see the improvements they will make to your plants tho and in turn the whole tank including your fish will benefit

 

[Aussie_Bristle]

I would like a bit of colour, like reds etc pretty much anything apart from green as that’s all my plants now. Have you got some suggestions at all?

 

[Aussie_Bristle]

And what about fertiliser in the shrimp tank, Would it be okay for them too?

 

[AquaBarb]

And what about fertiliser in the shrimp tank, Would it be okay for them too?

Im not sure all ferts are shrimp safe so id check the instructions before you buy but Flourish Comprehensive supplement i use is fine with my Amanos

 

[AquaBarb]

I would like a bit of colour, like reds etc pretty much anything apart from green as that’s all my plants now. Have you got some suggestions at all?

Cryptocorynes have some nice, pinks, reds, browns and different other shades. Some will need Co2 so again look at the care sheet before you buy.

I dont run Co2 and have several crypts. Nice plants. Ludwigia Repens is another to look into (deep reds)

 

[Aussie_Bristle]

Cryptocorynes have some nice, pinks, reds, browns and different other shades. Some will need Co2 so again look at the care sheet before you buy.

I dont run Co2 and have several crypts. Nice plants. Ludwigia Repens is another to look into (deep reds)

Perfect thank you for all your help

 

[seangee]

Be wary of just adding ferts. Each tank has its own unique chemistry and, as we know, not all water is equal. Heavy root feeders probably will need supplementing, but it sounds like your water is already providing a pretty good balance. Each of my tanks gets a different dose of liquid ferts established by trial and error. One of these dies not get any ferts

 

[Aussie_Bristle]

Be wary of just adding ferts. Each tank has its own unique chemistry and, as we know, not all water is equal. Heavy root feeders probably will need supplementing, but it sounds like your water is already providing a pretty good balance. Each of my tanks gets a different dose of liquid ferts established by trial and error. One of these dies not get any ferts

Thank you.. yeah I have been pretty lucky to have the plants that I have now grow so well. Thank you I will also take this into consideration too

 

[Salty&Onion]

I use Tetra Planta Min or something like that and my anacharis grows like a weed. For root tabs I use Tropica Nutrition Capsules.

 

[Byron]

Something that has not yet been mentioned in this thread is the aspect of balance that is crucial in a fish tank with plants. I am referring to the light/nutrient balance. Different plant species have differing light needs, from bright high-light down to low-light. The rate of normal growth is the indicator.

Light has three aspects: intensity, spectrum and then duration. The latter you can obviously control, but it willnot make up for insufficient intensity or inadequate spectrum. Intensity from high (bright) for faster growing plants down to low for slower growing species along with the required spectrum is the first thing to sort out. Plants require red and blue light to photosynthesize, and green added to the red and blue does improve their growth response. A Kelvin rating in the 5000K to 6500K range is what you want.

Duration depends upon having the afore-mentioned intensity/spectrum sorted out for the plant species, and nutrient availability to balance. Too much light, too little light, too much fertilizer or too little fertilizer--any of these can throw out the balance and cause problem algae.

 

[Aussie_Bristle]

Something that has not yet been mentioned in this thread is the aspect of balance that is crucial in a fish tank with plants. I am referring to the light/nutrient balance. Different plant species have differing light needs, from bright high-light down to low-light. The rate of normal growth is the indicator.

Light has three aspects: intensity, spectrum and then duration. The latter you can obviously control, but it willnot make up for insufficient intensity or inadequate spectrum. Intensity from high (bright) for faster growing plants down to low for slower growing species along with the required spectrum is the first thing to sort out. Plants require red and blue light to photosynthesize, and green added to the red and blue does improve their growth response. A Kelvin rating in the 5000K to 6500K range is what you want.

Duration depends upon having the afore-mentioned intensity/spectrum sorted out for the plant species, and nutrient availability to balance. Too much light, too little light, too much fertilizer or too little fertilizer--any of these can throw out the balance and cause problem algae.

Thank you Byron. I run a 36W blue/ white led and also a 10.0 UVB light now in the tank. Obviously the plants I have now have thrived in these conditions for over a year now without any problems. I do get a bit of black beard algae on the tops of the Val when it is on long lengths which I’m not to fussed as I trim every few weeks due to the rapid grow. Would you suggest that I change lighting or is there plants that are suitable for this kind of lighting? I’m happy if they are slow growers, just want health and survival at this rate and abit of colour. But to achieve colour and health it comes down to lighting and the right nutrients

 

[Byron]

Thank you Byron. I run a 36W blue/ white led and also a 10.0 UVB light now in the tank. Obviously the plants I have now have thrived in these conditions for over a year now without any problems. I do get a bit of black beard algae on the tops of the Val when it is on long lengths which I’m not to fussed as I trim every few weeks due to the rapid grow. Would you suggest that I change lighting or is there plants that are suitable for this kind of lighting? I’m happy if they are slow growers, just want health and survival at this rate and abit of colour. But to achieve colour and health it comes down to lighting and the right nutrients

I provided that background because I have no way of knowing your level of understanding, and the light/nutrient balance is key in planted tanks. You need to find out the spectrum of the present lighting, if you can. LED white light is often high in the blue but very low in the red. While some plants may manage, others might not, especially red leaf plants which were mentined previously. The colour of plant leaves is due to the light being reflected by the surface; green leaves reflect green light, red leaves reflect red light. As red is necessary to good photosynthesis, it needs to be even higher with red leaf plants. Usually we refer to this as more intensity in the light, because that will increase the red light if the tube/bulb/diodes have the necessary red to begin with.