Plant advice

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kevfiz

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Hi can anyone give me advice on my plants? What do I need to do to give my plants a boost? Or are they ok and just taking there course. Hope the photo is ok.
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Most aquarium plants like a bit of light and if you only have the light on for a couple of hours a day, they struggle. If the light doesn't have a high enough wattage they also struggle. Try having the tank lights on for 10-12 hours a day.

If you get lots of green algae then reduce the light by an hour a day and monitor the algae over the next 2 weeks.
If you don't get any green algae on the glass then increase the lighting period by an hour and monitor it.
If you get a small amount of algae then the lighting time is about right.

Some plants will close their leaves up when they have had sufficient light. Ambulia, Hygrophilas and a few others close their top set of leaves first, then the next set and so on down the stem. When you see this happening, wait an hour after the leaves have closed up against the stem and then turn lights off.

Some good plants to try include Ambulia, Hygrophila polysperma, H. ruba/ rubra, Elodia (during summer, but don't buy it in winter because it falls apart), Hydrilla, common Amazon sword plant, narrow Vallis, Water Sprite (Ceratopteris thalictroides/ cornuta).

The Water Sprite normally floats on the surface but can also be planted in the substrate. The other plants should be planted in the gravel.

If you add an iron based aquarium plant fertiliser, it will help most aquarium plants do well. The liquid iron based fertilisers tend to be better than the tablet forms, although you can push the tablets under the roots of plants and that works well.

I use Sera Florena liquid plant fertiliser but there are other brands too. I have an Iron test kit and use it to monitor the iron levels in the water. You want it at 1ppm.

Do not bother adding carbon fertiliser to the tank because they are not necessary.
 
The tank gets plenty of daylight all day although I angle the blinds so as not to have direct sunlight. The 4 hours with the light turned on in the evening. Is that enough combined light?
 
4 hours of artificial lighting and a bit of room light is probably not enough for most plants.

Sunlight coming through a window is not going to do much for plants in an aquarium unless the tank is right next to the window and the light is bright. With the blinds angled to prevent direct light hitting the tank, it's just room light and that's not much.

In post #2 I tell you how some plants close their leaves up when they have had sufficient light. Watch your Ambulia plant and it will tell you when they have had enough light.

I use to have my tank lights on for about 14 hours a day.
 
It is right next to window no sunlight but a very bright room. Even in the winter. How many watts per litre should the light be?
 
It is right next to window no sunlight but a very bright room. Even in the winter. How many watts per litre should the light be?

Daylight is difficult to control because it varies with the weather, time of day, time of year. Overhead tank lighting is the best light for a planted tank because you can control it (intensity and duration, spectrum).

Watts is the measurement of the amount of energy a bulb or tube or LED requires to produce the light. Watts is not an indication of intensity except when comparing identical bulbs/tubes. The manufacture of bulbs, tubes and LED's determines the intensity and spectrum of that light.

It might help if you can provide us with data on your existing light. From the photo in post #1 the spectrum seems good (plants require red and blue light to photosynthesize, and red is the more important of the two; adding green to the mix does improve plant response, and these three colours can provide a very good colour rendition as well, which is why I am suggesting the spectrum here may be good).

The duration depends upon the intensity; plants require a fairly specific light intensity to photosynthesize, and if this is not provided the duration cannot make up for it. Algae will take advantage of too weak or too intense light so finding the balance in the intensity and duration for the needs of your plants--which must balance the available nutrients--is the goal. Some tanks only need six or seven hours, some more. It depends upon the light, the plant species and numbers, and the nutrient supply. [Are you using any plant additive now?]
 
Is it just me, or does that say “18 watts”? That’s is not enough light for the tank.
 

|We need to know the tank dimensions (length/width/height). This may well be suitable light. As I explained previously, watts is only the measure of energy a tube uses to produce the light, it is not an indicator of the intensity (brightness) of that light.

As this is fluorescent tube light, these are made in standard sizes/wattages. So a tube of "x" length will be 18 watts (maybe 20, depending upon factors I won't get into). Once we have the tank dimensions I will have a better idea. The spectrum is good as I suspected.
 
The tank is 2.6 foot in width just under a foot in length and just over a foot in height
 
The tank is 2.6 foot in width just under a foot in length and just over a foot in height

That is close to a 20g long. I would stay with the present lighting and see how things go. The only way you could increase intensity is with a new fixture, as the tube length is related to the wattage as I mentioned previously. A new fixture can get expensive, and this one might work. Plants requiring low and moderate lighting are you best bet.

Are you using any plant fert/additives now?
 
Tropica Premium nutrition plant care, added every week after my water change.
 
Tropica Premium nutrition plant care, added every week after my water change.

I cannot find all the ingredients, but their site says micro nutrients, so let's assume it is OK. I use Seachem's Flourish Comprehensive Supplement for the Planted Aquarium which has all required ingredients, so you might consider changing when the Tropica is finished.

Another thing with swords, a substrate tab works wonders. Seachem's Flourish Tabs is my choice, one next to the roots replaced every 3-4 months. This makes a big difference with swords as they are heavy feeders, and another benefit of these tabs is they do not release nutrients into the upper water column so less algae nuisance risks.

Use less rather than more of the Tropica, as with any fert; the light is not too intense so any imbalance with nutrients will be more algae advantages.
 
Good morning I don't know if I am doing the right thing but I decided to leave the light oon from 630am and I won't get home until 7pm tonight. Also I was thinking of setting the light on a timer for 6 hours from say 530am until 1130am and then when I get home from work for another 5 hours. Will that be enough daily light or does it have to be constant light for 10 or 11 hours?
 

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