Plants Are Dying

[hiyamoose]

I have a 20 gallon long with platys, gouramis, tetras and the 2 frogs my 5 y/o son insisted he needed. Good snail population, though they appear different (darker, rounder shell with bigger bodies) than the snail population that suddenly died off a few months ago. Gravel substrate and lots of it getting me at @ 1.5 lbs/gallon. No heater. Running 20w T8 life-glo flourescent from @ 7:30 am to 8 pm. This tank's been up and running 1 yr+ since transferring from a 10 gallon.

The plant success has been inconsistent. I have an anubia (18 months+ now) that is spreading well, and getting a bit too much light with some algae forming on some leaves. Got 2 amazon swords 2 months ago giving it some shade and growing well. Elodea is also growing well, but somewhat thin for some stems. Not bad though overall. Just put in some valisneria, which seems alright so far.

Problem plants are fanwort (pieces now are falling off the stem), moneywort (completely screwed and almost down to stem after trimming), and another leaf plant (green with white spotted pattern) that is just managing to hang on. In an effort to save the last 2, I have moved them toward the front of the tank, so that they are not directly beneath the light, though I thought they were good to go in brightly lit tanks.

I need advice on how to save these dying plants. Am I running too little light? Need heat? I am not adding CO2, and can't believe that would be the problem if some of the plants are clearly thriving. Do I need to dose with supplements, and if so what supplements? I am not a total newb, but am getting very frustrated.

Any help is appreciated.

 

[ian]

why arn't you running a heater? are you somewhere hot?

I would agree, that you need to start dosing ferts and maybe some liquid C02 (easycarbo/flourish excel), if you're in the UK, then i would recommend Tropica Plant Nutrition plus as a fert.

I would also turn your photo period down to around 8 hours, plants don't benifit from that length of a photo period. You will se a decrease in algae as well.

 

[hiyamoose]

I'm in Southern California, along the coast. Stays cool (at least this year so far).

Thanks. I will give that a shot.

Also, how often should I be cleaning the gravel substrate or should I not do that?

Can anybody recommend what fert to be using?

 

[mtv8dmarine]

Hi Hiyamoose and welcome to the forum.

I live in SoCal as well. Inland though...Rancho Cucamonga actually. I feel your pain with water temps in the summer. As long as your water temp stays in the 70s without a heater you're ok but I'm sure you're aware of that.

Gravel cleaning should be done weekly to biweekly depending on the bioload and feeding of the fish. I personally siphon mine once a week just to keep things as stable as possible.

I use an in gravel fert I get from aquariumplants.com out in South Dakota. Good people, great plants. They've bought my business by being good. But, you can find in gravel ferts in a local fish store. I use in gravel for my rooted plants, and dose with API Leaf Zone for my tied down plants just to cover what may not leach into the water table from the fert tabs. We cannot get TPN+ in the states but you can dose Flourish Excel which is an organic liquid carbon to fulfill any CO2 needs of the plants. Obviously, oxygen is already present. =) It's just about finding the stuff locally. Otherwise, amazon.com and numerous online places will carry it for web order. I dose Excel every other day.

Like stated above, I would reduce your photo period to around 8 hours. I know it's a pain because we tend to turn the lights on when we go to work only to have to turn them off when we get home and we miss watching our fish but it's best for the plants and to reduce algae build up getting out of hand. The other option may be to turn the lights on when you and the kids get home so that everyone can enjoy it. Then turn it off when you go to bed provided it can give at least 6 hours of light to the plants. Otherwise, they do make timers as an option.

 

[RadaR]

Gravel cleaning should be done weekly to biweekly depending on the bioload and feeding of the fish.

Provide enough flow in the tank and gravel vaccuming shouldnt be an issue. The current will be strong enough to prevent debris from falling the the ground. If it does then simply hoover over the gravel.
This good flow also helps in delivering nutrients and CO2 to the plants and eliminate deadspots which algae love.
As the others have said, your light is on for far too long. Get a timer and set it for 8hours a day.
With 20W over 20gallon you shouldnt need CO2 however if the plants show signs of carbon deficiency then by all means dose Seachem Excel daily.

For a quick lesson into the world of planted tanks, have a read.

 

[hiyamoose]

Can somebody describe what I would be seeing if it is a CO2 deficient tank versus the results of insufficient fert? And, if I go with a tab fert, can anybody recommend a specific brand that I should be using? There are tons of fish in there, so only a micro is likely needed.

Tested the water yesterday as well. Everything looks good. Nitrates are approx 20-30 ppm though.

 

[ian]

If there is a c02 deficiency in the aqaurium, you'll be seeing slow growth to no growth. In a higher lit tank you will see varoius algae outbreaks. You can also see abnormal plant growth. If a tank is fert (depending on different elements)you'll se various things wrong with plants.

have a read of this

http/www.theplantedtank.co.uk/deficiencies.htm

 

[RadaR]

Everything looks good. Nitrates are approx 20-30 ppm though.

Nitrate test kits are notoriously innacurate. The plants are the best test kit you have.

 

[hiyamoose]

Thanks. Guessing CO2 was short given the slow growth and algae in spots. Started dosing 2 days ago with flourish. How long until it has some effect or will it be immediate? Also, will the algae dissipate?

I'm going to pick up a tab fert and begin that as well. Got some brown spots and decay on leaf edges for an amazon and moneywort.