Problem W/ Swords (and Other Questions)

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Okay so after a little ghetto rigging I managed to get about 1.5 WPG in at least part of our 28 gallon tank (courtesy of a very odd 4 bulb prong floor lamp which I believe to be some kind of C/F lamp). Alas, somehow my sword plants just seem to get worse looking.

So here is the background story...
Mom buys tank + plants. Mom sets up tank + plants. Researching and caring for said tank becomes my responsability. All of the original plants were bought at the same shop, and most of them were not true aquatics.

Question #1 : How can I tell the difference between Amazon Swords, and Brazilian Swords? From what I understand, Brazilian Swords are not true aquatics.

- At first the lighting was only about .5 wpg, and the Swords did okay but were being covered by brown algae.
- Added some Otos and the lamp to encourage better plant growth and some green algae for the Otos to eat.
- More new leaves, spread plants apart to give better light access...roots had spread well
- Even more new leaves.
- New leaf growth started to become pale in color and thin/semi transparent...some old leaves developed brown spots & were trimmed
- Added Seachem root tab supplements and partial doses of Excel about a week ago...some new leaves are starting to look more green but more of the old ones are developing brown spots / looking puny.

Question #2 : Should I just watch and wait to see how things develop? They had been doing okay for about 5 months, and now all of the sudden they look worse than before.

Question #3 : I have heard that swords don't do as well in hard / alkaline water. Can anyone confirm or deny this?

Okay so now for the non-sword related questions:

Question #4 : Is Excel the best choice for a tank with high surface agitation? Currently my tank is a bit on the overstocked side, and thus I'm running double HoB's so I don't want to put in a CO2 system if it's all going to get gassed off right away.

Question #5 : I recently purchased an Anubias barteri (don't know the var.) since I've heard they are quite tough and can handle lower lighting situations... but will 1.5 WPG be enough?

I'm hoping for a C/F hood upgrade around Christmas to jump us up to 2 WPG from the hood, and possibly 3 WPG in part of the tank if I decide to keep the floor lamp going.

 

[Dave Spencer]

Question #1 : How can I tell the difference between Amazon Swords, and Brazilian Swords? From what I understand, Brazilian Swords are not true aquatics.

If you Google image both types you should see the difference. From what I can gather, Brazilian swords are slow growing, and can survive fully or partially submerged.

Question #2 : Should I just watch and wait to see how things develop? They had been doing okay for about 5 months, and now all of the sudden they look worse than before.

Personally, I would remove the dying leaves at their base and let the new growth develop. It appears that the ferts may be starting to work.

Question #3 : I have heard that swords don't do as well in hard / alkaline water. Can anyone confirm or deny this?

If it is Echinodorus bleheri that you have, it should be OK in a wide variety of conditions.

I use this site for finding plant requirements. The search facility is pretty good.

http/www.tropica.com/default.asp

Question #4 : Is Excel the best choice for a tank with high surface agitation? Currently my tank is a bit on the overstocked side, and thus I'm running double HoB's so I don't want to put in a CO2 system if it's all going to get gassed off right away.

HOB filters will gas off CO2 at a fair rate, but it wouldn`t be too bad if the water level was close to the return level to minimise agitation. Excel should do the job for you at your current light levels.

Question #5 : I recently purchased an Anubias barteri (don't know the var.) since I've heard they are quite tough and can handle lower lighting situations... but will 1.5 WPG be enough?

1.5WPG will be fine. They seem to thrive in the shade apparently. Personally, I`ve never kept this type yet.

I'm hoping for a C/F hood upgrade around Christmas to jump us up to 2 WPG from the hood, and possibly 3 WPG in part of the tank if I decide to keep the floor lamp going.

Once you approach 2WPG, pressurised CO2 and a water column fert regime will become necessary. Increasing light will increase your plants` fert demand considerably, so any deficiencies will trigger algae. Have a read of the pinned EI article before you increase your light levels.

Dave