Giving up on Specific Plants

[Purrbox]

What is it about giving up on a plant that suddenly makes it decide to start growing better?

This has happened to me twice where I can't get a plant to grow nicely for me no matter what I do, so I give up on it and remove it from the tank. Occationally I might miss a couple small peices or leave on small plant in case I change my mind. In these situations the last plant will often just take off looking much better than any growth I've seen out of it in the past. So far this has happened to me with both Hemianthus Micromoides and Hemianthus Callitrichoides. The only theory I can come up with is that these plants respond well to severe pruning.

Anyone else run into this and/or have other theories?

 

[Thebluyak]

I had this one plant, probably for about 3 months in a low light tank, then I put it in my high light tank..nothing. Didnt grow anymore roots, never got fully rooted never reporduced. Well when I got my beard algea I ripped off like 70% of its leaves and left the plant in threre since it didnt die, it just didnt grow. 4 days later it has like 4 or 5 little "sprouts" coming off the end of the leaves and now it wont stop reporducing.

 

[Peyton]

Had the same result with potamogeton gayi. Didn't do anything for the longest time. Throw a bunch of it away and what was left is growing quite nicely.

I wish that would happen for me with ludwigia glandulosa. It seems to only be hangin on by a thread. I'll try to ignore it and see what happens.