Anacharis

[Bigge_al]

I planted this plant a little over a week ago and I am not seeing any growth. I was lead to believe that this plant would grow so quickly that I would need to cut it back monthly.
My levels are:
Ammo-0
Nitrite-0
Nitrate-10-20

Nitrates are rising very quickly daily so that was the reason for the plant.

 

[blert]

IMHO, one plant is not really going to make a dent in your nitrate. It can take a week or more for the plant to acclimate to your tank. Give it a little more time.

 

[bruinsbro1997]

What is your lighting? How deep is the tank? It's not going to grow very fast if it doesn't have a lot of light?

 

[NoMoreGoldFish]

I have mine floating and they grow a couple of inches every week.

 

[Aspencer]

I have the same plant in my 10g and 20g and the 10g plant is growing great while the 20g plant is just surviving...10g as compact flourescent and the 20g has on T5HO bulb.

 

[CatmanDru]

EDIT: I think for low light plants you need 1.5 to 2 watts of light per gallon as a general rule of thumb. If that's wrong, please correct me.

Anacharis/Elodia/Egera densa isn't/aren't really low light plants, but rather are medium light plants, but will do ok and grow even in low light, they just get more 'leggy'/sparse with less leaves and more stalk growth. They will also grow unplanted and just floating in the tank, and are used as floating plants, often specifically to absorb ammonia/nitrites/nitrates. Floating them in a tank is a good way to grow them even in spite of a low light setup because they are nearer the light and therefore will receive stronger light.

The farther away from the light the plants are, the less will be the intensity or strength of the light they receive.

 

[Bigge_al]

I have a 44g pentagon tank that is tall I have them planted on the bottom being held down by my decorations. It has a 15 watt bulb in it. My best guess is the plants are about 14-16 inches away from the light expect for the tallest piece that is about 8 inches away. The plants are still bright green and look healthy.

 

[CatmanDru]

oooh, 15 watts isn't much light for that distance and that tank volume.

Is the bulb one long flourescent tube, or is it a compact flourescent bulb (CFL)?

Can you replace the bulb with a higher watt bulb (at least until the plants are taller and can reach the upper areas of the tank that have a higher light intensity)?

 

[CatmanDru]

Also, as a temporary aid or solution, although it's a bit Mickey Mouse, you could use a desk lamp shining into your tank to add more light for now.

 

[Bigge_al]

I am kinda confused then "plants you need 1.5 to 2 watts of light per 10 gallons as a general rule of thumb" if 1.5 to 2 watts and my tanks is 44g than 15 watts should have been almost twice what I needed. I added a moss ball about an hour ago hope that will help the nitrate level.

 

[CatmanDru]

I am kinda confused then "plants you need 1.5 to 2 watts of light per 10 gallons as a general rule of thumb" if 1.5 to 2 watts and my tanks is 44g than 15 watts should have been almost twice what I needed. I added a moss ball about an hour ago hope that will help the nitrate level.

Sorry, I made a mistake. I should have written "1.5 to 2 watts per gallon".

Therefore "1.5 to 2 watts per gallon" multiplied by 44 gallons should be 66 watts to 88 watts.

I'm sorry for the confusion.

 

[00youknowit00]

I have 3 planted tanks, everything does great in them, except anacharis, don't know why, I have plenty of lights, ferts, and diy co2.

 

[Bigge_al]

So my next question is this, my light is one long flourescent tube can I get a larger watt bulb or do I need to let the plants go to the surface. I have looked online and there seem to be replacement bulbs for plants.

 

[00youknowit00]

Wait, do you have plant bulbs in your fixture?

 

[Bigge_al]

I have no idea what kind bulb it is I was asking should I purchase a bulb for plants.

 

[severum mama]

Moved to FW and Brackish- Planted Tanks.


Unfortunately, with a single tube normal output fluorescent over your tank, your only option to increase lighting is going to be the purchase of a different light fixture. I would suggest looking into T5 high outputs as a relatively cost effective option.

 

[00youknowit00]

I have no idea what kind bulb it is I was asking should I purchase a bulb for plants.

Oh! Yes! That or get the t5 like Severum mama said. But the bulb at the least

 

[Bigge_al]

I pulled the bulb and it says F15T8-PL/AQ Plant & Aquarium so I figure it is a plant bulb.

 

[fort384]

Unfortunately changing the bulb is not going to make a difference. You just do not have a powerful enough fixture to grow even low light plants. You will need to upgrade the fixture if you intend to keep live plants.

It was addressed before in the thread, but it is important to point out that a single strand of anacharis is not going to have any noticeable affect on your nitrate levels. You will need many, many stems, and even then without proper lighting they won't uptake N.

 

[Bigge_al]

So the moss ball I added today is not going to survive without more light either.
What about letting the plants float.