banana plant question

[UnarmedCrayon]

I've had these two banana plants in my community tank for months now. They go through the oddest cycle. They grow like crazy then just as quick one piece ( maybe a leaf, maybe the banana roots, what ever it feels like at that time) goes transparent and dies.... I'm clueless as to why. Any ideas?

 

[foster53]

Are you using any fertilizer? they might be needing some nutrients to keep growing.

 

[aquandrew]

what is your lighting? banana plants require moderate to high lighting

 

[UnarmedCrayon]

Lighting is a aqueon 48" led, the one you can add up to 3 led strips too. It currently has one white and one color max ( red) strip in it. I ordered a third bulb but ups killed it and I haven't ordered another yet. I usually dose API leaf zone with the weekly water change and very recently picked up some flourish.... Um.... Forget the second name.... The liquid carbon daily additive. Haven't seen a difference with that yet. ( only a week though)

 

[BBradbury]

Hello Un...

I kept some of these plants and I floated them in my tanks attached to a piece of driftwood. By putting it directly under the light source, it got the bright light it needed. The banana shaped roots took in the nutrients from the water. I set it away from the filter, it doesn't like the water current.

I don't use commercial fertilizers. I do large, frequent water changes and have a lot of fish in the tank. So apparently, the plants get what they need.

B

 

[UnarmedCrayon]

Well those plants are on the far end away from the power head, so no worries about current. Maybe they just need more light? I really need to get that 3rd bulb.

 

[Gabriel3303]

Mine did that at first too but it kinda work its own way out i did sart placing root tabs near them though i though it was fungus and treated with peroxide but they seem to be doing great now

 

[UnarmedCrayon]

Hmmm, have never used any tabs... The bottom third of my gravel is the Eco gravel for plants.... Messy stuff... Didn't think I needed tabs as I have no bulb plants..... Maybe try those as well? I'm just not sure as to the balance in my tank.... How do I find that magical balance of light and ferts that gives such lush and beautiful tanks I see here?

 

[UnarmedCrayon]

ok, I just went and checked the plant before the moon lights cut out, and it looks worse. It had on good sized very healthy looking pad on the surface of the water, and now it looks like this.

Tested water - ph - 6.9
ammonia - 0 ( maybe a hint, but looked yellow to me)
nitrite - 0
nitrate - about 20 ppm ( strong orange, water change is scheduled for first thing in morning)
gh - 4 drops
kh - 3 drops

also a side note, only in the last few weeks have I been getting any nitrates accumulating. i've always done weekly 15% water changes, but readings used to be so low i quit doing the nitrate test most times, until I lost a ram last week and found them at 20, now this is second week they have gone that high. wish i knew why.

i have current new growth on about half my other plants, most look good, just not growing too fast, then these two bananas that have issues. sorry to throw all this out at once, but I'm definitely feeling a lil discouraged at the moment. thank you for any advise you can give.

 

[Gabriel3303]

Wow that stinks im kinda a newbie to the planted tanks so don't take my word 100% just telling what i did i also dose weekly with API leaf zone an and flourish comprehensive then two caps of co2 sup either API co2 booster or excel i know when I researched em they said there very easy plants but do best in a clay based soil thats why i tried tabs :/ good luck

 

[Cactuspixie]

also a side note, only in the last few weeks have I been getting any nitrates accumulating. i've always done weekly 15% water changes, but readings used to be so low i quit doing the nitrate test most times, until I lost a ram last week and found them at 20, now this is second week they have gone that high. wish i knew why.

Detritus may be accumulating under your substrate. Or your filter has accumulated too much gunk and has become a nitrate factory?
I know its obvious really, but it can be easy to overlook the fact that whatever waste is in the filter, is basically still in the tank.
Try stepping up your pwc to 25% and see how you go. 20ppm isn't going to kill fish or plants though. But you don't really want it to rise above that.

 

[UnarmedCrayon]

Well, picked up my third led strip for the light, did a 15 gal water change, and in the process stirred up a ton of stuff from the gravel. That stuff may have been mulm, it may have been the dust from the layer of fluorite substrate under the regular gravel. Not sure, but hopefully everything is going to level back out, and hopefully that banana plant comes back again.