Help with plants-- brown/yellow spots and holes

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jessie.smith

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
Feb 1, 2014
Messages
7
Hi! I'm hoping someone might be able to help me figure out what's going on with my planted tank. Some leaves are wilting, some have brown/yellow spots, holes, and one leaf looks like it's just disintegrating. Test strips show good pH, nitrite and nitrate levels, and fish are doing great. Any ideas/advice? Thanks! ImageUploadedByAquarium Advice1391293799.559742.jpgImageUploadedByAquarium Advice1391293882.119522.jpgImageUploadedByAquarium Advice1391293905.464290.jpg
 
Sorry to say but all three plants you show in the pics are not true aquatic plants. Note how your fine leafed plant in left picture and your Anubias look great. So it looks like your nutrients are ok. OS.
 
55 gal, bought the tank and light used so I don't know the age or what kind of light it is. I use floramax substrate but no extra fertilizers. The plants are all from petco or the local marine warehouse... I have 5 mollies, 1 platy, 2 guppies and 7 tetra.
 
Well, it is a fluorescent light and the bulb looks slightly purple--the guy who had it before me used it for a saltwater tank.
 
Old Scales is right. Most of the plants that look bad are not true aquatic plants and will only last for so long under water. The wisteria (the one that has simple leaves toward the bottom and feathery leaves at top) is normally grown for the aquarium trade with the roots underwater and the leaves above. When submerged, those terrestrial leaves slowly decompose and the new leaves are the beautiful feathery ones.
 
Well, hate to say it, but it is now affecting all my plants, rapidly, and two have lost all their leaves. Could it be a phosphate deficiency?
 
Try potassium additives, root tabs as well. I swear by seachem!
 
The only non-aquatic plant I see is the one in the first picture with the long leaves that have white striping. That is White Ribbon plant. It needs to be removed as it will continue to rot and die off.

You have definite nutrient deficiencies going on. The bottom pictures, number 2 and 4 are root feeders (crypt-#2 and Aponogeton-#4) and need to have root tabs placed under then on a regular basis. The Anubia in pic #3 appears to have a potassium deficiency. The plant in #4 looks to maybe be a sword (can't really see the entire plant so am guessing by the leaf shape) which also needs to have root tabs as it too is a heavy root feeder. It appears to have a nitrate and or phosphate deficiency. The two bottom pic's in the last post appears to have major nutrient deficiencies of both macro and micro's.

What is your tank size, lighting type, and bulbs? It appears you have enough plants that dry ferts dosed EI or PPS-Pro would be the most economical to use plus they will supply plants with all the macro and micro nutrients they need.

Test strips aren't always the most reliable and strongly suggest purchasing liquid test kits for ph, nitrate, and phosphates. Nitrate levels should be 10-20ppm and phosphates 1-3ppm in planted tanks.
 
The plant in the background of the first and last images is not a sword; it is a peace lily which is a terrestrial plant sometimes sold as a short-term aquatic. It will not last in the aquarium with its leaves submerged more than a month or so.
 
Sk3lly is right. Just reread the older posts and it sounds like you have an actinic (blue) light. Your plants are suffering from a lack of light, for sure (in addition to nutrient deficiency, and some not being truly aquatic). If you haven't already done so, go buy yourself new bulbs meant for plants (pink floramax, full spectrum daylight, etc). There is tons of great information on this forum related to lighting.
 
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