Some Plant Questions

[bruinsbro1997]

Hello everyone!

Don't know if you know, but I have some ludwiga respens and rotala indica/rotundifolia in my tank, they're doing okay.

But...
have a question about them.

I think they're supposed to be super red plants, but so far they're struggling. Ludwiga especially. It's taken it about two months to settle in, root itself and establish itself. So far I've only noticed that it's pinkish on the under of its leaves and green on top. Also, it seems to have a knack for getting algae on it. Any way I can prevent this?

Also, the rotala is sort of pinkish, but primarily green. I have seen pictures of it and it looks really red in those. Have any idea how I could achieve this???

Lights: 2 39W T5HO, on around 5-10 hours a day, depending on when I turn them on
Tank Depth: 16 inches
Ferts: Flourish Excel and Flourish
Substrate: find gravel mixed w/ EcoComplete

Thanks for any help!

 

[blert]

The ludwigia repens will lose it redness from a lack of iron. Try root tabs and an iron supplement.

 

[Philly33]

Get a timer for starters

 

[bruinsbro1997]

Okay, timer first.

Root tabs on the list as well.

Would Flourish Iron help them as well or no???

 

[aa108]

Okay, timer first.

Root tabs on the list as well.

Would Flourish Iron help them as well or no???

yeah that will do. Iron gives them their color

 

[jetajockey]

Definitely dose liquid iron supplement for the fastest results.

 

[aqua_chem]

I personally thing that iron is part of general plant health, but is NOT intimately related to red. To my knowledge, there is no physiological link between them. If iron plays a role, its probably a passive one.

One of the major reasons for plants to express red pigment is to absorb hazardous UV and near-UV light, which is in the blue end of the spectrum. My working theory on red plants is that once you satisfy the metabolic requirements, its all about the lights baby. You want to aim for high light (ie CO2 level light), and not just high light, but high light of the right spectrum, specifically light with strong intensity peaks in the blue region. This will, theoretically, cause the plant to express red pigments to protect itself. Zoomed's flora-something bulb is ok at this, but Giesemann bulbs reign supreme here.

You can also go scant on the nitrate, but that can be risky sometimes.



Attached are some pictures of my plants under giesemanns. Unfortunately, I didn't have a pics from before I got the bulbs to compare to. Also, phone pics >.>

Also, CO2 has often been implemented as a good way to bring out your reds. It would also help your algae, and with T5HO on a 40b, I would definitely recommend it.

 

[bruinsbro1997]

WOW, your plants look really nice!

As for the bulbs, they're AquaSun Flora-Glos. Would that be good enough for some red plants?

As for CO2, I can't really just spend 200+ on a CO2 system right now, don't have the money yet. I heard DIY CO2 is good, but only for small tanks. What would you suggest?

 

[richpowell1989]

I personally thing that iron is part of general plant health, but is NOT intimately related to red. To my knowledge, there is no physiological link between them. If iron plays a role, its probably a passive one.

One of the major reasons for plants to express red pigment is to absorb hazardous UV and near-UV light, which is in the blue end of the spectrum. My working theory on red plants is that once you satisfy the metabolic requirements, its all about the lights baby. You want to aim for high light (ie CO2 level light), and not just high light, but high light of the right spectrum, specifically light with strong intensity peaks in the blue region. This will, theoretically, cause the plant to express red pigments to protect itself. Zoomed's flora-something bulb is ok at this, but Giesemann bulbs reign supreme here.

You can also go scant on the nitrate, but that can be risky sometimes.

Attached are some pictures of my plants under giesemanns. Unfortunately, I didn't have a pics from before I got the bulbs to compare to. Also, phone pics >.>

Also, CO2 has often been implemented as a good way to bring out your reds. It would also help your algae, and with T5HO on a 40b, I would definitely recommend it.

Your plants look very heathly I love the colours

 

[bruinsbro1997]

Anyone have any opinions on CO2?

So on the shopping list so far:
-root tabs
-timer
-Flourish Iron???