Partially decaying plants

[Robcurry12]

Hey everyone! I have two well established plants in my 36G freshwater tank. I believe they are a form of Anubias and they are absolutely thriving. New leaves almost weekly and roots are spreading like wildfire! It really looks beautiful. However, some of the older leaves are partially dying. Like the outer edges of the leaf will decay leaving a healthy middle part of the leaf and stem. I'm currently trying to get nitrates down and read that decomposing plants can add to this. What should I do with these partially composing leaves? I don't want to cut a perfectly healthy stem off of the plant cause I don't wanna damage it but I also don't want unnecessary sources of nitrates. What should I do?

 

[Fresh2o]

What is is the nitrate level in your tank? High can mean >10 ppm for some folks and 40-80+ ppm for others. Yes, water changes are the simplest solution for reducing nitrates.


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[Robcurry12]

What is is the nitrate level in your tank? High can mean >10 ppm for some folks and 40-80+ ppm for others. Yes, water changes are the simplest solution for reducing nitrates.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

My nitrate readings are somewhere between 20-40ppm and I would like to get it lower closer to 0. I'm concerned that they're partially decaying leaves are contributing to it

 

[Fresh2o]

I'm thinking the majority of the nitrate is probably from the (fish) bioload rather than decaying leaves. I add IAL (Indian almond leaves) to my tank as a conditioner and biofilm source and let them decay.
Water changes are your best bet for managing nitrate levels.


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