Plants aren't thriving

[KTBug868]

I have a 55 gallon planted tank with plants that don't seem to be doing to well. I have a large Amazon Sword, a red melon, some ferns that were supposed to grow on the log and everything else seemed to have died.

I recently moved to Ellensburg, WA, and it was a 2 hour drive. We had drained the tank to the gravel level and left water in there for the roots.

What can I do to help the plants but not kill my fish?

 

[Guest]

Well we really need more information to help. How much light do you have over the tank? What are the nitrate and phosphate levels? What are the pH, kH, and gH levels? Are the pH, gH, and kH markedly different in Ellensburg than where you moved from?

Also the way you moved the plants is more than likely what killed them. Just keeping the roots wet will not keep aquatic plants alive. You need to keep the whole plant wet or the leaves and stems will dry out and they will die.

 

[talenzmeier]

There Still Might Be Hope

While Rex is probably right in that your plants should have been transported by being completely immersed, you might see them mount a comeback if they haven't died off completely. You may wish to aggresively feed them and give them the max amount of light (assuming you were already doing that). But if they dried out too much, they'll be KIA (that was for Rex ).

 

[KTBug868]

Hey, thanks for the responses.

The pH level has been stable at about 7.6. The fish don't seem upset. The ph, ammonia, and Nitrate levels are okay, and didn't spike after the move. When we first set up the tank we used Flourish to help get them ready. Should we use it again to get the plants back up to par? The light that we are using Britelite (full spectrum light). We were told those were one of the better lights for plants, and not over powering for the fish.

In many of the books that we ready, they said to transport the plants, just leave the roots submersed in the gravel bed and that they should be okay. Umm... The Amazon Sword seems to be coming back, along with a few of the others. Also could you recommend a good place to get live plants from online? We had problems with the dealer we got our plants from originally.

Thanks again.

 

[Guest]

Hmm... not to be rude but telling us the pH, ammonia and nitrate levels are OK doesn't tell us anything. And you did not answer the question as to how much light is over the tank. And you did not give us kH and gH.

Let me put it this way, your left arm is broken and very painful. You go to the doctor and he asks if it hurts. You tell him "It's OK." I ask questions so that I can have adequate data to help answer your questions. The "OK" answer is not what I need or expect.

As for whatever book it was you read I would chuck that book in the nearest trash can. If you want a good place to order plants from the try www.aquabotanic.com

 

[KTBug868]

You're right. You don't have to be so rude. :x I thought this was supposed to be a friendly forum. I'm trying to answer your questions as best I can with what I have, but when you're being rude, it's kind of hard. Try re-wording every thing that comes out of your mouth and it might work a little better.

So we got the wrong book on aquarium plants... sue me. There are a billion and a half different pieces of information out there in the world, that was just one of them. I don't have a test kit for testing kH and gH. The pH was at 7.5-6 and the Ammonia is non existent, and the Nitrate levels are stead at about 10ppm, no increase no decrease. Not even since we moved. I'm expecting it to do so soon, it's been about a month. We used the BioSpira to help set up the tank originally when we got it last March, but still didn't put anything in for about a week. We got our fish first, then we ordered out plants. The light over the tank is a FULL SPECTRUM LIGHT, that covers the top of a 55 gallon tank. It's on from 8am to about 7pm.

 

[BillyZ]

I thought this was supposed to be a friendly forum

It is.

these last two posts (Rex and KTBug) are a little borderline on additude. Please do not take a personal tone in your posts.

we're all here to help one another.


back to topic, KT, I know rex's next question is going to be what wattage that light is? If you're not sure, is it a single 4 foot bulb? And from what I hear (i'm still a little new to planted FW myself) is kH and gH are something that should be tested for regularly. You might want to head out and pick up some test kits for those.

 

[talenzmeier]

Viva Aqua-Gardeners

Not to be redundant, but providing numerical values would be of great importance in trying to recommend a particular course of action. For example, by knowing what the ph is and by knowing KH one can determine the amount of CO2 in your tank. Since plants thrive on it, it's a good thing to know. Now you did mention that your ph was at 7.6 and that strikes me as a little high. Everything I've read on ph and planted tanks suggests that your ph should hover at or below 7.0 Now if you are in doubt about how much light you have, perhaps you could relay whatever information is contained on your aquarium hood. Who makes it? Did it come as part of a package. Just bear in mind that without adequate light, plants can't survive.

 

[KTBug868]

The light that we have is a Brite Lite 96 watt full spectrum light. We bought the light seperate from what they were trying to sell us. The plants are coming back, but I was just curious if we should use the Flourish that we used in the beginning and if it was okay to use with the fish in the tank. As for the testing kits, I ordered them and should get them soon. I'll let you know what they reveal.

Thanks!

 

[Neuve]

lol check your URL.

 

[mollyluvr]

I too have used Flourish KT and did have some luck with it. I switched to Floraboost and it has done wonders for my plants. I have not ever had good luck with Amazon swords or java ferns. If you find a secret, please let me know.

 

[KTBug868]

Thanks for the info. I'm waiting for my test kits to be delivered.

Our Amazon sword if coming back, but I couldn't tell you why. Throughout the time that we've had out plants, all but the glossastigma have survived. But that slow death was sped up by a green Sevrum. Our Amazon and the ferns all have new shoots. So I bet they were just shocked, and now they'll be okay.

Thanks, again.