plant problem. . .

[quitters]

Hey guys, the large anubias type plant (starts with s (anyone?) at the back right of the tank is curling up really badly, i think i know why can anyone confirm this?

I bought it, went shopping, then came home to find that the idiot at the fish store didnt close the bag, so the leaves must have been dry for maybe a good hour. no direct sunlight tho. could this be it? i put it straight in the tank but its still curling on day 4. What causes curling?

here are my tank details../

29 gallon
3 NO wpg, (1 powerglo, one lifeglo2 and one sunglo (20"))
DIY co2
Ph - 7
ammonia - 0
nitrite - 0
nitrate - 15
posphate - 0
KH 4.5
im adding 1 drop of dupla 24 per day, and dosing an N and K a little each day, deffinately not overdosing. and it has dupla G (root tab) nbext to its roots

i have been a bit rough with the roots trying to get the thing so stay down could this cause it?

first pic is what it looks like now, second is when i got it :S

any help heaps appreciated

 

[7Enigma]

Just by looking at your numbers I'd say while the transit might have damaged the plant somewhat (they do sometimes take a while to come back to health), its your bottoming out of phosphate that could be causing the problem. You want to keep the nitrAte to phosphate ratio between 23:1 to 10:1 (10:1 on the high end, and 23:1 on the low end).

I'd try to get your tank up to around 1ppm of phosphate and keep it steady there, or bump your nitrAte up to 20-30ppm and bring the phosphate up to 2ppm or so. All your other numbers are fine. I'd try to bump up your CO2 production somewhat (its currently at 13ppm based on your pH and KH readings. Ideally you want this to be between 25-35ppm. This extra CO2 should also help to keep down the algae growth.

What is your GH btw? It's possible you might not have enough calcium or magnesium, but this is normally not a problem if your KH is naturally 4.5.

 

[malkore]

calcium deficiency should affect new leaf growth (curling) and not existing leaves.

we need full tank stats - nitrates, phosphates, potassium dosing regimen, trace & iron dosing regiment.
are you injecting CO2? you're almost at 2wpg, so CO2 is a good idea. at least use some flourish excel.

do you know the EXACT species of plant that's having the problem?

its' not an anubias, its some kind of sword plant is my guess,a nd you may or may not have sufficient light for it.

also a slim chance its not a true aquatic and is dying, and that's why it's looking bad.

NEVER buy a plant unless you know what it is.

 

[7Enigma]

KH is 4.5, so while not a guarantee, calcium deficiency is not too probable. He said in the OP he has DIY CO2, but to what degree I don't know. You very well might have hit it on the nose if it is a sword, 2wpg just might not cut it. I still think the phosphates are a problem.

 

[quitters]

ok thanks for the replies

im using a hagen natural co2 kit, and ive made me own 2 litre bottle one but that hasnt started bubbling yet so im excpecting more co2 soon

also i was told to multiply wpg by 1.5 for NO flourescents, as watt efficiency differs, i dont know, oh well its almost medium-high light

ive added some phosphate, nitrate is at 15 now and phosphate at 1 but i cant add phosphate without increasing nitrate at the moment so that will have to do.

i tested GH and its at 100 ppm, i dont have a copper or magnesium test kit, should i get one? the place i live in has pretty much the best water quality of anywhere in the world or so ive heard, could that say how much copper and stuff is in the water?

the plant deffinately has water-roots, time will tell if it will be ok.

thank you all very much for your help, ill see how i go, i need to research defficiency and overdose symptoms.

peace out!

 

[7Enigma]

Best water in the world for drinking can mean the worst when it comes to trace nutrients for the plant (we consider them contaminants). So that really doesn't say much. As far as I know there is no cheap test for magnesium, the general rule is to look for deficiency but add a steady amount at every water change so you will know its NOT that for at least a day or so after a water change.

Your nitrAte to phosphate ratio is perfect. Don't mess with that but do monitor it so that phosphate doesn't bottom out again.

The extra CO2 bottle will definately help out both in plant growth and also algae problems.

As far as I know, unless you are overdriving the light (which I don't think you are) 1watt NO=1watt. There is no conversion. Some people rig up their NO lights to run at higher current, which will affect the output. How many watts are you then ACTUALLY running?

Even CF lights don't have a 1.5X conversion rate. If you were using 1.5X and you claim 3wpg on a 29gallon tank, that means you really have ~2wpg in the tank. I'm assuming for this number that you have about 60watts total among the bulbs, and since there is no conversion rate you just divide by your tank size.

 

[quitters]

Yeh i read this thread, it seemed to have a fair bit of maths behind it, so i went with that

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=72491

i have 54 watts (3x18) so thats 1.8 by normal straight method, or 3wpg if i follow that thread

anyway doesnt matter, 3 NO flourescents over a 29 gallon is enough light to require co2 and benefit from it anyway.

thanks for your help, plant is actually looking a bit better!

can u tell me what it means when leaves crinkle up around the edges, like um, this -> ~~~~~~~ <-

u the best ill pay u back some day enigma

 

[7Enigma]

On the second page of the link you posted they modified the results to:

So, if we interpret this back to "equivalent watts to T12 NO" by using lumens,

1w CF = 1.3W T12 NO
1w T8 = 1.6w T12 NO
1w T10 = 1.1w T12 NO


I don't know what kind of bulb those lights of yours have but the numbers might be different. And yes, either way its a good decision to have the CO2.

As for the crinkly leaves, what plant is this on?

 

[malkore]

Yep, there's no conversion, and the article you linked to is more a 'new working theory on lighting'...not something that has been tried and tested for the last 30 years.
You have 1.8wpg. the low end of medium light.

 

[BillD]

The plant looks like a Spathyphylum sp., also known as Brazilian sword, or Peace Lily if you buy it at a garden shop, as a house plant. If it was an Anubias sp. it will have a rhizome that must be kept above the substrate. The peace lily, is not atrue aquatic, but a marginal plant, so it will not take being submerged for more than a few months, before it will die.

 

[quitters]

wow ok thank you

i guess ill be researching the plantgs i buy from now on!

thank you guys

 

[newfound77951]

I've been noticing an awful lot of "houseplants" for sale as aquatic plants in many LFS....even reputable ones. I think plants are still an unknown realm for most LFS, and they'll take what they can get. It's always surprising to poke through the plant tanks and see a plant that you have in a pot in your living room..... it pays to take the time to learn what the true aquatics are and to decide what kinds of plants would work in your tank and look for them rather than opportunistically buy a plant without any idea what it is or what it needs. I will admit to being somewhat guilty of this myself, too!