key requirements for good plant growth

[tropical freshwater plants]

I would be interested to hear what what this newsgroup's subscribers thinks
regarding the most important factors for good plant growth. I have
consistently over many years always found the plants in my community
freshwater tropical tanks by far the most difficult aspect of the hobby;
keeping the fish is easy!! My current set-up is a 240 litre Juwel "Rio"
model with integral filter/heater, it is illuminated with two fluorescent
tubes; one ordinary "warm" white and one "daylight" tube - both 38 watts,
42" (107cm) long x 1" (2.5cm) diameter (as supplied with the tank). The
lights are controlled by a timer switch which I currently have set for 10
hours on-time per day from 12.00hrs to 22.00hrs. The temperature hovers at
around 25 degrees celcius. Plants that I have tried recently are Broad Leaf
Amazon Sword, Stricta and Vallisneria Spiralis all of which started off OK
but now the only one that grows properly is the Stricta which also has
started to struggle recently. A few months ago I had an attack of the
dreaded thread algae which has declined now having reduced the lighting
hours from 12 to 10 hours, but now I have green "slime" algae on the leaves
and glass (the type that removes easily) even though the lighting hours are
reduced. The water in the tank generally remains crystal clear because of
the Juwel filtration system which I try as near as possible to maintain in
accordance with the manufacturer's instructions (ie changing the carbon
impregnated element every 6 weeks).

There is obviously something fundamental that I am getting wrong and I would
really like to know what it is! Any responses would be much appreciated -
thanks!!

[Happy'Cam'per]

"tropical freshwater plants" > wrote in message
...
> I would be interested to hear what what this newsgroup's subscribers
thinks
> regarding the most important factors for good plant growth. I have
> consistently over many years always found the plants in my community
> freshwater tropical tanks by far the most difficult aspect of the hobby;
> keeping the fish is easy!! My current set-up is a 240 litre Juwel "Rio"
> model with integral filter/heater, it is illuminated with two fluorescent
> tubes; one ordinary "warm" white and one "daylight" tube - both 38 watts,
> 42" (107cm) long x 1" (2.5cm) diameter (as supplied with the tank). The
> lights are controlled by a timer switch which I currently have set for 10
> hours on-time per day from 12.00hrs to 22.00hrs. The temperature hovers
at
> around 25 degrees celcius. Plants that I have tried recently are Broad
Leaf
> Amazon Sword, Stricta and Vallisneria Spiralis all of which started off OK
> but now the only one that grows properly is the Stricta which also has
> started to struggle recently. A few months ago I had an attack of the
> dreaded thread algae which has declined now having reduced the lighting
> hours from 12 to 10 hours, but now I have green "slime" algae on the
leaves
> and glass (the type that removes easily) even though the lighting hours
are
> reduced. The water in the tank generally remains crystal clear because of
> the Juwel filtration system which I try as near as possible to maintain in
> accordance with the manufacturer's instructions (ie changing the carbon
> impregnated element every 6 weeks).
>
> There is obviously something fundamental that I am getting wrong and I
would
> really like to know what it is! Any responses would be much appreciated -
> thanks!!
>
>

Hi there TFP :)
First off, I think you need more light. If my sums are correct you have just
under 1 watt per gallon. I would go higher than this, try for 2wpg, or at
least 1 1/2 wpg. Bottom line: add more light.
What kind of substrate do you have?
You should start adding co2 along with the increase in lighting. This will
help tremendously. Google DIY CO2 for more info.
The slimey algae you speak of is called Cyanobacteria aka BGA or blue green
algae. IME this seems to pop up when phosphates and Nitrates are out of
whack! I would start adding some Nitrates if I were you, your plants are
hungry. One heaped teaspoon in your tank once or twice a week should be
fine.
Stop using carbon in the filters, let the plants do all the work for you,
carbon is just removing stuff that the plants enjoy.
--
**So long, and thanks for all the fish!**

[[email protected]]

I posted this to this group in '98 and found it with Google today

A simple recipe for growing aquarium plants.
There is a lot of very detailed info on how to grow aquarium plants in
the plant FAQ that is posted to the rec.aquaria groups and in the KRIB
(http://www.cco.caltech.edu/~aquaria/krib/) These are just the basics.
For every piece of advice that is given here there are as many other
opinions as there are aquarists. If you are new to freshwater aquarium
plants I suggest that you follow these basic tips. Once you have the
basics you can alter your setup based on your experience and further
research.
Plants require three basic things: light, CO2 and nutrients.

Light
For lush growth you need more light than is present in an aquarium
that is set up for just fish. Most plant aquarists recommend 2 to 4
watts per gallon. The easiest way to achieve this is with multiple
fluorescent lights. Use a mixture of different types of bulbs to get a
good balance of colours. Put your lights on a timer to give the plants
a consistent 12 hour day.

CO2
Plants use photosynthesis to take CO2 and light to create the simple
sugars that feed their growth. A normal aquarium holds only 1 part per
million or less of this essential building block of plant life. You
can boost this to the recommended range of 15 to 20 PPM by bubbling
CO2 into your tank. The easiest way to do this is to make CO2 with a
do it yourself yeast bottle. Drill a small hole in the top of a 2
litre pop bottle cap. Feed an airline through the cap and seal with
silicone. Mix 1 cup of sugar with 1.5 litres of water and a pinch of
bakers yeast. This mixture will produce bubbles of CO2 for 2 to 3
weeks. Bubble the CO2 straight into your tank(easy) or into the intake
of a power filter(more efficient). CO2 will lower the pH of your water
by forming carbonic acid. Monitor your pH, you are looking for a
decrease without making a drastic change. If your pH starts between 7
and 8 you should try to lower it by about 1 degree.

Nutrients
With a lot of light and CO2 your plants will quickly absorb the other
essential nutrients that they require. Many of the most important
nutrients are available from tap water and fish poop. Some nutrients
will always be in short supply unless you add them in yourself. There
are many liquid fertilizers available at aquarium shops, pick one with
lots of iron as this seems to be the most important. Follow the
directions on the bottle until you have a feel for how much your
plants like.

Plants and fish
Beginners should pick fast growing plants like rotala or many of the
varieties of hygrophilia. These are easy to grow and will out-compete
most algae for the available resources. The algae that does grow can
usually be controlled by Siamese algae eaters, pl*cos or snails
(snails are controlled with clown loaches).

[Bob Stone]

<<snip>>

So far so good. There is quite a bit more to know about managing
nutrients for both plant growth and as a means of avoiding algae
outbreaks. In addition to what you read here I'd suggest a look a the
Aquatic Plants digest. Very active group of plant folks and killer
archives.

Once you have the light and the CO2 and you want to know more about
managing nutrients I'd look specifically for a post by Tom Barr called
The Estimative Index.

I did a google search and the DFWAPC also has a reprint of this post
as an article on their web site. It is the single most concise common
sense statement of how to manage nutrients in planted tanks that I
have run across. Use that as a starting point.

[Limnophile]

"Happy'Cam'per" > wrote in message
...
> "tropical freshwater plants" > wrote in message
> ...
<snip>

> Hi there TFP :)
> First off, I think you need more light. If my sums are correct you have
just
> under 1 watt per gallon. I would go higher than this, try for 2wpg, or at
> least 1 1/2 wpg. Bottom line: add more light.
> What kind of substrate do you have?
> You should start adding co2 along with the increase in lighting. This will
> help tremendously. Google DIY CO2 for more info.
> The slimey algae you speak of is called Cyanobacteria aka BGA or blue
green
> algae. IME this seems to pop up when phosphates and Nitrates are out of
> whack! I would start adding some Nitrates if I were you, your plants are
> hungry. One heaped teaspoon in your tank once or twice a week should be
> fine.
> Stop using carbon in the filters, let the plants do all the work for you,
> carbon is just removing stuff that the plants enjoy.
> --
> **So long, and thanks for all the fish!**
>

Phosphates and nitrates are rarely the limiting factors for aquarium plant
growth. Most fish tanks have more than enough already. Potassium and iron
are the chemicals that should be added. ( They may be listed on fertilizer
bottles as chelated iron and potash. )

I agree with the rest of your post though. Carbon can be bad in plant
tanks, 2 watts per gallon is about right, and if the tank has bright enough
lights CO2 can help plant growth quite a bit.

Limnophile

[tropical freshwater plants]

Thanks to all for the excellent responses - I have set the CO2 bottle in
place and is bubbling away - new stronger lights have been ordered.

I suppose my only remaining puzzle is why a company like Juwel (my tank is a
Juwel Rio 240) include carbon impregnated pads in their filter systems if
they are detrimental to good plant growth and aquarium conditions generally?

[Limnophile]

"tropical freshwater plants" > wrote in message
...
> Thanks to all for the excellent responses - I have set the CO2 bottle in
> place and is bubbling away - new stronger lights have been ordered.
>
> I suppose my only remaining puzzle is why a company like Juwel (my tank is
a
> Juwel Rio 240) include carbon impregnated pads in their filter systems if
> they are detrimental to good plant growth and aquarium conditions
generally?
>

Carbon is good in a fish-only tank, as it removes a lot of toxic substances
from the water. It's only a problem in tanks with plants or live corals.

Limnophile

[Robert Flory]

"Limnophile" > wrote in message
...
>
> "tropical freshwater plants" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Thanks to all for the excellent responses - I have set the CO2 bottle in
> > place and is bubbling away - new stronger lights have been ordered.
> >
> > I suppose my only remaining puzzle is why a company like Juwel (my tank
is
> a
> > Juwel Rio 240) include carbon impregnated pads in their filter systems
if
> > they are detrimental to good plant growth and aquarium conditions
> generally?
> >
>
> Carbon is good in a fish-only tank, as it removes a lot of toxic
substances
> from the water. It's only a problem in tanks with plants or live corals.
>
> Limnophile
>
Nay .... it isn't good even in a fish tank full time. It still removes all
sorts of traces fish need.

It just makes the tank clear and makes them money.

bob

[Limnophile]

"Robert Flory" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Limnophile" > wrote in message
> ...
> >
> > "tropical freshwater plants" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > > Thanks to all for the excellent responses - I have set the CO2 bottle
in
> > > place and is bubbling away - new stronger lights have been ordered.
> > >
> > > I suppose my only remaining puzzle is why a company like Juwel (my
tank
> is
> > a
> > > Juwel Rio 240) include carbon impregnated pads in their filter systems
> if
> > > they are detrimental to good plant growth and aquarium conditions
> > generally?
> > >
> >
> > Carbon is good in a fish-only tank, as it removes a lot of toxic
> substances
> > from the water. It's only a problem in tanks with plants or live corals.
> >
> > Limnophile
> >
> Nay .... it isn't good even in a fish tank full time. It still removes
all
> sorts of traces fish need.
>
> It just makes the tank clear and makes them money.
>
> bob
>
It removes some trace elements, which is bad.
But it also removes traces of cleaning chemicals, paint fumes, etc.

Sometimes it helps, sometimes not.

I usually don't use it, but I do put carbon in the filters if I do any
painting or heavy-duty cleaning around the house.

Limnophile