Microsword?

[amcdonal86]

I just got some of this a couple weeks ago for my 20 gallon Long and it has not been growing at all. I separated the rhizomes so that water could flow around them. The substrate is half fluorite half washed gravel, and there is 85 watts of 6700K light on the tank. Also, I am using a DIY co2. Everything else in the tank seems to be doing fine and is pearling. The microsword, however, is slowly yellowing in some areas. I don't know what to do!

I've been adding 2 mL of Fluorish every week

 

[Cristy]

Echinodorus plants need an iron rich substrate. Flourite is good, but you've diluted it with gravel. That might even be fine if the light level was a lot lower. You've got a LOT of light on that tank! With that much light you'll likely need to add more than just Flourish to the water for other plants. They'll need all the other nutrients added as well.

Also, it's not an extremely fast growing plant, and many plants need a little time to settle in after being transplanted.

 

[amcdonal86]

Do you have any suggestions? Should i just use the rest of the Seachem products like Iron and Trace? Are there test kits where I can monitor levels of iron, etc.?

Which minerals should I monitor?

 

[amcdonal86]

BTW, you can find pictures of my tank here. Maybe you can spot some more nutrient deficiencies.

 

[Cristy]

Hard to tell from the pics, but it mostly looks good.

Is that ludwigia in the back? It's a bit leggy (no leaves on the bottom) which actually suggests that it's not getting enough light near the bottom - or did you plant it that way? I can't imagine how it's not getting enough light with 4wpg. What kind of light are you using - shop lights, aquarium lights, compact flourescent?

Seachem ferts are excellent and easy to use. I use iron, flourish, potassium, trace and nitrogen. That covers everything needed except co2. If you want a cheaper alternative to Seachem, you can get pmdd. Rick Dotson had some ordered and might have some left.

Iron test kits are unreliable. You can get a good Phosphate test kit - Seachem, I think. Nitrate tests are a good thing to have. None are totally necessary - the plants and algae tell you if they're lacking something.

Join GWAPA! I promise you'll learn a lot.

 

[amcdonal86]

:lol: I don't think it's a light deficiency. That's ludwigia repens, and it is fairly new, so the leggy part is how it came, and the parts with the big leaves are the parts that have grown since I got the plant. I want to throw away the leggy parts, but I am concerned because that is the part with the most leaves.