will ammonia kill the plants

[swaffs]

Hi everyone, i'm going to cycle my tank using ammonia (pure).
Just in case anyone does ask - no there are no fish in it.
I was wondering if it would kill my plants that i have in the tank?
I have a feeling it will but wanted to ask if anyone knows for sure if it will or if they have done this and there plants survived.

It doesn't matter to much if they do, i'm just wondering thats all.

Thanks in advance to all who reply

[Blueiz]

No, plants use ammonia as a nutrient source. If you have live plants you can silently cycle your tank by stocking it really slow. Of course youll need more than one or two plants..

[The Zigman]

ditto what Bule iz said..

[RustyRay]

Too high a level of ammonia can certainly kill your plants. (It's similar to oxygen for humans. Oxygen makes up a small percentage of the atmosphere. But too high a concentration is toxic.) Just don't get crazy with the ammonia level.

But I'm not a believer in cycling a planted tank. What's the point? You want the plants to use the ammonia. The bacteria are only competing with the plants for the same food source. It seems counterproductive in a planted tank to promote bacterial growth and then add fish. A tank that is well stocked with plants can have a small population of fish added to it immediately. But a tank with just a few plants is another story; in such a case I would cycle the tank with ammonia.

[Zebulon]

Plants actually prefer ammonia as a nitrogen source and will utilize it first, nitrites second and nitrates last, in order of ease of breaking the molecule. However, your bacterial colonies are far more effective at reducing ammonia and nitrite, and will utilize the vast majority of it (as it is produced) before the plants get so much as a taste. In this way I doubt that plants will slow the growth of your bacterial colonies but yes they do provide a buffer, substantial if there are a lot of plants, and can help the water quality remain stable during 'fishy' cycling.

[Star_Rider]

simply put..if the ammonia gets too high it can kill your plants.

I would keep it at or below 2ppm