Amazon swords with very thin leaves

[plah831]

I have a 29 gal with currently two amazon swords and an Anubias. The new leaves on the Amazons are paper thin - almost see-through. The old leaves (that grew before I bought the plants) are nice and thick and dark, but the new growth is flimsy and barely green.

The anubias, on the other hand, is lush and dark. All plants are growing, e.g. new leaves are coming in, except that Amazon leaves are thin.

What's wrong? I dose twice a week with Flourish and iron, and use Flourish Excel carbon supplement every other day instead of CO2 injection. The light is a standard flourescent, 24" 20W Coralife DayMax (~6000 K).

I know we're supposed to use about 2 watts per gallon, but does that apply to flourescent bulbs?

 

[djlen]

The anubia is a low light plant that will do OK in your lighting. The sword is another question entirely.
You are correct.....2 wpg would be a bette way to go in your tank.
But it sounds more like a nutrient deficiency than a light issue. Could be a bit of both.
You are only dosing trace elements. Perhaps a good 'all-in-one' fertilizer like Kent's or similar would be of some help. Your plants need macro as well as micro nutrients to grow well and prosper. When you dose a carbon suppliment you push the plants and they use up more of any available nutrients. That's the reason for the possible deficiency.

What type and quantity of fish are you keeping in the tank?

Len

 

[plah831]

Flourish contains nitrogen and phosphate, are those the macro nutrients?

I have 5 glass cats, 2 dojo loaches, and a few minnows. So the plants should be getting plenty of ammonia.

When I didn't use the carbon supplement (Flourish Excel), I had a huge problem with brown algae. They seem to be kept better in check when I give the plants more carbon.

 

[plah831]

Also, what's the difference between using in-substrate fertilizers and dosing the water?