Feel like a failure

ib4walrus

ib4walrus

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Jan 5, 2009
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Nothing I've seen to do allows me to grow plants. My anubias were doing well until recently where all the leaves start to become brownish and transparent from the edges working in. The stems of the plants when first got them were straight and hardy and after a week or two in my tank they all wilted and some have detached themselves from the plant itself. Can someone please tell me what I am doing wrong?
10g regular substrate
15w 5500k Zoo Med Tropic Sun
Dosed API Leaf Zone when I got them and then weekly
Have been adding ammonia since I am doing my cycle (first time fish/plant owner)

I've posted here with similar problems before and it seemed like it was going well since then until I touched the rhizome and it basically "fell apart," it was mushy almost.

I've been reading about the OTS thread and would tht be a possible culprit? I have absolutely no idea was is wrong and bought anubias (not cheap for me =() since I believed they were extremely hardy. I have a driftwood in there which has been leaching some tannins. My nitrate and nitrite are very high and ammonia is always 0 after a day of dosing. pH about 6.8 (from ~8.0 from the first time I filled the tank up). Hardness is about 300ppm.

I really do not want to result in using plastic plants :help:.

IMG00098-20090305-0609.jpg IMG00099-20090305-0609.jpg
 
I keep it on from when I go to school at 6 AM to 4 PM when I get home. There is also one that I have on the wood and its leaves are gone also. The 15 watts fluorescent isn't enough for anubias even? Any suggestions on cheap light additions? Currently I have an AGA Single tube light.
 
Where did you get the anubias?
 
how much ammonia are you adding to the tank?
it might be the lights. you could get a spotlight type lamp with a 15/25 watt bulb aimed right into the tank. i can only grow some low light plants in my ten g with 30 watts on it.
 
Don't give up. I spent years and much $$ killing plants. Thats was before I found smarter and wiser people on the internet. How old is the tank? What else is in the tank? You don't use UV filter, do you?

I have heard that some plants lose leaves when placed in water with a different chemistry or when grown above water and then submerged. Give them time to grow back.

I'd definately try adding another light, as has been previously suggested. I use a 14w spiral on a 5g planted tank. It's got java fern, dwarf sag and duckweed (I think) doing very well. My 14g (esentially a 10g with and extra 4 on top) has 28w 65k light. It's plants are also doing well. I don't have any anubias these days tho. I seemed to only grow algae on them.

I found what worked for me was going "El Natural" (Not me, the tanks silly). I don't try to use the fancy stuff (substrates and ferts) anymore.

-steve
 
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