Help! My plants don't seem to be growing :(

standardbyker63

standardbyker63

AC Members
Dec 10, 2008
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Bettendorf, IA
I bought some java ferns a few months back and put in my tank to help offset the algae growth. The plants didn't look great, but I only paid around $5 for a large clump of them and after removing the dead leaves, they looked fine. I didn't want to spend a lot of money on plants because I was afraid my goldies would eat them. It seems that since my tank originally had plastic plants in it for the first 9 months, the goldies didn't bother the live plants, so I bought some amazon swords. I have sand substrate, so I wasn't sure if they would grow in it or not. After a few months, it doesn't seem they are doing too well. The java fern looks exactly the same as the day I bought it but the swords just look like they've very slowly died off. I can't notice any real growth, only a yellowing and thinning of the leaves with some completely disolved away. One of the plants looked so bad, I uprooted it and threw it away, but not before noticing that it had established a root system in the sand. The algae in the tank has definitely subsided noticably since adding the plants. I do 30-40% water changes every week or two. Ammonia and nitrites are at zero, nitrates stay low w/ water changes. Any ideas why they aren't growing? I really like the look of real plants now vs fake. Perhaps I have the wrong bulb?

29g
20W bulb
4 small goldies, I know it's too many :(
air stone
penguin bio wheel power filter

Any help is greatly appreciated.
 
is the bulb incadescant or flourescent? did you put any root tabs under the plants?
 
You need more lighting, bulb type isn't really important but 20w is insufficient for your tank and you should double it. Put the lights on a 10 hr timer. If growth doesn't improve add a root tab or do weekly liquid fertilization with something like Flourish comprehensive.
 
I never used root tabs. What are they? How do they benefit the plant? The bulb is a flourescent bulb. I'm still using the light fixture that came with the setup but I've replaced the bulb and try to keep it replaced every 6 months or so. I do have a bottle of Flourish iron supplement, but I really haven't used it because I don't have an iron test kit to tell if the levels are correct. Is this the same Flourish product you mentioned above? Also, in regards to getting a larger light source, can I get a new fixture that allows for more watts but still fits on top of the hood? Thanks for your quick replies :)
 
Also, the light is set on a 10 hour timer and has been so for about the last month and a half. The reason I mentioned something about the bulb type is because last time I replaced the bulb, the guy at the LFS recommended going with a bulb that has more of a bluish tint to help reduce the algae (I didn't have live plants at the time) so I was wondering if this could have anything to do with the lack of growth. I'm planning on replacing the bulb soon and going back to the natural spectrum bulb, eventhough the blue tint looks pretty cool.
 
i would reccomend going with CFL bulbs. i had a 20W flour. on a 10gal. and it wasnt enough to keep my swords alive.
 
Root tabs are fertilizer you bury in the substrate, they usually contain most of the nutrients necessary for plant growth.

Flourish Iron doesn't contain the other nutrients. Seachem has another item simply called Flourish that contains a little bit of everything.

But you will need to increase the lighting first. Simply switching the bulb won't help, you need to get another bulb in there. The cheapest way to add more light is to switch to an incandescent hood that allows you to have two screw in CFL bulbs. Slightly more expensive but will provide better spread is to replace the hood with a 2 tube fixture.
 
How are the Java Ferns planted? If you buried the rhizome in the sand then it will rot and the plant will slowly die. It is best to be attached to something like a rock or driftwood. Also the Java Fern is a slow growing plant.
 
Lighting is your problem... java fern is a fairly low light plant and will SURVIVE with almost no light

but... that doesnt mean it will grow... it will stay alive with less than 1 WPG

but it needs about 2 WPG to acctually grow and flourish

country_boy454 said:
How are the Java Ferns planted? If you buried the rhizome in the sand then it will rot and the plant will slowly die. It is best to be attached to something like a rock or driftwood. Also the Java Fern is a slow growing plant.
Click to expand...

THAT TOO!!
 
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