So I'm kind of in emergency mode right now, but my plants, specifically my only swords in my aquarium for the last couple/few weeks have started dying..... so it sucks to look at them because they're yellowing, damaged and stems/leaves are weak. They were in rather pretty good condition like a month to 2 months ago. Here's what I have and some, I'll just be getting rid of in exchange for another: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tank size: 55gal Water Change: 50% Water Chemistry: Unknown at the moment Substrate: 50/50 of cichlid sand and eco complete Heating: Eheim jager at 82F Filter: Marineland C-530, last cleaned Feb 1st Media: polishing pad Media: foam sponges media: fluval biomax media: fluval clearmax (still in, getting rid of though) media: eheim peat moss granules (buying) Fertilizers: API Leaf Zone (getting rid of) Fertilizers: Seachem Root Tabs (buying) Fertilizers: GLA Dry Ferts E.I. package (buying) Lighting: Current USA Satellite LED Plus (2) = 60par Co2: Seachem Flourish Excel (once a week, getting rid of) Co2: Injection system with 5lb tank (buying)
It's been many years since I've been into aquariums but my first thought would be to check the pH of the water; too acidic or alkaline could cause the plants to "fall apart". Pick up a little kit from your local pet shop and check it.....some kits are very elaborate but I would start with pH as this is usually the culprit. As per Aquatic Community: "The blanket needs of the majority of sword plants are a highly enriched substrate, bright lighting, regular fertilization, 72-82 degrees, moderately soft to moderately hard water, and a pH between 6.8 and 7.5. If your sword's leaves start to yellow, iron is what it lacks." Hope this helps
So you're basically saying get on that testing part or the water chemistry, got it. I'm looking up the PH needs or at least acceptable range and it looks like 6.0 to 7.6 is the range. http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/myPlants.php?do=view&p=15 and and http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=768+1632+802&pcatid=802 And for you're second part, iron might be the deficiency. Thanks a ton! Yeah, I looked at the URL's when you gave me that reply, looks like you're spot on. Moreover, looks like they're medium difficulty.....sucks, its a good thing I'm only getting low light / easy plants from Mizu World
Water quality is very important to both plants and fish; I would recommend testing weekly as the water conditions in a confined area - i.e. a fish tank - can change quickly. You may even want to test your tap water to see what you're starting with. Now, I am not familiar with "50/50 of cichlid sand and eco complete" but if there are any shells or corals in the water it can drastically alter the pH, making it very alkaline. FYI, shells and corals will breakdown in fresh water (pH 7.0 is considered neutral) and buffer it to a pH of brackish or even salt water (average pH of 8.0) if given the chance - if you've ever removed a shell that has been sitting in freshwater you will notice that it feels gritty/chalky and might even cause the water to go cloudy and this is because it is breaking down. The more acidic the water, the faster this will happen. Good luck
Ok, so yeah, test my water weekly, the cichlid sand is for soft water fish, so it would have the opposite effect of making it go up to 8.0, if anything it would make the PH go to 6.0. So, I'll be testing it this weekend, and update as well when I get the dry ferts
