EI Half Dose

[nijat11]

Hi All!
So since dosing EI i have crazy growth, I need to trim my plants almost every week and it is becomming a big annoying.
So I was thinking to switch to half ei dosing , will it help to reduce growth speed and could it somehow affect the plants in a bad way?
Thank you in advance.

 

[Andy Pierce]

One option is to gradually replace your fast growing (presumably stem) plants with slower growing species - that's what I mostly wound up doing. In terms of your original suggestion around reducing the EI ferts, I think you'd be better off turning your lighting intensity down. Controlling growth rate through nutrient deficiency seems like asking for a lot of problems to me.

 

[si walker]

Lucky you aye.
Farmer!!

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

So since dosing EI i have crazy growth, I need to trim my plants almost every week and it is becomming a big annoying.

The issue you have is the tussle between a <"quick win and longer term stability">. I'm going to guess that a lot of us have been there, after the initial elation of having mastered plant growth comes the realisation that <"you can have too much of a good thing">.

So I was thinking to switch to half ei dosing , will it help to reduce growth speed and could it somehow affect the plants in a bad way?

It should be OK, but you may find that some plants only have one speed and that is <"turned up to eleven">.

Personally I've reached a stage where <"I'm after plants"> that will survive and grow slowly on <"petrol fumes">. I just have surface (and sub-surface) floating plants as my <"stems">.

cheers Darrel

 

[bazz]

Hi all,

The issue you have is the tussle between a <"quick win and longer term stability">. I'm going to guess that a lot of us have been there, after the initial elation of having mastered plant growth comes the realisation that <"you can have too much of a good thing">.

It should be OK, but you may find some plants only have one speed and that is <"turned up to eleven">.

Personally I've reached a stage where <"I'm after plants"> that will survive and grow slowly on <"petrol fumes">. I just have surface (and sub-surface) floating plants as my <"stems">.

cheers Darrel

A man of my own heart. I enjoy trimming an odd spent/unwanted leaf off of an odd Crypt now and again but two hours of trimming, removing trimmings and replanting per week is a thing of the past for me, that is after initial start-up and the gradual replacement of most of the stem plants.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

A man of my own heart.

I'll be honest, I'm just <"incredibly lazy"> and always follow the <"path of least resistance">. I look on the requirement for limited intervention <"as a positive">.

cheers Darrel

 

[Scaperinc]

I learned that the hard way initially going semi EI route and trimmingevery other week, atm i am doing nitrate limitation though water column and happy with results and growth has slowed and better colours on rotala hra

 

[nijat11]

I learned that the hard way initially going semi EI route and trimmingevery other week, atm i am doing nitrate limitation though water column and happy with results and growth has slowed and better colours on rotala hra

Could you share your recipe please?

 

[Scaperinc]

@nijat11 i was going to buy the dry salts for just trace elements and just dose them because i have nitates in my tap water but i bought superfish scaper 50 and 45 they come with flora grow fertz which have no phosphate and N , so i use one pump of that per day .

I also had an issue with GSA and advise from youtube and this forum which i have understood is caused by low phosphate levels(or high) so i dose 2-3 times a week monopotashim phosphate 20mg mixied in 500ml of RO water , pumps 2ml per pump Monopotassium Phosphate KH2PO4 Pure £2.99 | Aqua Plants Care

I also have TNC all in one which i dose once or twice every other week to stop nitrates bottoming out instead of flora grow and KH2PO4.

My main worry atm is Fe , ph in my tap water is around 8. So i hope my plants will not have deficiency so i am thinking about buying DTPA fe dry salt but at the moment i dont see any deficiency so holding off on it

I must say i am no way shape or form an expert and every tank is so different.i mainly test nitrates and phosphate every now and then .

So not a very set formula kind of trying it out to see what works. Just dosing all in one everyday caused me alge (i think it was the cause)

What you could try is one week dose All in one and 2nd week just trace elements and see how that works for you.

 

[rdk1402]

Simply reduce light intensity. If you inject CO2 gas also, which I suspect, reduce it gradually as well. It is pretty amazing but understandable how fast plants can grow in low light intensity but with CO2 gas injected.

You can grow all the popular difficult plant species in very low light and CO2 injection, without significant stem elongation. But your tank will color 'green' though.