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Unknown Plant Melts.....After a Water Change

Leoki

New Member
Joined
11 Oct 2021
Messages
9
Location
UK
Hello UKAPS,

My plants (photos attached, think crypts?) melted after a water change. Is this normal? What would have caused it?
Tank is about 6pH. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite and 15 nitrate before the WC.
Attached is a before photo (with some algae), and melting plants after.
What would have caused the melting? temp change, pH change? Hardness (water here is very very soft, pics attached).
I have always struggled with my plants, and they have never really taken off. Tank is ~2 years old with 5 CPDs, 7 emerald eye rasbora and 5 phantom tetra.
The plants have a spurt for a month or so, then struggle ever after. Previously they have been in the soil, but always floated like nobodies business, i guess due to the 'loose' nature of the soil.. Since going in pots, plants have done best they have ever done (until the water change)
I dose 0.7ml JBL ferropol a day. Some root tabs every now and then (including in the pots).
Almost about to give up with plants, after struggling for ages. Light is standard one that came with (AquaCube One). The instruction manual says in poor english its 700W.
 

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Hi all,
Welcome to the forum, you've come to the right place.
water here is very very soft
A lot of people <"would kill to have your water out of the tap">. It is much easier to add things to water than to take them away, so you actually start from a very good place.

Cryptocoryne spp. are well known for melting, and we don't exactly know why. Looking at the "before photo", there are definitely signs of leaf tissue issues before the water change, so I think it is just coincidental.
I have always struggled with my plants, and they have never really taken off......... I dose 0.7ml JBL ferropol a day. Some root tabs every now and then (including in the pots).
I think that maybe your problem with plant growth, your plants are lacking one, or more, of the <"essential nutrients for plant growth">. The problem with <"JBL Ferropol"> is that it is only really supplying one macronutrient (potassium (K+)) and several micronutrients including iron (Fe+++) but there are still lots of other nutrients plants require.

The companies that sell a lot of these fertilisers attempt to obscure what their mixes contain and their major aim is to well you the <"most expensive water in the world">.

UKAPS members @Zeus. , @X3NiTH and @Hanuman have constructed a wonderful spreadsheet that <"breaks down the cost of fertilisers">, and they've found that <"TNC Complete"> is the best buy out of the <"aquarium fertilisers"> available to us in the UK.

I think once you start adding a complete mix your plant issues will go away. How much fertiliser you add depends on how quickly you would like your plants to grow, I use a technique where I use the <"health and leaf colour of a floating plant"> (the <"Duckweed Index">) as an aid to when I need to add nutrients, others will use a more regular fertiliser addition based on the <"Estimative Index (EI)">

cheers Darrel
 
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So no N/NO3 or P/PO4 so far from complete, the only way they get away with it is most tanks have fish which will provide N and P, however it may be far from enough for our plants. The line up of JBL products is similar to ADA line up - many bottles to buy to get everything we need for our planted tanks, so cost more to purchase increasing sales profit.

1633948618758.png

Not sure if JBL Proscape is the same as JBL Ferropol, however it shows a comparison
 
You’re not adding a complete fertiliser and have soft water so this will be your issue. I’d recommend changing for a complete fertiliser, tropica specialised is a good albeit expensive option compared to mixing your own option. Maybe add abit of gh booster such as seachem equilibrium during your water change too. I use really soft water and certain plants, especially cryptocoryne, suffer if I don’t add some
Gh booster.

Cheers
 
I also think the metling is coincidential since you had already issue prior the WC

Like others said, you need a complete fertilzing regimen with npk + trace elements. Depending on how often you do WC, you will need to use calcium/magnesium fertilzer (GH Booster). I.E if you do a WC per month, the Magnesium probably bottom out.
 
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