Hello everyone :0

I recently won part of a battle with cyanobacteria by dosing nitrates (salt
petre). The cyano slowly over a period of days began to recede, a few tufts
of algae have appeared on leaves since then but nothing serious. What I need
to know is when you are dosing ferts how long do you wait to see a response
in the plants. For instance, if i suspected an iron deficiency and dosed
some ferts to rectify when would I start to see an improvement in the
plants?

Also, my Valisneria is doing well, growing nice and green and sending off
runners but a few of the leaves at their tips seem to be red!!! Any ideas
what this may be? Its not an algae, it seems to appear on another plant that
has ok green growth but then in the middle of the green theres a red rusty
patch! Any ideas?

I am dosing ferts (kent), Nitrates are between 5-10ppm, CO2, pottassium
chloride, lights are 2 15 watt bulbs over a ten gallon tank.

--
Kind Regards
Cameron McNeill
RS&E Graphics Dept.

"Cam" wrote in message ...
Hello everyone :0

I recently won part of a battle with cyanobacteria by dosing nitrates (salt
petre). The cyano slowly over a period of days began to recede, a few tufts
of algae have appeared on leaves since then but nothing serious. What I need
to know is when you are dosing ferts how long do you wait to see a response
in the plants. For instance, if i suspected an iron deficiency and dosed
some ferts to rectify when would I start to see an improvement in the
plants?

Also, my Valisneria is doing well, growing nice and green and sending off
runners but a few of the leaves at their tips seem to be red!!! Any ideas
what this may be? Its not an algae, it seems to appear on another plant that
has ok green growth but then in the middle of the green theres a red rusty
patch! Any ideas?

I am dosing ferts (kent), Nitrates are between 5-10ppm, CO2, pottassium
chloride, lights are 2 15 watt bulbs over a ten gallon tank.

You want to approach it step wise.

See if the light is good, 3w/gal over a 10gal is enough. Check
See if the CO2 is good for the ENTIRE time the lights are on(20-30ppm)
Check?
Recheck it. Folks often mess this one up.
How sure are you of the NO3 reading?
Test kit brand?
You can likely estimate the NO3 through dosing vs the test kit. Even a
60+$ Lamott test kit is tough to get closer than 1-2 ppm of NO3 in
accuracy.

K+, PO4 and traces can be dosed to slight excesses. You add K so it's
unlikely your too low, PO4?
Traces, add about 2-3mls 3x a week. Your plants will not need anymore
than this with this light intensity.
PO4, a drop of Fleet enema or a rice grain's worth 2-3x aweek.

KNO3, add about 1/8 teaspoon 2-3 x a week.
KCL, add about 1/8 terasspon after water change only.
Weekly 50% water change.

Repeat.
Main thing is make sure the CO2 is good.

Regards,
Tom Barr

Thanks once again Tom
As always your input is greatly valued.
I was most despondant the last time we spoke, (you recommended a blackout
for my cyano infested tank.) I did major research and now consider myself
quite an authority on Cyanobacteria I took all the advice you gave me
except for blacking the tank out! It was a very new setup (still is) at the
time (one month to date) and I think the plants needed a little more time to
adjust to their environment and was affraid the blackout might do more harm
than good!

I started adding Traces as I thought that Macros would be in abundance in
the tank with a fishload at 4 x threadfin rainbows, 3 neon rainbows and 2
Cae's. According to my No3 test kit (Sera) my nitrates were 0 ppm !!! Hair
algae formed (I imagine from an abundance of iron trace). The next day I
bought NO3 in the salt petre form and Kcl (no salt) and dry dosed a little.
The results were brilliant, the cyano basically cleared up in 2 days (not
completely mind you, but MUCH better). My Nitrates are now still below 10
ppm but Im still finding my feet with ferts so am taking it conservatively
at this stage! Its only a ten gallon and not as forgiving as some of your
bigger tanks

The plants were looking much better but something was still missing, and of
course you were right, PO4! I do not know the levels of Phosphate in the
tank but deduced that its a fairly new setup and if the Nitrates were so low
then probably PO4 aswell Right? Anyhoo I dosed about an 8th of a teaspoon
yesterday and when I came home last night the Plants were pearling like
never before. Yahooo, amen

I bought an iron test kit (old but hopefully still accurate!!!) it says the
iron levels are at 0.2. I will calm down a tad on the micros I'm really
beginning to understand the relationship between plants and their needs.
Most fascinating I must say. Over the last month I have educated myself
considerably and seem to think that If I had paid better attention at school
I might have ended up being a Chemistry buff LOL. I'm well and truly
hooked on this fascinating hobby and a planted tank has been my most
rewarding tank to date :0

Tom/Group, thanks again for your help. Happy plantkeeping
PS. What is Anthomycin? (Sp?)






" wrote in message
om...
"Cam" wrote in message
...
Hello everyone :0

I recently won part of a battle with cyanobacteria by dosing nitrates
(salt
petre). The cyano slowly over a period of days began to recede, a few
tufts
of algae have appeared on leaves since then but nothing serious. What I
need
to know is when you are dosing ferts how long do you wait to see a
response
in the plants. For instance, if i suspected an iron deficiency and dosed
some ferts to rectify when would I start to see an improvement in the
plants?

Also, my Valisneria is doing well, growing nice and green and sending
off
runners but a few of the leaves at their tips seem to be red!!! Any
ideas
what this may be? Its not an algae, it seems to appear on another plant
that
has ok green growth but then in the middle of the green theres a red
rusty
patch! Any ideas?

I am dosing ferts (kent), Nitrates are between 5-10ppm, CO2, pottassium
chloride, lights are 2 15 watt bulbs over a ten gallon tank.

You want to approach it step wise.

See if the light is good, 3w/gal over a 10gal is enough. Check
See if the CO2 is good for the ENTIRE time the lights are on(20-30ppm)
Check?
Recheck it. Folks often mess this one up.
How sure are you of the NO3 reading?
Test kit brand?
You can likely estimate the NO3 through dosing vs the test kit. Even a
60+$ Lamott test kit is tough to get closer than 1-2 ppm of NO3 in
accuracy.

K+, PO4 and traces can be dosed to slight excesses. You add K so it's
unlikely your too low, PO4?
Traces, add about 2-3mls 3x a week. Your plants will not need anymore
than this with this light intensity.
PO4, a drop of Fleet enema or a rice grain's worth 2-3x aweek.

KNO3, add about 1/8 teaspoon 2-3 x a week.
KCL, add about 1/8 terasspon after water change only.
Weekly 50% water change.

Repeat.
Main thing is make sure the CO2 is good.

Regards,
Tom Barr

PS. What is Anthomycin? (Sp?)

Eyrthromycin or Anthocyanin?
One is an antibiotic sometimes used to treat BGA/Cyano, the other is a
pigment found in plants, like the red in an onion.

Blackout does not harm the plants. If you take care of the nutrients
also, it doesn't hurt them at all. It's only for 3 days.......folks
ship plants much longer sometimes than this and most shippers take
this long anyway, plants always show in good shape unless they get
cooked by heat or frozen solid etc.

Don't worry, plants can take a blackout no problem.
It will surprise you how well it works. It's often too disheartening
for some to not turn their tank light on for 3 days.....but just do
it.

Regards,
Tom Barr

I'm going home and wrap my tank and black it out while I'm gone for a
3-day weekend. Not nearly as disheartening that way :-)

James