# Plants Ferts



## mec102778 (Feb 17, 2011)

Ok so i've been dosing with CO2 and Aqueon Plant Food. I feel like I should be adding other stuff since some of my plants have red leaves.

How do I know what other plant foods I should be adding?


----------



## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

If you go to this site it will explain a lot of what is needed. He also sells dry ferts that last a long time.

Welcome To The Home Of The Best Aquarium Regulator


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

You can get an iron additive for plants with red....green plants need it too. The site posted is good info. I love the way Rex explains things. 

Unless you have fairly high light I would think full EI dosing would not be necessary for you. I'd recommend this :Planted Aquarium Fertilizer - Dry Fertilizers, Dry Fertilizers, Planted Aquarium Fertilizer - Macro Micro Nutrient Mix, Macro Micro Nutrient Mix, and then just dose once a week. Your light drives your plants to use the nutrients, and without that driving force, too much ferts in the water will fuel algae. You can also get an iron additive there.

Not recommending one site or the other for buying, but this site pre-mixes it for you. It's a PMDD solution.


----------



## mec102778 (Feb 17, 2011)

Ok that's an awesome site, thank you Susan and Ben!


----------



## BBradbury (Apr 22, 2011)

Hello Mike. I'm strictly a low tech tank keeper, no CO2. Didn't think you really needed extra ferts if you dosed CO2 and had a good number of fish. I think you may be over-fertilizing which can be just as harmful as not feeding enough. I'd suggest feeding half the recommended dose for the next two to three weeks and see how the plants respond. If this doesn't help, I suggest trying another liquid fert. I personally like Yamato Green, it has a good balance of plant nutrients.

BBradbury


----------



## mec102778 (Feb 17, 2011)

yeah DIY CO2, couple of fish, lots of plants, O2 for the evening. Just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something.


----------



## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

The problem is with using fish to add the ferts you will not get all that is needed especially if you have plants that have a lot of red in them. Dry ferts is basically a cheaper way to go. One order of all the ferts that I buy from Rex's site last me a year and that is with several planted tanks. I use EI dosing which I dose every day and then reset the parameters each week with a minimum of a 50% water change. As long as you are doing the required water changes and you have the lighting and co2 which Mike has he shouldn't have any problems with over dosing. Even in a low light no co2 situation once or twice a week dosing should help your plants.


----------



## mec102778 (Feb 17, 2011)

thank you Susan, and yup as soon as I have the extra cash I will be buying the ferts from Rex. The only red plant I currently have is the hornwort(?) which looks nice but I think i want something with more of a color flare. 

Lights = 2 CFL / 13w / 6500k bulbs (I have 2 - CFL / 26W / 6500K bulbs waiting for a different fixture).


----------



## mec102778 (Feb 17, 2011)

Current pic of the 10G.

<a href="http://s1212.photobucket.com/albums/cc460/mec102778/?action=view&current=10Gsettled.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1212.photobucket.com/albums/cc460/mec102778/th_10Gsettled.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" ></a>

Begining Pic (red stem plant in front has been moved to the back).

<a href="http://s1212.photobucket.com/albums/cc460/mec102778/Water%20Bridge%20Project/?action=view&current=10G6.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1212.photobucket.com/albums/cc460/mec102778/Water%20Bridge%20Project/th_10G6.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" ></a>

After adding Wisteria, Java Moss, Vesuvious.

<a href="http://s1212.photobucket.com/albums/cc460/mec102778/Water%20Bridge%20Project/?action=view&current=10Gestablished.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1212.photobucket.com/albums/cc460/mec102778/Water%20Bridge%20Project/th_10Gestablished.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" ></a>


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Does your cam have a higher resolution? I can't see anything red.


----------



## mec102778 (Feb 17, 2011)

you can see the red colored plant in pics 2 and 3. Hornwort I believe, and it's not completely red just the underside of the leaves.


----------



## James0816 (Jun 19, 2009)

L. Repens is the plant with the red under the leaves. Hornwort is usually a dark green. There is a almost similar plant called Red Foxtail (Myriophyllum heterophyllum) but definately distinguishable from Hornwort. There are some nice reds in the Rotala family as well.

As for ferts, I use both the PMDD pre-mix and EI depending on the tank. If you are just getting started with dry ferts, I would recommend to start with the pre-mix blends. Once you get higher requirment plants, you can then look to switching to EI in which you control what and how much nurtrients to add. For example, red plants need Iron. You can add a tad more Iron in your dosing scheme with EI.


----------

