# My plants are dying. (sorta)



## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

My plants' leaves and roots appear to be rotting, and I don't know what to do. I also have a BIG algae bloom in my tank. What do I do? *c/p*


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## Sully (Oct 31, 2012)

How long are you running your lights for?


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

uhm... about.... hmmm... all the time


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

That would explain the algae. 8-10hrs, depending on the light, is usually enough. Is it green water or algae on surfaces?

What plants do you have? How do you know the roots have rotted? What light do you have (wattage, type, k-spectrum of the bulbs)?


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

brown algae on surfaces


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

i have several LED lights, and i don't know what plants i have. the plants' leaves are brown on top and magenta on the bottom. the roots and leaves are turning black and there are several floating on top of the tank.


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## jshiloh13 (Dec 12, 2010)

Did the algae come before the plants started dieing? If it came first the aglae could be blocking the light from the plants. I was having this problem in my tank so I bought a mystery snail, and the plants are doing much better.


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

it started growing at about the same time i got the plants, but i got an algae eater, the algae's MUCH better, but the plants haven't changed a bit, except for getting a little bigger.


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## Summer (Oct 3, 2011)

Do a total black out. Cover the tank for 3 days with a dark blanket or sheet, allowing NO light inside. dont peek, dont feed, do nothing for three days. at the endof the 3 days do a large water change and your algae should be dramatically reduced. THEN you need to cut back the hours you have the light on. As for the plants, it would help to know what they are. pictures?


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## jccaclimber2 (May 6, 2012)

^I think this may be a diatom issue, rather than a green water issue. The lights being on all the time isn't helping, but if it's brown rather than green I'm not inclined to prescribe a blackout.
What are your feeding habits and what are your water change habits? Do you know your nitrate level? Do you have any fertilizers? Also, please tell us a bit more about your LEDs. Depending on the system you could have anywhere from not enough light to too much.


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## GreenyFunkyMonkey (Nov 27, 2012)

LED lights are not always the best for plants. You have to get the ones for plants which are much more expensive. Plants generally need about 10 hours of light per day, and then periods of complete darkness so they can rest. Also, make sure you have enough Co2 in the water and add fertilizer to the water along with fertilizer capsules for the rooted plants. I am not sure your soil type, but I used soil especially for aquarium plants. If those things do not help, make sure your plants are the right species for your aquarium temperature are within their compatible range.


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

i have gravel for soil, is that okay?


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## GreenyFunkyMonkey (Nov 27, 2012)

Regular gravel is not always the best. For my aquarium I have flourite layered under some pea gravel. 

You can probably get this at your pet store, but here is flourite on Amazon. 

Amazon.com: Flourite, 7 kg / 15.4 lbs: Pet Supplies


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Pea-sized gravel works fine for many plants. Again, if you could provide a list of the plants you have or post a pic of them we could help you better.


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## jccaclimber2 (May 6, 2012)

You can grow all sorts of stuff in basic sand or gravel with a bit of fertilizer. Some of these are very low maintenance, and one is medium/high light:


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