Java Fern / Anubias Nana Issues

Hey everyone, I just wanted to see if you all could help me identify fixes to two plants. I have a java fern with brown holes (see pic below) and some (but not all) of my anubias nanas that I've attached to dragonstone are melting a little bit. Any ideas as to how I could rectify these issues? On the java fern, the holing is only on a couple of leaves but the rest of the leaves look fine.

Thanks for the help!

 

Hi there! How long have you had these plants? What fertilizer do you use?

 

My javas have been in there for 3-4 months now. And the anubias for 2-3 months.

I have a Caribsea Eco-complete substrate underneath a light layer of sand. I do very light dosing of Flourish Excel maybe once a week for fear of killing my fish (first time I did it with fish I lost a couple so have been cautious since). I also buried in a bunch of Flourish Tabs throughout the tank for added nutrients. Have light CO2 running in the tank as well.

 

My javas have been in there for 3-4 months now. And the anubias for 2-3 months.

I have a Caribsea Eco-complete substrate underneath a light layer of sand. I do very light dosing of Flourish Excel maybe once a week for fear of killing my fish (first time I did it with fish I lost a couple so have been cautious since). I also buried in a bunch of Flourish Tabs throughout the tank for added nutrients. Have light CO2 running in the tank as well.

When you say light CO2, do you have an approximate value you can share? A drop checker color for example?

Eco-complete is unfortunately not very complete - misleading marketing. Root tabs will help add the needed nutrients to the substrate, but unfortunately Flourish tabs lack the very important NPK macronutrients.
Excel is good for a little boost/algae suppression, but offers no nutrients.
On top of this, anubias and java fern are epiphytes that feed from the water column.

I think you see where I'm going with this - you have no water column nutrients while injecting CO2. I recommend getting an all-in-one fertilizer like Nilocg Thrive, if you're in the US.

Also make sure you have good flow and circulation to bring all the good stuff in the water to the plants. Clean debris and waste weekly

 

Ok thanks, I'll go take a look at the Nilocg Thrive. I am a tad concerned about the impact on the fish stock, have you heard anything on the product that I should be cognizant of?

In terms of circulation, I attached a picture of the tank below but you'll see a Sicce Voyager Nano in the back top of my tank to promote some circulation. Hopefully that's sufficient. I needed to be careful not to put it in a place that caused my stock to get blasted 24/7 by current.

Balancing plants and fish, always fun...

 

And on the question re. CO2, I'm not sure of the exact amount, I have a bubble counter that bubbles every 5-6 seconds or so. They usually recommend a higher dispersion rate (like a bubble every 3-4 seconds I think) but again wanted to avoid fish kill.

 

Ok thanks, I'll go take a look at the Nilocg Thrive. I am a tad concerned about the impact on the fish stock, have you heard anything on the product that I should be cognizant of?

In terms of circulation, I attached a picture of the tank below but you'll see a Sicce Voyager Nano in the back top of my tank to promote some circulation. Hopefully that's sufficient. I needed to be careful not to put it in a place that caused my stock to get blasted 24/7 by current.

Balancing plants and fish, always fun...

Nope, all aquarium plant fertilizers are fish and invert safe
Flow looks good. Overall plant health also looks good!
Deficiencies that show up in slower growing plants like these indicate long term problems that have been around for a while.
I will say the melt pattern on the anubias looks a little different from typical deficiency though, start dosing Thrive for a few months and see if the new growth leaves are healthy. Also make sure you have a stable routine for water changing, dosing, CO2, flow, etc

And on the question re. CO2, I'm not sure of the exact amount, I have a bubble counter that bubbles every 5-6 seconds or so. They usually recommend a higher dispersion rate (like a bubble every 3-4 seconds I think) but again wanted to avoid fish kill.

That's very very little for a tank this size

 

Ok thanks for the guidance. I do 20-25% water change every 1-2 weeks. 50% RO/50% tap and then add Excel and bacteria supplement to the water. I'll start integrating Thrive doses and also up the CO2.