Java Fern Has Holes In It??

Hey so I’ve had these for awhile now I did have them planted in a plastic cup with soil underneath and rocks on top which worked fine I actually had to start splitting it so now I have about 5 separate plants but now this one and a few others have gotten holes in them and another ha actually gone brownish see through I don’t what the cause of it is and how to fix it my banana Lilly is growing amazing since I’ve put it in this tank

 

Do you add fertilizer to this tank?
It looks like maybe a micronutrient deficiency (maybe iron or potassium?)- I have a hard time telling them apart though.

 

Hey so I’ve had these for awhile now I did have them planted in a plastic cup with soil underneath and rocks on top which worked fine I actually had to start splitting it so now I have about 5 separate plants but now this one and a few others have gotten holes in them and another ha actually gone brownish see through I don’t what the cause of it is and how to fix it my banana Lilly is growing amazing since I’ve put it in this tank View attachment 447072View attachment 447073View attachment 447074

Looks like you have the rhizome buried, that could be the cause of it dying.

 

I don’t add any fertilisers as it all costs way too much and I’m worried about it doing something to the water or the fish.

The rhizome is a bit buried I can’t get it to stay in the substrate if it isn’t, it always seems to float to the surface if it isn’t buried just a little do you have any ideas on how I could get it to stay where I want it with out it being buried?

 

Gently separate the rhizome from the roots and just push the roots into the substrate/rock pile.
Some people use zip ties to tie the plant to a rock or piece of wood, then cut it off when it anchors (the roots will stick into the things around it, so if you like to change your scape, you might give it a specific rock/wood piece to attach to so you can move it).
Alternatively I've heard you can use thread, but I've kind of wondered if fish will try to eat than.

If you're not going to use fertilizer, you may run into problems like this from time to time. Especially with more plants - fewer nutrients to go around. But you can try planting things and see what makes it. But also if you recently moved this java fern it may still need some time to adjust.

 

Are these new to your tank?

I usually have them die back a bit when I first get them (I have one that looks EXACTLY like this right now that just went in last week). Once it's settled and starts to growing again I usually trim off the leaves like this.

I also do the zip tie thing.

 

Yeah ok Thankyou I might try attaching a few to small rocks and bury the roots of the others and see how either ones go

They are actually reasonably new to this tank I have just upgraded tanks so I’m thinking that may be one of the causes for how they are going