Secrets To Growing Certain Plants

So in my tanks, I have some plants that just thrive. I have absolutely no issues with them. However some plants I really struggle with. Perhaps someone can give me insight on why they don't or what I can do to help them.

Plants that Thrive - Crypts, Val's, and SOME Anubis.

Plants I've Struggled With - Ludwigia, Amazon Swords, Red Root Floaters, Pennywort, and Java Fern.

I use Seachem Flourish, Excel, and Root tabs every water change.
I have a Finnex Planted+ 23/7 Light that's on about 6 hours a day.

Everything else in my tank just takes off. I've tried Amazon Swords and Ludwigia multiple times with no success.
I do have a Rubin Sword that has been doing great though!

I need plant expert help! I would really like to grow Ludwigia most! But I've never been successful with it.

 

Certain plants need more light than others. Java fern or Anubias don’t need a lot of light. Most root tabs last quite awhile so I’m not sure that you should be using them every water change if you are doing them once a week. For plants it would be good to get at least 10 hours of light a day. Is the light a full spectrum bulb? What kind of substrate are you using? I’m not sure why you can’t grow ludwigia or Amazon swords. In my experiences, Ludwigia has been like anacharis. Don’t need too much light and is easy to grow.

When you plant your Amazon sword, make sure you do not cover up the base of the plant . The pot should be just peaking over the substrate. Don’t cover the bottom stems with substrate. See if that helps.

 

What species of ludwigia are you trying? L. repens would do best in a low tech, others might need a bit more then you can offer at this time.
6hrs lighting is fine, if you decide to up the length of the photoperiod, do it by 30min every other week til algae appears, then back down to last photoperiod. Not sure I would recommend this if the tank is doing well as is

 

How hard is your water? I don't use ferts in all my tanks, and my tank with red root floaters does amazing. They cover the top every 2 weeks. I have extremely soft water, and I think that's helped a lot with my plants, as they all grow well.

 

I probably won't keep the lights on for 10 hours a day because I'd be worried about an algae outbreak.
I only use root tabs once a month really, not weekly. Should have said that.
I've tried Repens and It never tanks to my tank. I have only bought on eBay for a few different sellers and they arrive fine, only to just die off.
I would have to test to check the hardness as I haven't in a while. I've heard that red roots don't like much in way of ferts and don't like much water movement.
Would adding a second light help? Would I just end up with a huge algae issue? Would adding to the light period help?

This is the 60 that is one tank I want to add different plants to.

Another issue I always have is my Anubis getting hard algae on the leaves. I can hardly keep up with it. It is higher up on the driftwood, so I might need to consider lowering it towards the bottom of the tank. Maybe it's getting too much light.

IMAG1143

• Sergeant Pepper
• Jan 11, 2019

 

Where did you purchase your repens from? The first time I bought ludwigia repens from eBay, I actually was sent ludwigia peruensis. That is a bit harder to keep lowtech, although definitely manageable.

The ludwigia plants are by far my favorite, and I've found that the real secret to sucess with keeping them lies in two areas. The first being light and the second being nutrients. Ludwigias love as much light as they can get. Make sure they aren't shaded by floaters or any other plants. Additionally, they do best with water column fertilization. They'll need a comprehensive fertilizers like Thrive by NilocG. Seachem flourish excel only provides micros, but Thrive provides all necessary nutrients.

As for the amazon sword, it should be removed from the pot it was bought in and then planted in the substrate with a root tab under it.

Please note that any plants that come in pots or that are bought online are usually grown emersed, or above the water. As a result, they tend to melt when submerged under the water. If you give them sometime, they'll most likely come back.

Also the hard algae on the anubias is most likely green spot algae (GSA). It is usually a sign of a phosphate deficiency and can be removed by dosing more phosphates.

 

Where did you purchase your repens from? The first time I bought ludwigia repens from eBay, I actually was sent ludwigia peruensis. That is a bit harder to keep lowtech, although definitely manageable.

The ludwigia plants are by far my favorite, and I've found that the real secret to sucess with keeping them lies in two areas. The first being light and the second being nutrients. Ludwigias love as much light as they can get. Make sure they aren't shaded by floaters or any other plants. Additionally, they do best with water column fertilization. They'll need a comprehensive fertilizers like Thrive by NilocG. Seachem flourish excel only provides micros, but Thrive provides all necessary nutrients.

As for the amazon sword, it should be removed from the pot it was bought in and then planted in the substrate with a root tab under it.

Please note that any plants that come in pots or that are bought online are usually grown emersed, or above the water. As a result, they tend to melt when submerged under the water. If you give them sometime, they'll most likely come back.

Also the hard algae on the anubias is most likely green spot algae (GSA). It is usually a sign of a phosphate deficiency and can be removed by dosing more phosphates.

Really? I've heard lots of comments and suggestions about Thrive by NilocG. I've been skeptical but maybe I'll have to give it a try. My ludwigia might be getting too much shade. My crypts, I plan to thin out at some point. There's so many that I have to if I wanna add more.
As far as swords, I've always removed them from the pots. Always do with anything potted. Always root tabs. They just stay small and never go anywhere.

I have bought most of my plants on Ebay. I have one seller I have bought from multiple times and I believe all their plants are grown submerged. But I could be wrong.
I know one thing I'll struggle with is light, being that my 60 is so deep.

 

One Key to Ludwigia is nutrient rich substrate, I use dirt. My ludwigia grows like wild fire

 

Really? I've heard lots of comments and suggestions about Thrive by NilocG. I've been skeptical but maybe I'll have to give it a try. My ludwigia might be getting too much shade. My crypts, I plan to thin out at some point. There's so many that I have to if I wanna add more.
As far as swords, I've always removed them from the pots. Always do with anything potted. Always root tabs. They just stay small and never go anywhere.

I have bought most of my plants on Ebay. I have one seller I have bought from multiple times and I believe all their plants are grown submerged. But I could be wrong.
I know one thing I'll struggle with is light, being that my 60 is so deep.

Is your seller rolandpre6? If so, he does have true ludwigia repens, but they're grown emersed. He also told me that they were grown submersed, but the ludwigia still had tons of flower buds, which is a clear sign of emersed growth. I don't mind that I got emersed plants, but I wish he hadn't lied about it. Still, he had decent quality plants for a good price. You can expect a bit of melting, and they'll come back strong given sufficient light and a good liquid fert. As for the amazon sword, not really sure why it's not surviving unless there isn't enough light or its grown emersed and just needs to transition.

 

One of the sellers I've used is named wetgreenthing. They have a huge variety of plants. I ordered all my Crypts from them and have huge success with them.

I will have to try this stuff again and see. I might invest in the Thrive and see how that work