What would you do with this water wisteria?

My wisteria's original leaves got crispy looking quickly after I first got it. Above that, there's a section of wide leaves that slowly grew in the first few weeks I had it. I recently added an hour of light per day, and now it's starting to grow quickly and in the shape I typically see online. However, I'm now getting brown algae all over every plant and rock, mostly on the older plant growth.

I give my plants API leaf zone weekly, light 8am to 7:30pm including a slow sunrise and sunset. It's just the LED light that came with the tank. Nitrates are always low, like 3-5ppm, but their only source is 2 baby fish and some bladder snails.

I'm wondering what I should do to decrease brown algae growth while keeping the wisteria healthy, and also if and where I should trim it.

 

What size tank is it? You could add a couple otto cats they will most likely clean it up. Or a nerite or two. You can trim it towards the top leaving a little bit of the stem to be able to replant it.

 

45 gallons. My tank isn't fully cycled, so I shouldn't add more fish yet. Nerites could work once my bio filter catches up

 

Try reducing the amount of time your light is on. This could at least slow the algae growth some till you get an nerite or otocinclus.

 

API Leaf Zone may not be the best fertilizer for your tank. It contains only potassium and iron. If that is what your tank needs, that is great, but plants need a lot more than those two specific nutrients. They need the right combination of macronutrients and micronutrients balanced with the right amount of light.

The macronutrients are nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Many tanks are defficient in potassium. That is why Leaf Zone includes that nutrient. However, if the plants are not getting enough nitrogen and phosphorus from the fish food, you might have an issue.

Plants also require calcium, magnesium, iron and several other nutrients. If this are not naturally provided by your tap water, you may been to provide them.

 

API Leaf Zone may not be the best fertilizer for your tank. It contains only potassium and iron. If that is what your tank needs, that is great, but plants need a lot more than those two specific nutrients. They need the right combination of macronutrients and micronutrients balanced with the right amount of light.

The macronutrients are nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Many tanks are defficient in potassium. That is why Leaf Zone includes that nutrient. However, if the plants are not getting enough nitrogen and phosphorus from the fish food, you might have an issue.

Plants also require calcium, magnesium, iron and several other nutrients. If this are not naturally provided by your tap water, you may been to provide them.

Is there a certain fertilizer you recommend? I was afraid adding too many nutrients could fuel the brown algae or damage my fish and bladder snails

 

What you have is an outbreak of diatoms. Common in new aquarium setups. Lowering the light will not help. In time this will go away. But as said in above post ottos an nerites would help. But ottos do poorly in anything other than very well established aquariums.

Look into the Seachem line of plant supplements. I have used them for years with great results. But it is involved. I use 6. The system is designed so you can dial into the needs of the plants rather than throw everything in whether the plants need it or not.

 

Is there a certain fertilizer you recommend? I was afraid adding too many nutrients could fuel the brown algae or damage my fish and bladder snails

Unfortunately, I do not know what nutrients your tank needs, so it is difficult to recommend a specific product.

Seachem makes a good line of fertilizers sold under the Excel name. They make Excel Comprehensive that contains a mixture of all of the micronutrients your tank is likely to need, but it is not designed to supply any of the nutrients you might need in larger quantities such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium or iron. For those, Seachem sells separate products. The advantage of these products is that you can supply exactly what your plants require. The disadvantage is that you have to purchase several products and figure out how much to add of each.

There are also all-in-one fertilizers that contain both micronutrients and macronutrients. It should contain everything your plants should need, but since they are not customized for your aquarium, you might be adding too much of one thing and not enough of another. The advantage is that they are simple to use. One all-in-one product that is commonly recommended is Aquarium Co-op Easy Green. I have not used it, but it sounds like a decent product. The key to using any all-in-one fertilizer is doing periodic large water changes to remove excess nutrients. Thus, they are not recommended for those who are not consistent in their water change routines.

If given proper nutrition and light, water wisteria should be able to outcompete algae.

 

Is there a certain fertilizer you recommend? I was afraid adding too many nutrients could fuel the brown algae or damage my fish and bladder snails

Thrive or easy green is a decent all in one fert.