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Best time of day to dose liquid fertilizers?
During a recent bout of green water, I noticed that some plants put on a
large growth spurt when the lights were off for a few days. Other plants
deteriorated somewhat. It seems reasonable to assume that the plants that
grew in the blackout were pulling more nutrients out of the water column.
But since I didn't want to harm the other plants, I tried a significantly
reduced photoperiod (4.5 hours) instead of a total blackout. After a few
days - no more green water and all the plants were happy. I am now adding
to the length slowly every few days, presently at 8 hours. Which raises the
question: Do (most, some, many) plants do most of their growing at night? If
so, then would it make sense to dose water borne fertilizers like PMDD or
Mastergrow at night so that they were mostly consumed before the algae can
use them the next day? Somewhat related question - Is the optimum
photoperiod inversely related to the light intensity? This whole issue came
about when I upgraded from a 175 watt MH to a 250 watt over a 60 gallon
tank. The shorter photoperiod seems to be working better, but it also means
the tank is dark and not viewable longer.
Tom