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Plant Nutrition in new tank



I set up a new 30-gallon planted tank a week ago.  It’s doing pretty good so
far.  However, I have a few questions about nutrient deficiencies that I
have noticed.  My new tank is eating up NO3 very quickly.  I measured it
yesterday morning at 10-20 ppm, and this morning at 0 ppm.  So, a 10-20 ppm
drop in 24 hours, and that was after I added about 5 ml of PMDD halfway
through the day yesterday.  The plants consume available Phosphates very
quickly too.  This is a new phenomenon to me.  I’ve never had a tank eat up
nutrients like this.  It’s going to take me some time to figure out how much
I should add to maintain specific levels.  Now for my questions. Once I
notice nutrient deficiencies and add the necessary nutrient to correct the
problem, do the affected plants recover or are the affected leaves a lost
cause once they show the deficiency?  A day or two ago, my Java Ferns
started to show yellowing/withering along the leaf edges, on both old and
new leaves.  One of the biggest and oldest leaves was showing these same
symptoms around its leaf edges, but also in the middle of the leaf; lots of
yellowing spots throughout the leaf.  Since my tank is eating up Nitrogen so
quickly, I decided to add some KNO3 for good measure.  Also, according to
the nutrient deficiencies chart at Chuck Gadd’s site, it looks like this may
be a Potassium deficiency, too.  So I added about a half teaspoon of K2SO4.
However, these also seem to be symptoms of a Calcium deficiency.  So I added
a few milliliters of CaNO.  Also, a Magnesium deficiency seems to fit the
scenario.  So I added about a quarter teaspoon of MgSO4+7H2O.

Geez, with all these possible deficiencies, how does anyone ever pinpoint
one specific deficiency, especially when there’s a lot of crossover?  How
long should I wait after adding the nutrients before I decide I didn’t add
enough or the proper nutrient to correct the deficiency and therefore should
add more or try a different nutrient?  Will the withering leaf edges recover
after adding the proper nutrient, or will the nutrient only prevent other
plants from meeting the same fate (i.e. the one showing the deficiency is a
lost cause)?

Is there anyone or any Website out there that can instruct plant aquarium
hobbyists on how to custom make their own PMDD?  What I mean is if I have a
month’s worth of data about my water parameters and notes on daily nutrient
additions and how quickly those nutrients are consumed, is there anyway to
translate that into a customized fertilizer for my tank that will allow my
to add 1 ml, 2 ml or 5 ml everyday, and my tank will be supplied with all
the nutrients necessary for its particular metabolism?

Finally, what in a tank consumes or depletes your KH?  The KH of my tap
water is 5-6 degrees.  However, one day after a 30% water change, the KH in
my tank is only 2-3 degrees.  What consumes or depletes the carbonates in a
tank that quickly?  Well, that’s the end of my flurry of questions.  Thanks
in advance for any help or advice!

Tank parameters as of this morning (11:30 am, half hour before lights on):
Size: 30 gallons
Lighting: 96 watts AH Supply Bright Kit
Photoperiod: 10 hours
Pressurized CO2 at 1 bubble every two to three seconds
Substrate: Flourite
Filtration: Eheim Pro II model 2026
Temp: 76 degrees F.
PH: 6.6
KH: 3 - 4 degrees (after adding ½ tsp of baking soda yesterday)
CO2: 23 – 30 ppm
NO3: 0 – 5 ppm (added 10 ml PMDD after testing)
PO4: 0.1 ppm (added 2 ml KH2PO4 after testing)
Fe: < 0.1 ppm (added 10 ml Chelated Trace Elements after testing)
Plants: Vallisneria, Red Foxtail, Wisteria, Java Fern, Anubias nana,
Christmas Moss, Hairgrass, one Crypt Wendtii, and a crapload of Riccia
fluitans

Thanks,
Gamera




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