Re: [APD] RE: Fertilizing a new tank(when to start)

["S. Hieber" <shieber at yahoo_com>]

Okay. That makes sense tome since substantial build up of
food for the anaerobic bacteria will take a while to occur
as will the population of bacteria. Then that suggests that
fresh substrate doesn't pose problems N problems and isn't
a reason to avoid feeding plants, even in a new tank.

Of course, if the substrate is loaded with food for
bacteria and the bacteria too, that would pretty much make
the "new" tank like and older tank, and then there would be
no reason not to feed the plants because the tank is new.

The best case for no-dosing a new tank might be one where
the plant food has been already added -- e.g., via a soil
underlayment. But htat is not so much a case of not feeding
the plants as doing it right from the start and in a
time-release fashion.


Scott H.
--- Robert T Ricketts <rtricketts at erols_com> wrote:

> Scott H. was discussing and questioning the nitrogen
> reduction activities of
> anaerobes in the substrate.
> 
> >From my limited trials on FW (mostly but not entirely
> planted) plenums, I
> never saw any ammonia or nitrite in the water column. 
> IME the establishment
> of denitrification in the substrate is about the slowest
> part of
> establishing a tank - I never saw detectable effects in
> nitrate reduction in
> less than 4 months, so for me and my soil-free, largely
> organic-free
> substrates that was not at all a new tank process.  When
> ammonia or nitrite
> are produced in the substrate, there should be enough
> oxidizers (facultative
> or aerobic) at higher levels of the substrate to oxidize
> any leakage before
> it hits the water column.
> 
> I have no idea what the situation would be for soil
> substrates which were
> not pre-soaked, or for other significant organic
> component substrates.
> Those would be different ball games from my trials.
> 
> Robert Ricketts
> 
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