[APD] Re: Re: Amazon Swords

[Lief Brittan Youngs <liefy at yahoo_com>]

My substrate is just plain aquarium gravel about 4+ inches deep. Since my plants were doing okay when I ran out of Planttabs I decided not to buy any more. Should I? It has only been since I added the Amazon Sword that any plants have been having problems. What fertilizers and frequency of application do you recommend or others recommend? Should I look for a second fertilizer that has lots of Nitrogen? I really like the Amazon Sword and would hate to see it die. I got it from my roommate in a plant trade and would love to see it get really big.
 
I give twelve hours of light at 45 watts on a 29 gallon tank. All of my other plants are growing like weeds. I also have plenty of fish in the tank, 5+ platies (many babies), a few swordtails, two gruamies, a tiger barb, 4 skunk botias, a green cory catfish, and a handfull or two of snails.



Date: Wed, 3 Nov 2004 11:27:47 -0600
From: "Jim Seidman" 
Subject: [APD] Re: Amazon Swords
To: 

Lief Youngs writes: "My amazon sword seems to be starting to die or turning
yellow and is getting thin leaves. Is this low Fe/Iron? Should I use my
fertilizer (Leaf Zone) twice weekly instead of what the bottle says, once
weekly? Do Sword plants need more Iron than most other aquatic plants? If so
are there any fertilizers out that would be better for inproving the health
of my amazon sword plant? All my other aquatic plants are doing great."

A lot of different problems can cause yellow leaves. Does the problem affect
new or old leaves? Iron is not a mobile nutrient, so deficiencies usually
show up in the new leaves. Nitrogen, by comparison, is mobile, so the plant
will cannibalize the old leaves. So a nitrogen deficiency shows up as the
older leaves turning yellow, and possibly dying and decaying.

Have you measured levels of other nutrients, such as NO3? What is your
substrate? Do you use any sort of fertilizer other than Leaf Zone (which
isn't balanced)? How much light do you have?

- Jim

++++++++++++++++++++Lief Youngs++++++++++++++++++++
   http://geocities.com/SouthBeach/Mansion/4739
   Colorado State University Graduate May 2004
       B.S. Bioagricultural Sciences major
        B.S. Agricultural Business major 
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift. -- Steve Prefontaine
			
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