Ruth's Tank

[Pat Bowerman <bowerman at specent_com>]

Ruth wrote:
> I did look it up; it says here.... rotala macrandra.  Sorry I'm not
> really good at scientific names.  I will have to study harder :)

> I also bought some ludwigia last weekend... I can't seem to get it to
> stay planted.  But it seems to like floating, because new leaves have
> formed on most of the stems...  Go figure.
 
> No, I am not injecting CO2.  This week the problem seems to have
> stabalized.  I didn't do ANYthing differently.  Big mystery here.
 
Both Ludwigia and R. Macranda are light lovers. So upgrading your
lighting should help with these. However, with increased lighting, comes
an increase in demand for CO2. A DIY yeast set-up should work well for
your 10g. Check out George Booth's page for more details on the benefits
of CO2. (Including some terrific photos) Good stuff, George!

> I've temporarily replaced the single flourescent bulb strip with 2.  (I
> actually upgraded the lighting on the reef tank to VHO's, and took one
> of the old fixtures from that tank.)  So now I have 30w over 10 gal.
> Since this light 'strip' is wider than the single light strip, I took
> the plastic hood off.  There's no way the cat can get in now even
> without that protection.
 
> Now here may be the real cause.  The substrate is lousy - just gravel.
> Remember I had this tank with plastic decorations for a long time.  How
> can I get fertilizer UNDER the gravel?

There are at least two ways. One, rip the old gravel out and then put in
some laterite (I know that there are other substrates that will work)
and replace the gravel. Two would be to use some plant-tabs and push
into the gravel. You can also mix some laterite with enough water to
make a thick paste and then allow it to dry. This is messy, but it gives
you a solid chunk of laterite that can be pushed into the gravel
wherever you desire. Check your KH, your ph will continue to fluctuate
unless you have some carbonate hardness in your water. It's not hard to
check, and it's not hard to fix either. 

Good luck, Pat Bowerman

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