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Re: [APD] Re: The why of the Tom Barr Method



--- "A.Kumar" <aar111 at yahoo_com> wrote:
> Hi all,
> I have a couple of questions on the Barr method. I
> don't really understand why plants are at an advantage
> to algae when it comes to nutrient uptake. 

Welcome to the club. It seems no one is sure why it's so,
but you can do the tanks and by gosh, the plants win.

> I guess
> what I am really asking is: If we dose phosphate along
> with nitrate and other nutrients, why won't algae
> compete equally well with or better than plants for
> the nutrients? 

Apparently not. Try it.

> Also, it was mentioned that the reason algae did not
> grow all over plants in nature might be due to
> allelopathy. I was under the impression that water in
> nature had zero quantites of phosphate and very, very
> low levels of nitrate. I thought this was the reason
> algae doesn't grow all over aquatic plants. Thanks,

Sometimes high, sometimes low, no -- that was the big deal
with laundry detergents and phosphate, wasn't it?

Put lots of PO4 and littel NO3 in your tank and get alagae.
Do the opposite and get algae. Get them in balance ant the
right levels and your plants grow instead.

Scott H.

=====
S. Hieber

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