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bluegreens and phosphate
FORWARDED MESSAGE:
>Date: Mon, 5 Jan 1998 14:50:35 -0800 (PST)
>From: Roxanne Bittman <rbittman at spock_dfg.ca.gov>
>To: aquatic-plants at actwin_com
>Subject: bluegreens and phosphate
>
>I have a minor but persistent BG algae growth in two tanks that both test
very
>low for nitrate (less than 5ppm). I realize that this means the higher
plants
>may be limited by certain nutrients. I have added Jobe's plant sticks (for
>palms and ferns) to the substrate (there is Dupla laterite in there also),
which
>has definitely helped.
>
> However, after testing for phospate this weekend I think that the levels
are
>still too high for me to expect the BGs to disappear completely (.1ppm in
one
>tank; .2ppm in the other). The tank with .1ppm has BGs scattered on the
Riccia
>and the substrate; I disturb and remove it about every other day; it keeps
>returning. The tank with .2ppm has BGs only below the substrate level
against
>the glass.
>
>I use R/O water reconstituted using R/O Right, plus added potassium
sulfate and
>occaisional additional CaCl and MgSO4, depending on the look of the
plants. I
>monitor the KH and GH of the water, but real testing on the concentrations
of K,
>Mg, and Ca is not being done.
>
>Any ideas on what to try to rid the tanks completely of BGs; I assume
their very
>presence indicates some slight deficiency I need to correct to help the
higher
>plants outcompete the algae, right?
>
>P.S. There are snails in both tanks; they don't seem to help that much. I
have
>not tried turning out the lights for five days or adding Maracyn, both of
which
>were suggested back in the summer of 1997 on the APD.