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Re: Nothing under the gravel
Neil Frank wrote:
P.S. Merrill: thanks for getting the discussion going.
and Roxanne Bittman continues to allow for natural fertilization from the
fish. They are fertilizing your plants continually. Additional
fertilization is not necessary until you anticipate a problem. However,
that problem will not be heavy algae nor an unnatural situation where even
the fish will not be comfortable. (Or, maybe that's not important to the
"fertilizing hobbyists" in the group.) Why look for trouble?!? If
anything, add the proper bacterial powdered products available today to
hasten the breakdown of the waste of the fish and excess food! Utilize and
enjoy the fish as well!
Roxanne wrote:
> As an aside, I have had tanks with great plant growth both with and
without
> substrate additives. My current tanks have the rec. amt of Duplarit G in
the
> gravel. My one experiment with more stuff in the gravel (peat, dirt) was
> disastrous.
>
> The experiment is not quite finished; more to come. Take note however
and be
> warned of "over-laterization" of your substrate.
> Thought I'd relate a little experiment which is still ongoing:
> A friend of mine set up two 20g high tanks in identical ways except for
the
> substrate. One had the recommended amount of Duplarit G added to the
lower
> third of the gravel. The other had 2-3 times as much of Duplarit (G and
K)
> added (combo of the ground laterite and the balls).
>
> The two tanks have matured in dramatically different ways.
> The one with the extra laterite has had a great deal of algae (different
types
> of green algae mostly) and the other tank has had almost no algae.
> Roxanne Bittman
P.S. Neil, I feel like "I'm opening a can of worms"! (The proverbial one
-- not tubifex or black worms!)
Merrill Cohen
Aquatic Gardeners Association