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Re: plant trimming/light
Kelly wrote:
> No CO2 being added. My Ph seems to be stable around 7.4, but I will
> keep an eye on it. What is the chemical basis for my pH to rise w/no
> CO2 addition?
I'm CCing this to the APD as others may benefit from the advice and you
may get other tips from there too! I hope you don't mind.
Many submerged aquatic plants have the ability to obtain CO2 from
dissolved hydrogen carbonates (anyone know the technical term for
this?). A side effect of this is an increase in pH which can go as high
as 10 for some hardwater plants such as Elodea and Vallisneria. Another
effect of this is the precipitation of calcium or calcium carbonate
deposits; this is referred to as biogenic decalcification which means
that availble calcium is lost from the water.
For more reading on biogenic decalcification and other aquarium plant
management tips I recommend "Aquarium Plants Manual" by Ines Scheurmann.
This book is quite cheap, widely available in aquarium stores and has
many good pictures in it.
Steve Pushak teban at powersonic_bc.anti-spam.ca
Visit "Steve's Aquatic Page" http://home.infinet.net/teban/
for LOTS of pics, tips and links for aquatic gardening!!!
Aquatic Gardeners Association - technical advisor
References: