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Nitrogen dosing
>>I will not argue what form of nitrogen Crypts "prefer".
>Here it's. That's the point I disagreed with you! Despite the fact that
>I've had good results with all the plants in adding nitrates directly in
>water column (btw NaNO3, and not KNO3 that will add potassium too without
>giving the possibility to understand which is the real deficiency), I've
>noticed (and also I read about it) that some plants - among these are all
>the crypts - prefer to uptake nutrients by the roots system and prefer
>NH3/NH4 form of nitrogen instead of nitrates. As I wrote before "I would go
>for a _light_ fertilization of the substrate, with some tablets that
>contains nitrogen _also_ in NH3/NH4 form." I had better result with this
>method.
I'm glad it works well for you. I have had good response from my Crypts
with both methods, and since I'm lazy, I will continue to use supplement
the water column.<g> I thought I mentioned in my other post, that I had
tested with K2SO4 before supplementing with KNO3 to rule out a potassium
deficiency first.
I choose to use KNO3 rather than NaNO3 for two reasons. Claus Christensen
suggested that my tanks might be potassium limited when he visited. I
started dosing with K2SO4, and many of the plants showed an improvement.
It was after this that my Crypts started to show signs of nitrogen
deficiency again, and I decided to try KNO3 in the water column as a source
of both nitrogen and potassium. I had previously done as you do, and dose
N only into the substrate. But I also had some floating plants that were
looking nitrogen deficient, so I decided to try it. Over the couple of
years since then, I have frequently supplemented this way, have never had a
problem with it, and have had consistent good results.
The second reason I choose to use KNO3 instead of NaNO3 is that, since I
know I need to add potassium, it doesn't seem prudent to regularly add
sodium to the tanks, when I know that too high levels are not appreciated
by many plants.
>ps: why only your answer to me was without your nice signature?<g>
Sorry, simply the result of being up most of the night with a six year old
with a stomache bug. Forgot to hit the button.
Karen Randall
Aquatic Gardeners Association