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Discus and planted tanks.



I've been lurking on the Discus-L list for about six months and have 
picked up a bit of 'knowledge' which may be relevant.  Most of the 
people who post frequently on Discus-L are breeders with good experience 
with fighting disease and maximizing growth.

Things I've learned,

1) 82 deg, is the point where Discus can fall victim to a number of 
different diseases, plain old ick is the main one.  Useful for all fish, 
ick problem, raise temp over 82!

2) It 'seems' that a good share of Discus will eventually need to be 
treated for some type of disease.  Usually this requires either high 
temp(over 90), or a medication which is harmful to plants.  This is what 
the 'hardcore' breeders use, patience may work in a lot of 
cases(*DANGER*personal bias*). 

3) To maximize growth you've got to feed high protien food at least 3 
times a day, if not 4-5 times.  If you've got an understocked tank you 
MAY be able to get away with it.  I do, but that's because I've got only 
1 4 inches who's growing great in a 33 gal.

4) Large, frequent water changes maximize growth, and are also very 
costly for fertilizer.  But, you'd never run out of micronutrient if you 
change water as often as Discus people do.  Any opinions on 
micronutrient fertilization by water change?

There's excellent disease and growth rate knowledge on the Discus-L 
list, give it a try.  But my experience is that there's not much talk of 
planted aquaria w/ discus.  Planted Discus tanks are a precarious 
balance, a step up from planted tanks in my opinion.

Colin Anderson
"waiting till he's sure he knows enough to convert his 135 to a planted 
discus tank"

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