Hygro melting.

A couple of months ago my Hygro Polysperma started melting. The symptoms started as leaves folding downward, the next day the leaves become translucent, and eventually fall off. I upped my nitrate dose via Spectracide Stump Remover to 3/8 teaspoon Daily. I was able to nurse some remaining stems back to health, but they have again started melting. I tried growing Hygro Polysperma Ceylon but it too melted. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

I don't have any test kits, but I dose:

3/8 teaspoon Spectracide stump remover daily.

1ml fleet enema every other day

15ml flourish comprehensive every other day

1 teaspoon epsom salt weekly

1 teaspoon dry CaCl2 weekly

DIY CO2 2.5 gallon jug 6 cups of sugar, 2+ gallons water 1.5 teaspoon yeast changed every 3 weeks.

Weekly 30-50% water change.

 

Re: Hygro melting.

Doh I forgot, 75 gallons, 11 hour photoperiod, 130 watts for 6 hours, 260 watts for 5 hours. I have about 40 small fish total (tetras, cherry barbs, a few SAE's). I feed the fish dried foods once a day.

 

Re: Hygro melting.

Thanks for the input guys, I am starting to think that there is something in the water that is either blocking uptake of NO3 or there is a chemical which the hygros are sensitive to.

I don't think the lighting is a problem, I actually lowered the duration and intensity when the melting first started. I have a total of 390 watt of PC lights above the tank which I can use.

The stump remover could possibly be to blame, but I have been using it for almost a year and a half without any problems.

My substrate is shale gravel I collected from a river, it could possibly be causing a problem, or it has too much mulm built up.

I think micros and iron can probably be ruled out. 15ml of Flourish ever other day seems like it would provide enough iron and micros, and it is alot more than I was dosing before the problems occur.

While the Co2 may not be at optimum levels, I have great pearling from all of my plants and little algae. I shoot the Co2 directly into the cannister so I think it is dissolving okay.

I mostly feed my fish Hikari freeze dried blooworms, and tubifex worms.

My town recently opened a new water treatment plant, could they be adding something new to the water which could cause a problem? In addition there have been several boil water advisories due to water mane breaks.

This is really frustrating me, I was growing huge amounts of hygro and pruning my tank weekly, and suddenly I can't even keep the plant alive.

 

Re: Hygro melting.

Tom it does sound like CO2 is the culprit, kind of explains why the plant groes back, but then starts to die off again. The CO2 is probably fizzling out right when the plant is making a comeback.


For now I am going to try growing the hygro in the shade of some other plants in the tank. I find it strange that I have been adding so many nutrients and yet have no algae problems, maybe its because most of my plants are crypts and are less dependent on CO2?



Chubasco, I have had the shale gravel for over a year. I even use it in my shrimp grow out tank and it doesn't seem to harm anything.

 

Re: Hygro melting.

My problem is gone, I bought legs for my aqualight to help lower the light intensity. I am also running all 260 watts for only 3 hours a day, the tank is looking better than ever.

I was running way too much light for a tank with DIY Co2, some days I was even running 390 for 3 hours a day.

 

Re: Hygro melting.

I was confused too, but Tom said that you can have so so growth without algae problems.

I was overdoing it with the light, causing the hygro to melt due to lack of Co2. For me the hygro is growing faster with less light because it isn't dying .

The shale in my tank is definetaly shale, its everywhere here. All my rocks in my tank are shale also.