I have three tanks.
Tank "A" is a ~60 gallon corner bow front. Tank "B" is a 29 gallon standard. Tank "C" is a 10 gallon standard. "A" and "B" are planted; "C" is on standby (bare glass and a heater). The planted tanks are non-CO2 low techs. "A" has 2W/gal of light from two dual compact fluorescent 6.7k/10k bulbs. "B" has a single tube inside the most basic hood light you can think of, putting it somewhere around the 1W/gal range. Maybe less.
Tank "A" has about ten Cryptocoryne wendtii that lost their robust foliage over a year ago, likely due to total lack of dosing and general neglect. However, they all propagated at some point in time; and like all plants, they're survivors and will flourish once I get them back on track.
And that brings me to the subject of this thread. I have noticed slow but steady growth of new leaves from the center of these plants. The existing leaves are in fair to poor shape, mostly due to algae and snail nibbles.
May I snip off the old leaves to encourage new growth? I assume so, but how much? How much is too much? Should I go by (for lack of a term) a "one in, one out" rule?
Should I cut them as close to the base as possible? I'd like some tips...
If new growth is encouraged this way, will they demand more nutrients? As a non-CO2 tank I only dose once a week. I'm not aiming to make them grow faster. I only want them to grow in nicely. Their current rate of growth will be perfect. I just don't know if essentially eliminating a percentage of their photosynthetic mass will cause them to weaken, die back, or fail completely.
Tank "A" also has a leggy Anubias barteri in the middle. It, too, is growing steady and slow. It, too, has unhealthy looking leaves. Should I treat them the same way?
Tank "B" is similarly planted. It is half the size, so the amount of plants is alright for now. Tank "A" is sparsely planted, I know... I have some Echinodorus 'vesuvius' coming in the mail from a highly reputable source. I'm sure that will all but solve algae concerns if everything else is correct.
Let me know what has worked for you and your plants, please. That will be super helpful.
Tank "A" is a ~60 gallon corner bow front. Tank "B" is a 29 gallon standard. Tank "C" is a 10 gallon standard. "A" and "B" are planted; "C" is on standby (bare glass and a heater). The planted tanks are non-CO2 low techs. "A" has 2W/gal of light from two dual compact fluorescent 6.7k/10k bulbs. "B" has a single tube inside the most basic hood light you can think of, putting it somewhere around the 1W/gal range. Maybe less.
Tank "A" has about ten Cryptocoryne wendtii that lost their robust foliage over a year ago, likely due to total lack of dosing and general neglect. However, they all propagated at some point in time; and like all plants, they're survivors and will flourish once I get them back on track.
And that brings me to the subject of this thread. I have noticed slow but steady growth of new leaves from the center of these plants. The existing leaves are in fair to poor shape, mostly due to algae and snail nibbles.
May I snip off the old leaves to encourage new growth? I assume so, but how much? How much is too much? Should I go by (for lack of a term) a "one in, one out" rule?
Should I cut them as close to the base as possible? I'd like some tips...
If new growth is encouraged this way, will they demand more nutrients? As a non-CO2 tank I only dose once a week. I'm not aiming to make them grow faster. I only want them to grow in nicely. Their current rate of growth will be perfect. I just don't know if essentially eliminating a percentage of their photosynthetic mass will cause them to weaken, die back, or fail completely.
Tank "A" also has a leggy Anubias barteri in the middle. It, too, is growing steady and slow. It, too, has unhealthy looking leaves. Should I treat them the same way?
Tank "B" is similarly planted. It is half the size, so the amount of plants is alright for now. Tank "A" is sparsely planted, I know... I have some Echinodorus 'vesuvius' coming in the mail from a highly reputable source. I'm sure that will all but solve algae concerns if everything else is correct.
Let me know what has worked for you and your plants, please. That will be super helpful.
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But both will arise from nothing and are survivors for a reason.