# Need Advice



## SadieRaff46 (Jul 23, 2018)

I recently put my amazon swords in my 5 gal fish tank (about 18 hours ago) and im noticing that some leaves are curling at the edge and turning yellow, I had to trim some off. Is this because of going from a package to submerged underwater? Is it from lack of nutrients and should I buy a liquid fertilizer? I'm a bit worried about them and would like a bit of advice. Thanks in advance! 🙂


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## Nelvick (Jul 13, 2018)

Lacks of light and CO2 ?


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## SadieRaff46 (Jul 23, 2018)

Oh thats right the plants need CO2, thanks! They have around 10 hours of light so I think its lack of CO2


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## trahana (Dec 28, 2015)

Its from the change of water. Everyone's water is different, and the plants are plunged into a new place they need time. And Nutrients. Plus, I'm betting these plants have had a tough trip, so give them some time to adjust.

What is your substrate, lighting wattage?


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## SadieRaff46 (Jul 23, 2018)

I'm not sure what the wattage is for my light but it came with my "Tetra Crescent Acrylic Aquarium Kit 5 Gallon" from Amazon. Com. I'm not 100% sure if it is a light that can let the plants use it via photosynthesis. My new substrate is also from Amazon it is the "Spectrastone Swift Creek Gravel, 5 Pound Bag." If it helps the Amazons are the Echinodorus Amazonicus species. I will also be going to Petco today to get root tabs and liquid fertilizer. Thanks!


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## SadieRaff46 (Jul 23, 2018)

Here's what the plants look like now


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## trahana (Dec 28, 2015)

Firstly, it matters how many Watts a light has because that is intensity. If the light is very low, like 5 watts for a 10 gallon tank, the only thing you could grow is java ferns. 10 watts for 10g is low lighting, and good for anubias. Amazon sword need mid to strong lighting about double the watts per gallon, so for a 5g tank you need 10 watts. 

After searching I read the 1 star reviews and noted that they say the led is very small. It is almost definitely to low for your current plants. Try Java ferns.


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## Imp (Jun 9, 2018)

I have the same problem with amazon swords; an internet search showed me that, apparently, this plant gets most of its nutrients through the roots. 

So I am trying the recommended root tabs now (apparently, liquid fertiliser will not help for Amazon swords). I just added them today so, unfortunately, I can't tell if this actually works or not ^_^

As for the lighting: personally I pay more attention to the lumen rating, since lights with the same wattage may output different amounts of light. For 5g I'd say you need about 500 lumen at least for plants, though you may get away with less for Amazon swords.


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## SadieRaff46 (Jul 23, 2018)

Ok thanks I'll try to get a good enough light for those plants. My betta never really jumps so I think i'm going to take off the lid and put an overhead light. Once I do that how long will it likely take for the plants to recover? I also put root tabs in the gravel.


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## cmeeksrfl (Jul 15, 2018)

*Lights & fertilizer always will help but...*

even with an easy care plant like the Amazon sword it is pretty normal to get some die back when you go from emersed to submerged. A lot of commercial sources grow plants emersed, which means just part of the plant is in the water & the big chains don't even go that route as they are grown in gel. Those big beautiful green leaves in that plastic cylinder aren't used to being submerged in water & depending on the species will usually "melt" or turn brown & mushy when you put them fully submerged in the aquarium. 

Yeah, it's really frustrating when this happens but don't give up too soon. You'll probably need to pinch back all the melting leaves to the base. Hopefully, there will be some smaller, narrower leaves at the base, so be careful to leave them. A good YouTube video about this can be found at: 



.

Good for you trying real plants in your betta aquarium. Everything will be healthier & happier because of this.


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## Aqua Aurora (Oct 4, 2013)

from a quick glance, if those are new plants, they were originally grown emersed (above water)-old leaves will die off and new submerged leaves will grow.
ps the "watts per a gallon' method is not a good way to measure light- a light over a 20g LONG is stronger than over a 20g HIGH because of tank height difference. google search "Lighting an Aquarium with PAR instead of Watts" some simple graphs scroll down the page
if you want to use cfl bulbs (my fav) for lighting check these images/graphs out
http://www.jeremysquires.com/img/aquarium/Diagram2.jpg
http://www.jeremysquires.com/img/aquarium/Diagram3.jpg
http://www.jeremysquires.com/img/aquarium/Diagram6.jpg
http://www.jeremysquires.com/img/aquarium/Diagram4.jpg
http://www.jeremysquires.com/img/aquarium/Diagram7.jpg


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