# Plants turning brown?



## MooseKnocker (Aug 5, 2012)

I've got a 15Gallon tank with 1 betta 5 neons and 4 ghost shrimp. I hate the look of fake plants so I've put some real plants in it. I've slowly integrated plants taking about a week between adding each plant. I've added Amazon Blades a baby tears rock in it along with anacharis and Rotala Indica. Well my Blades and Anacharis are turning brown.
The Light I have is a LED strip http://www.petco.com/product/118304/Marineland-Hidden-LED-Lighting-System.aspx?CoreCat=OnSiteSearch The fish lady told me it should be a good light for the fish. Is that what would be wrong or is it something else?


Edit: I've got some duckweed too, not much.


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## Destinystar (May 26, 2012)

Yeah that light might be good for your fish but for the plants maybe not, I would think that is the problem and since I am new at having live plants and what lights are best lets wait for someone else to answer that knows more than me. I just had my beautiful Hornwort to turn brown and shed its needles and what a mess that was to clean up but my Anacharis is doing fine. I have and use the light that came with my tank which is a 10 watt fluorescent.


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## Bettanewbie60 (Jun 26, 2012)

Yeah, it may be a lighting issue..what kind of substrate do you have them in? I have a gro light I got at Walmart for $10 and it works great with my plants..you also need at least 12 hours of light a day on them.


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## MooseKnocker (Aug 5, 2012)

Its gravel, the light is on for at least 12 hours a day if not more. Once a week I gets left off a day do to work and me not being home (Was told it wouldn't hurt). The anacharis that is on the top of the tank is looking good but the few stocks on the floor are not so well.


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## crystalview (Sep 24, 2012)

*Fertilizer for plants*

I have a 65g planted tank and I have to fertilize to it daily (specific to fish). Most people who have a tank 5g and up add fertilizer and a hormone that plants need. With a small tank light is important. To much light can form algae. With water changes this can help if algae starts. You have chosen hardy plants so they should not need much.


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## MooseKnocker (Aug 5, 2012)

crystalview said:


> I have a 65g planted tank and I have to fertilize to it daily (specific to fish). Most people who have a tank 5g and up add fertilizer and a hormone that plants need. With a small tank light is important. To much light can form algae. With water changes this can help if algae starts. You have chosen hardy plants so they should not need much.


No algae at all...


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## starrlamia (May 3, 2012)

that fixture isnt the best for plants, I would assume it is a lighting issue. Ive never heard of amazon blades, is it a sword?


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## MooseKnocker (Aug 5, 2012)

starrlamia said:


> that fixture isnt the best for plants, I would assume it is a lighting issue. Ive never heard of amazon blades, is it a sword?


yes Swords sorry I always mix that up. I had the light that came with it but it was a nasty yellow so I got that light. If I get a new hood for a florescent strip what would I look into to make sure i get the right light?


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## starrlamia (May 3, 2012)

you want low light? you could look for a T8 fixture, it would be fine for low light plants. You can get a 6500-6700k bulb easily for it which will be proper temp for your plants.
something like this would work 
http://www.petco.com/product/112178/Aqueon-Deluxe-Full-Fluorescent-Black-Aquarium-Hoods.aspx

or you could just get a strip light. Sometimes you can make cheap setups from home depot stuff, I would think 1 t8 flourescent bulb would be enough for you. If you wanted medium lighting you could get two t8s


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## MooseKnocker (Aug 5, 2012)

I'm thinking of taking out of my plants and calling it a loss. My baby tears is hardly holding on to the rock anymore and my Moss ball has discolored a lot today alone. I'll take everything out and make sure my levels are going to be alright before doing adding anything. 
Anacharis is cheap and I'll just replace what I can with Java Moss after it bounces back.


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## crystalview (Sep 24, 2012)

From marinelands web site. http://answers.marineland.com/answe...ghting-system-questions-answers/questions.htm This what they say about plant growth
Question 
*The new Accent or Hidden LED systems - which addition would be best to promote plant growth?*


A year ago I purchased your 37 gallon aquarium with the standard LED lighting, and have been very pleased with the setup. Java Moss & Fern, Annubius, some Crypts and Valisneria grow fine in the tank, but slowly. I am very interested to see the new hidden LED and LED accent systems. I would like to add one of them to my tank to boost plant growth - can you tell me which would be the better option? I have read the technical specs, but don't know how to tell.
Aquarium Type: Freshwater
Aquarium Size: Mid-Size (20-60g)

asked 6 months ago







by 
Kodgeman
Ontario, Canada

on Hidden LED Lighting System
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0out of 0found this question helpful.


Answer this Question 
2 answers
Answers

answer 1
One point of clarification. If you are adding either the Hidden or Accent lighting systems to an aquarium with exisiting lighting they will do a great job of promoting growth and showcasing the live plants. The Accent line was specifically designed to help "bump" up the blue or red light in an aquarium to help with live plant growth and coloration. I say give the red Accent light a try. It really makes plants grow fast and look lush. 
Aquarium Type: Both


Staff
Best Answer


answered 6 months ago







by 
TheProductGuy
Marineland


+1point
1out of 1found this answer helpful.



answer 2
We actually wouldn't recommend either of those lights for live plants. Of our current offerings you can use either the Double Bright or Reef Capable LED's for low light plants.

We also have an Aquatic Plant LED which will be in stores in the May/June timeframe. This is our offering for live plants. I will send to the charts for both lights so you can make sure that you choose the right light for your needs. 

Staff


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## MooseKnocker (Aug 5, 2012)

Thanks for the tips. I'll be getting a new light strip today. I'm also working on retesting my tank before putting plants back in it.


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## MooseKnocker (Aug 5, 2012)

starrlamia said:


> you want low light? you could look for a T8 fixture, it would be fine for low light plants. You can get a 6500-6700k bulb easily for it which will be proper temp for your plants.
> something like this would work
> http://www.petco.com/product/112178/Aqueon-Deluxe-Full-Fluorescent-Black-Aquarium-Hoods.aspx
> 
> or you could just get a strip light. Sometimes you can make cheap setups from home depot stuff, I would think 1 t8 flourescent bulb would be enough for you. If you wanted medium lighting you could get two t8s


I ended up getting a T8 Full Spectrum light today. I'm going to give it a few days to see how it works out. I saved a few plants in there I wanna see if it will help them out.


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