# Redder Plants. Anyone got any magic solutions?



## jclagg (Sep 28, 2008)

I've searched on this and it's hard to distill all the (sometimes conflicting) information. I trust this board most and am hoping you can help me out. Other threads have a specificity that sort of clouds things for my situation. 

I have:
A. Reineckii (roseofolia), a red lugwigia, and several rotala species that can take on a nice red color. These are all well established and growing just fine, but how can I get more color? I'm having most trouble with the Reineckii. It's got a faded red with lots of green and yellow. Was really red when I got it. 

I've tried dosing liquid iron. Tried some miraclegro root supplements (which I first tested in an experimental tank, they don't cause any problems)

Here's some tank details
20 gal w/ high light. 
PH about neutral
Fairly hard water
Substrate is some old Eco with plenty of silt and mulm. 
DIY CO2 with a hagen ladder
Everything is growing well, just not as much color as I'd like. 
I have Seachem flourish, iron and excel I can use that I experiment and vary dosing
Got CPDs, white clouds, cherry shrimp, otocinclus. Under stocked for a 20.
About 10 or so different species of plants in this tank. 

Questions: 
How can I get redder plants?
Should I dose really heavy on the Seachem liquid Iron?
Better root tabs or diy root tabs?
Laterite? 
Wait? Replant? (been in there 2-3 months) New growth seems slightly redder.

I have an experimental tank where plants tend to get redder as they reach the surface, is this a matter of light or CO2 or something or a fluke? 

Help, aquaticplantcentral!


----------



## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

Lighting with at least one bulb that has strong emissions in the blue region of the visible spectrum and nitrates around 10ppm. Dose iron per directions.


----------



## countcoco (Dec 28, 2010)

Newt said:


> Lighting with at least one bulb that has strong emissions in the blue region of the visible spectrum and nitrates around 10ppm. Dose iron per directions.


I would also add that a lower pH is very helpful for bringing out the red in trickier plants like r. macrandra 'japan.' Also, try a longer photoperiod.


----------



## Caton (May 17, 2011)

Are you dosing any phosphates? What is your ppm of nirates? Also, an increase in light is reccomended.


----------



## Left C (Jun 14, 2005)

Pressurized CO2 may help as well.


----------



## TarantulaGuy (Apr 15, 2009)

When my 29 was actually up and running, I had awesome reds in my A. reineckii, Ludwigia, and Limnophila aromatica. 96w of t5ho, 2 "plant" bulbs (they looked pink), and 2 10k (came with the light and I never bothered replacing them). I also had eco complete as substrate. I never used root tabs, just dosed EI into the water column, and supplemented with Seachem Iron. Also pressurized CO2.










Not much of an aquascape to it, but you can see the nice reds in all 3 of those plants, and they were relatively healthy. I didn't do a whole lot different from what it appears you are doing, but we could use more details: what kind of light? what are your ppm phopshates/nitrates/etc? Whats your light cycle? I used a "siesta" style lighting, where my 2 lights would come on in the morning for about an hour or 2, then the other two would come on for noonday burst, then off 2, then an hour later the other 2 off. Then there would be a 3-4 hour nap, and my lights would come back on about 1/2 hour before I got back from work and stay on for another 4-5 hours. Not sure if any of this helps you, but seeing as how we have/had similar setups, I might be able to get you going in the right direction.


----------



## exbf (Jul 25, 2011)

Hi TarantulaGuy, very nice red plants you have there. may I know the details on your dosing of EI and Seachem Iron? And also your WC schedule? thanks.


----------

