# Can anyone ID this deficiency?



## mattmathis (Dec 13, 2008)

About a year ago, before I found this site and decided to do it the right way I had these plants in my 70 gallon aquarium with 1 48 in 40 watt florescent bulb. No CO2 and no ferts.

They grew and propagated really well for 3 or 4 months and then just started dying away slowly until they were all gone.

There were no changes in the aquarium at all when they started going down hill.

Can anyone tell me what may have been the problem?

You can see holes in the amazon sword leaves and the yellow/brown tips. But yet it had a good root system.


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## goldfishes (Nov 26, 2008)

There is a great table at chuck's planted aquarium that should help you identify this. There are many nutrient deficiencies that could cause the yellowing leaves, but looks like potassium or calcium is low.


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## Chancey (Mar 31, 2008)

It looks like root feeding plants not getting enough nutrients, iron I think. I had a similar problem and used ADA Iron bottom root tabs and it seemed to do the trick. You could also use an all inclusive tab like ADA multi bottom then you have all your bases covered.


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## Bert H (Mar 2, 2004)

My guess is your plants just ran out of nutrients and starved to death. If I understand your numbers, you have 88W over 70 gal, which is quite low light, but amazons don't need much lighting. You also say you don't add any ferts. So I would bet once the plant ran out of its stores and got all it could from the tank, that was it.

You can maintain a low tech set up with little or no fertilizing, but then you shouldn't do water changes. Do a search for this type of set up.


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## HeyPK (Jan 23, 2004)

The Hygrophila is showing severe iron deficiency in the white new growth. The dying back and yellowing of older leaves in the Hygrophila and the sword could be nitrogen, potassium, or magnesium deficiencies, or some combination of the three. The sword may be also showing iron deficiency, but I can't clearly see the new growth in the pictures. Swords are better than many aquarium plants at extracting iron when availability is low. Before iron deficiency is so severe as to cause white new growth, it can reduce growth and produce an unhealthy, poorly growing plant. The best thing to do is to dose with fertilizers that supply N (Nitrogen), Mg (magnesium), K (potassium) and Fe (iron). Dose frequently with the iron fertilizer, at least twice a week. The other fertilizers should stay available until either used up by the plants or lost through water changes.

Take a look at the pictures of nutrient deficiency in the photo galleries.
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/aquarium-pictures/browseimages.php?c=12&userid=&t=


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## defdac (May 10, 2004)

HeyPK said:


> The Hygrophila is showing severe iron deficiency in the white new growth. The dying back and yellowing of older leaves in the Hygrophila and the sword could be nitrogen, potassium, or magnesium deficiencies, or some combination of the three.


+1 
I agree with the whole analysis.


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## chagovatoloco (Nov 17, 2007)

Bert H said:


> My guess is your plants just ran out of nutrients and starved to death. If I understand your numbers, you have 88W over 70 gal, which is quite low light, but amazons don't need much lighting. You also say you don't add any ferts. So I would bet once the plant ran out of its stores and got all it could from the tank, that was it.
> 
> You can maintain a low tech set up with little or no fertilizing, but then you shouldn't do water changes. Do a search for this type of set up.


BINGO........That's it in a nut shell:hat:


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## mattmathis (Dec 13, 2008)

Thanks all! That's kind of what I expected. Well at least that wont happen this time.

Thanks again!


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