# New to Aquascape... HELP!!! (Bacopa Caroliniana)



## MoTank (Jan 24, 2015)

I recently bought Bacopa Caroliniana from Petsmart, and I think it's not happy. The leaves from the top are curling up and turning a dark green color. I will post pictures so please help me... I want them to grow and be healthy.

Tank Set Up
Subtrate: White Sand
Freshwater: PH- 7.6, GH- 300, KH- 160, Nitrite- 0, Nitrate- 0 
Co2: One Bubble per Second
Light: Two Florescent Light 13 Watts each


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

I really like your tank layout. It looks like a great African Cichlid tank. I see you have a few hard water species.

I grow B. caroliniana and it does quite well. My water is extremely soft; your water is extremely hard. I'm not sure if its a hard water plant or not. I also notice that the space between the leaves is quite long. This is caused by either lots of red wave length light and/or insufficient amount of light. For a tank the size of yours I would say its not enough light.


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## mooncon (Oct 12, 2011)

Are you sure the nitrates are zero,if so you need to dose some KN03 Plants need some nitrates to grow my tank stays at 40 ppm al the time.Are you dosing anything.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

mooncon said:


> Are you sure the nitrates are zero,if so you need to dose some KN03 Plants need some nitrates to grow my tank stays at 40 ppm al the time.Are you dosing anything.


GOOD point. I missed that.
Still not enough light for that tank.

What fertilization do you do?


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## MoTank (Jan 24, 2015)

Im using root tabs, and no... I don't have have KN03. Ive been getting by without liquid fertilizer. How many watts do I need for my tank?


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## MoTank (Jan 24, 2015)

What can I do to make my water soft?


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

Root tabs with no ferts is not a very good idea.

What size tank is it?

I wouldn't worry about making the water softer. Just keep fish that like it. Looks like you already are with the guppies and variatus.


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## MoTank (Jan 24, 2015)

Why not?.... just wondering. Maybe I should buy some fert; But my other plants seem to be growing fast and looking really green. I bought the Bacopa on Thursday, so I think its in shock and it came in a packed with gel so it might need to get used to being underwater.


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## HDBenson (Sep 24, 2014)

Playing with your water chemistry can be more detrimental than helpful in most cases. Some one correct if necessary but if I remember B. caroliniana is a softwater plant but should fare well in a hardwater set-up. You really should be doing some sort of fert dosing with CO2 and root tabs. Basically, without the fertilizer you are adding excess nutrients that plants won't be using that algae will gladly use before the plants. I do agree with Newt, this is a nice set-up for Africans - the platies and guppies will like it as well!


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

You bought these plants on Thursday, this is Sunday, so they have been in your tank maybe 2 1/2 to 3 days. *Patience, grasshopper!* Give them a month to adjust and then start fixing things.

_B. caroliniana_ grows well in my hard water Walstad tanks under medium light. This is a 20 gallon long, correct? What kind of fluorescent tubes are you using and what type of reflector? How far above the tank are the tubes? Depending on the answers to these questions, you may have too little light as Newt suggests.


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## MoTank (Jan 24, 2015)

I'm going to the Fish Store tomorrow. What kind of fertilizer do you recommend? And how should I set it up? Should I remove the sand, lay the fertilizer then put the sand back on top? Or only where my plants are located?


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## MoTank (Jan 24, 2015)

B. caroliniana grows well in my hard water Walstad tanks under medium light. This is a 20 gallon long, correct? What kind of fluorescent tubes are you using and what type of reflector? How far above the tank are the tubes? Depending on the answers to these questions, you may have too little light as Newt suggests.

Yes, it's a 20 gallon tank. I'm going to buy LED ones when I get paid but I don't know how many watts I need for my fish tank, and how high above I need it. If anyone can help me, I'll be very greatful.


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## RobinN (Jan 26, 2015)

I've recently started growing bacopa and have quickly found out that they are responding very well too light with a high amount of blue. I use hagen power glo for them.in combination with addition of kno3, kh2po4 and micromix. 

How's the current flowing around the plants? At least mine seem to curl up quite easy if they're in higher current. 

But as others have said, be patient and let the plants adapt.


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## RobinN (Jan 26, 2015)

If you're going to buy led lights look for leds with good rating for freshwater aquarium.
You should be able to find quite alot about which ones are good on the net.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

This is Bacopa caroliniana in my 75









This is what it should look like when healthy and mature.


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## MoTank (Jan 24, 2015)

So I bought FloraMax substrate, I used it for the bottom layer then topped it with white sand. I hope that helps out. I also have root tabs but it turns my white sand brown/yellow color. What am I doing wrong? I even pushed it 2 inches deep into the substrate.


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## crazy4fids (Dec 17, 2014)

Newt said:


> This is Bacopa caroliniana in my 75
> 
> 
> 
> ...


What is the pink plant on the left?


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

L. aromatica


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## MoTank (Jan 24, 2015)

An update!
My plant is growing big and healthy. It was in shock from being above water. =]


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