Brown Spots lots of them!!!!!!

hobbyfishx2

I have 2 sword plants in my 20 gallon, I got them about 2 to 3 weeks ago and i am getting brown spots on them. I dont know how to stop them i have been just trimming off the leaves but i noticed even the new leaves are getting them. Please i dont want to just have them die!!! I only have about 6 months of experence with fish tanks we are using a fresh water tank. levels are all fine.

Boredomb

What kinda lights do you have on the tank? What type of bulb? How long are they on for?
Do you use fertilizers? If so what kind and how much so you dose? Do you just dose once a week or more??

hobbyfishx2

I have the normal bulb that came with the fish tank i just bought the tank a month ago. I'm not giving the plan any plant food because i didnt know i had to. Fish store didnt tell me i needed to.

Boredomb

Ok, yeah lots of ppl in store are inexpensived.
Plants need something like 17 different nutrients.
Have you read the 4-part sticky A Basic Approach to the Natural Planted Aquarium--Part One that's located at the top of this section? Its pretty good and it helped me a lot to understand.

You will need to get some fertilizer both liquid and some root tablets for your swords to do best.
Seachems makes a line called Flourish Comprehensive in both liquid form and in root tablets. Its a pretty good well rounded fertilizer for low tech tanks.

Also they need the right kind of lighting. If you read the links on the basic approach to natural planted tank. It will explain more on that. If look on the bulb itself it will have writting on it. Can you look at that and let us know what it says? Then we can tell ya if it will work for plants or not.

hobbyfishx2

Posted via Mobile Device

hobbyfishx2

Ok thanks for the advise, I will attempt to grab some from the store tommarrow. Now will the spots disappear or will I have to cut those leaves?? Any good lights you suggest??
Posted via Mobile Device

Boredomb

Do you know what type of lighting you have now? I am guessing its at 18" T8 bulb?
So assuming thats the case I would go to the hardware store and look at getting a daylight T8 bulb something thats around 6500K. I have GE daylight bulbs that are 6500k bulbs in my fixtures and they do good. They are also cheaper then bulbs at the petstore. Though if you want a plant bulb from the petsore you can look into Zoomed Ultrasun super daylight bulbs. Those are pretty good bulbs.

Boredomb

Sorry I didn't answer you question about the leaves.

Yes, You will have to cut them eventually as the brown/holes spots won't go away. The key is to get the new growth healthy and green. I wouldn't cut them just yet. I would wait till the plant starts going new leaves that are healthy and there are enough of them before you cut the rest of the leaves that are brown and have holes in the but thats just my opinion.

hobbyfishx2

Posted via Mobile Device

hobbyfishx2

The plants appear to be growing well. Despite the spots. I have several new smaller leaves coming up that weren't there when I bought the plants. The writing on the bulb says model 24rfh rated 120 vac, 60hz 17 W fluorescent bulb. Hope that helps. I'm honestly getting tried of the fish store. They seem to never really help, they suggested this and that. Which ends up costing me more money! I don't get the whole truth until I'm stuck with something more than I wanted to deal with! I guess tanks aren't low maintance after all!
Posted via Mobile Device