The Surprising Reason Your Aquarium Plants Aren't Growing 😲

🌿 Are your aquarium plants struggling to grow? Learn the surprising reason behind this common issue and how water parameters play a crucial role in aquarium plant growth in this informative video! 💧
In this video, we'll dive deep into the factors that affect your aquarium plants and provide actionable tips to help you achieve lush, vibrant growth. 🌱
Don't miss out on this valuable information! Watch the video now and give your aquarium plants the best chance to flourish. 📈 And if you found this video helpful, subscribe for more aquarium-related tips and tricks! 🐠👍
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[@Sinserg]

I am glad that you touched this topic, water parameters and flow is VERY important to get your desire results, ever since I switched to RO water my plants and fish are thriving, plants just like animals should be researched in order to use compatible species, most people still thinks that all plants require the same things but they don't, thanks for sharing!

[@joseph7105]

Instructions unclear, added cake mix to my aquarium and all my plants died, but the fish doubled in size

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Alright, here's what you can do. Considering that you added cake mix and fattened up the fish, there's something called "fish cake". I heard it's a delicacy in a few places. You could turn up the heater in the aquarium to cook up the fish, which will turn them into fish cake. You can then sell the cake for quite a lot of money.

[@MeltdownxPR]

💀

[@_invertico_]

I never knew that water flow affects plants! Thanks for telling! 😊

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Flow stirs around ferts and CO2 in the tank, so it gets to every plant, which makes sense. However, be careful not to generalize! There are some plants that don't like flow, such as some floating plants! Make sure to do a little research on plants 😉

[@_invertico_]

@@TropiscapeAquatics will do!

[@Phillycheeseaquatics]

the easiest solution is to just put natural dirt, sand, and wood in a tank when setting it up. The dirt outside has all the minerals and bacteria to provide a healthy ecosystem for plants and fish

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Just have to make sure that the soil wasn't sprayed with any chemical fertilizers and especially pesticides if collecting dirt from outside. Otherwise, it's fair game if you take the right steps and use the right plants that suites the entire picture!

[@ForProfit-x100]

Organic soil mixed w peat moss bonemeal topped with sand. Then you just throw wood and humus like dead leaves in the tank. Done it for all 3 of my tanks and they're all healthy

[@ForProfit-x100]

@@prateek_mishra. Algae is good. Free snail and micro culture

[@hammad3180]

​@@ForProfit-x100any tips on getting rid of snails? Man theyve really taken over😔

[@ForProfit-x100]

@@hammad3180 how bad is it? I have hundreds of snails across all my tanks and i love them! My tanks don't feel right without them 😭

[@lemonlizard1]

this is the first time i came across your channel and the editing is amazing! Fish youtubers usually don't do much editing but it kept the video super engaging. Love the info too!

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Editing was one thing I noticed when I was watching aquarium KZbinrs (apart from those channels that have studio quality equipment and production, such as Green Aqua). I'm glad you enjoyed it! 😊

[@AqueleSimao]

I really wish people thought more about their water parameters when setting up a fishtank. Most people pick a fish or plant and start their way from there. While I keep high light and CO2 injection, there's no way in hell you'll catch me using RO water or adjusting my water parameters to mantain a certain species, be it plant or fish. I'd rather keep things that thrive on my local water and save myself the money and headache from having to constantly adjust/buffer parameters.

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

I hear ya. Plus, people should also know the things that can influence these variables, so they know what to expect before diving straight into it. Impulse buying is a scary thing...

[@IndoorEcosystem]

Another great video! Flow can go either way sometimes too. Too much flow and oxygen can cause sometypes of algae to pop up. Especially if the flow and plants are right at the surface with strong light.

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

I agree! Plus, there are some plants that don't like flow at all

[@IndoorEcosystem]

@@TropiscapeAquatics It's a great way to kill off duckweed! 🤣😂

[@CatFish107]

Alright, thank you for incidentally solving a minor head scratcher for me. Rotala does seem rather sensitive to harder water with a slightly elevated pH. Mine has been stunted for years in my guppy and mystery snail tank. Other plants are doing excellent, but the rotala is leggy, leaf bare, and sickly. Sagitarria, frogbit, sword plants, crypts, moss, jungle val, anubias, and emersed pothos and monstera all going full jungle. but not the rotalas.

[@TarasTankFriends]

The santa with "this is a little creepy" 🤣 Interesting video, Justin, hope you're having a nice weekend! 🙂👍

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Thanks! You too!

[@adamkaddur2920]

Really good video bro

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Glad you enjoyed it! ☺

[@stubbsaquatics6080]

Excellent video. Couple explain why I am still having issues.

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Thanks!

[@gertinewoord1887]

I have an aquabowl whithout any flow and my plants are doing fine, i think the opposite is true. And that substrate is much more important and a much more stable factor when it comes to waterparameters stabilaty.

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

While I agree with your statement, I do think the shape of a bowl has an effect on things compared to standard rectangular aquariums, considering bowls are more uniform.

[@Aswanth_ks_]

Hello, i have planted aquarium and my plants turned transparent over in night i don't know how to keep them alive now could you please tell me something else to..

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

It's really hard to pinpoint the issue without more information, but my guess is that they suffered from ammonia burn. Is your tank new? Are you using aquasoil or dirt? Both dirt and aquasoil will leech ammonia, and if it gets too high, it can kill plants. This is why I always do water changes almost every day for the first week.

[@Aswanth_ks_]

@@TropiscapeAquatics i do proper fertilizer and also co2 yeah it's a New tank . I used Aquasoil

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

It could also be that those plants are going from their emersed state to their submerged state. If the stem and all the leaves have completely melted, then there's no saving it, and it's best to remove them from the tank to prevent more ammonia from getting into the water. If you still have plants that are alive, I would start performing more water changes for a week. At least 50% water changes. If you have a test kit, that would be perfect, but it's not super necessary. Just let the nitrogen cycle do its thing, which can take about 2 or 3 weeks.

[@Aswanth_ks_]

@@TropiscapeAquatics thank you for helping me ✌️

[@AqueleSimao]

@@Aswanth_ks_ And if any of them were cryptocorynes, that's just cryptos being cryptos. There's a guy on KZbin with a 28 year old setup, completely filled with cryptos....I could never....one big water parameter swing and all cryptos melt.

[@cheesypotatoluv]

got pearlweed because i thought it looked pretty and is also supoosed to grow like crazy. well it's still SO small and not really making progress. It seemed like it was finally coming along after months of trying, then it seems to have stopped growing again. its been like a year now and it's so small and sparse it seems like it's just going to disappear. :(

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Hmm... Pearlweed should be one of those plants that can grow in harder water. I would check your lighting or your fertilizing regime and see if there's anything off. Only change one thing at a time, though to limit any variables. Another thought is that it might not be Pearlweed, but HC 'Cuba' or Monte Carlo. Both of which are related to Pearlweed, if I remember correctly. HC 'Cuba' doesn't grow to crazy lengths like Pearlweed and has way smaller leaves out of the three. It's also quite hard to grow from personal experience.

[@mikasauchiha6785]

Learning chemistry and math is really important in fish keeping.

[@Carolina-ql1kn]

I still can't grow amazon swords. Years ago I had three massive amazon swords without root tabs or knowing my parameters because I was new to this. Then they started slowly dying for some reason. Now I wanted to try amazon swords again so I got two. I had to trim all of the leaves because they were dying. Each plant grew a new leaf inmediatly after trimming and then the new leaves also died. One of them doesn't even have roots I think. Even with root tabs they won't grow. My pH is 7.8 and my gH is 6. Water temp around 28 °C.

[@Carolina-ql1kn]

It seems like the only plants that I can grow are vallisneria and anacharis for now, because I also tried with java fern but the light seemed too much for it, so now I'm growing it emersed, and hygrophila corymbosa also died.

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Amazon swords and Hygrophila Corymbosa are both heavy root feeders, so having adequate substrate fertilization is a must. That being said, if the Amazon sword is a new addition, it might be adjusting to its new environment, causing the melting of leaves, especially if they were grown emersed. If one of them doesn't have roots, that's plant might not be able to grow properly. There's still a chance that it can develop root, but it's slim. As for the water parameters, 28C is a bit too high for some plants. I find 24C to be a sweet spot for my tanks. That being said, if you have livestock that require those temperatures, then don't bother changing the temps. Of course, there's more to plant growth than just nutrients and water parameters. You also have to factor in your lighting as well. Longer hours of light will make plants use up more fertilizer and any available CO2. Light intensity also plays a similar role. As for Java Fern, make sure to only bury the roots and not the rhizome. Burying the rhizomes will lead to plant death.

[@giddappajins3163]

Does Echinoderus Tennelus, and Dwarf sagittaria need Filter? Means water flow???

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Nope, those should be fine without a filter as long as they have proper fertilization. I've used Dwarf sag in a Walstad tank before!

[@Batmancontingencyplans]

Love the editing 🤣

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Thank you! 😊

[@AlinefromToulouse]

Could water flow be the reason why algae, in my case green hair grow where the branches of the different plants are intertwined, and at the base of the plants or near the substrate, that is to say in places where the flow is lower?

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

That is a possibility. Another one would be that light doesn't get to those places as much, which can cause leaves to die out and get infested with algae. Another reason could be nutrient deficiencies, which causes the plants to absorb lower leaves for energy to grow new ones at the top. I'm thinking it might be more of a nutrient deficiency than flow, but it's hard to tell without more info, so I would just try everything lol. But change one thing at a time and see how the plants and algae react.

[@AlinefromToulouse]

@@TropiscapeAquatics thank you for your answer and your help. I was just wondering, but in fact, I think it is not enough light and or nutrient deficiency for the plants like you said :)

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Hope it goes well!

[@Ldccds]

Do plants absorb chlorine from water?

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

No, plants get damaged from chlorine

[@synthesaurus]

Exactly the opposite in my experience. Flow causes algae and stunts plant growth :(

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

I wouldn't say it's flow causing the issues, but rather something to deal with either nutrients, CO2, or lighting.

[@CatFish107]

Brake screech. Hold up, polkadot plants as emersed? Heck YEAH! I'm trying those next.

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Just be careful as they can grow massive root structures that can get everywhere! Either way, it took a little while for mine to get used to being in an aquaponic environment

[@davezzz7664]

In nature, there's no such thing called liquid CO2 tank, why do those aquatic plants still grow so well?

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

CO2 has the ability to dissolved in water. In the planted tank world, plants utilize the amount of dissolved CO2

[@bigroosterman12]

Dealing with low flow and cyano bloom rn. Will probably get an oversized filter to help combat it. Everything in this vid is on point!

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Oof cyano is the worst algae if you don't have any antibiotics or Chemiclean/Ultralife. I hope you succeed in getting rid of it!

[@Barwanysaquascapes]

❤️

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

❤️

[@mrcoco3562]

Just tell us what to do n solve

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

C'mon man, you're just being lazy... I went over important water parameters that you should know about. Every tank and every plant species have different requirements. It's up to you to find the correct parameters to create the environment you wish. This video gives you the knowledge, and now it's up to you to apply it.

[@GreatWhiteNiko]

Not a single word about the microorganisms. Jesus, what an internet piece of gold, real gold.

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

I think you're misinterpreting the idea of the video. This video is more specifically on water parameters and not on nutrients/fertilization or the Nitrogen Cycle and balancing a tank. I also mentioned or gave hint to that around 0:20 in the video. The internet is truly a gold mine.

[@joenic4303]

On a broader scale we're beginning to understand how these things interact. Microorganisms have been found to create the environment and make make nutrients available.

[@GreatWhiteNiko]

How are Ca/Mg not too important? Google a picture of the Chlorophyll molecule. See where's the Mg? There is a proper ratio of Ca:Mg. If it's off either way things do not work too well no matter if everything else is in line.

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

I never said that Ca/Mg are not too important. I'm talking about GH testing in itself, since it should not be a direct measurement of Ca and Mg respectively.

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

Also, at around 01:26, I stated that "these minerals are essential for..." which I was referring to Ca/Mg. I also stated in text that proper Ca/Mg test kits should be used rather than GH. I can send you the transcript if you want to find where I claimed that Ca/Mg are "not too important".

[@GreatWhiteNiko]

Hm, what am I not understanding? You make videos to get clicks and get paid. Nobody wants actual good information. You skimmed the surface without going deeper. That is all that is needed. I honestly believe you should be happy about the result. I am not being sarcastic. 20K views in 6 months on a topic like that and no girl talking/showing skin - you did very well. Look at all the channels and websites that actually do deeper on any topic - not nearly as many views as the superficial, click-bait ones. That is valid for any topic, not just aquariums. So you decide what is more important for you. Ca:Mg - by just adjusting the ratio you can actually make a problematic tank grow plants, use way less CO2, light, fertilizers. That (and many other things in this hobby) is true but trust me - very few people care about it. The hobby has become a social experience, not a deeper enjoyment of Nature.

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

​@@GreatWhiteNiko Again, the main idea of this video is on water parameters and getting people to acknowledge that it's an important variable that should be considered. The video is not on anything about specific nutrients. That is what I'm trying to say. As for the information presented in the video, this video's main idea is to take a complex topic and break it down to make it easy to understand with the assistance of video editing. This is a topic that is not talked about as often due to the emphasis on the Big Three (Nutrients, Light, CO2). Even if the Big Three fail for someone despite doing the right things, I wanted to showcase another variable. I try to research as much information when it comes to creating educational videos to avoid spreading misinformation. There are topics I've trashed due to the low amount of scientific research or too generic information without the use of sources or credibility. As for the views/clickbait, it's very important to package an educational or edu-tainer video into a way that will get people to click and stay. I try to practice something I like to call "ethical clickbaiting", which is the practice of using clickbait, but still delivering the information that the user clicked on in the first place. If the topic like this had a very generic title, such as "Water Quality and Other Factors Affecting Aquarium Plants", this video may not get as many clicks/watches as it has now. It doesn't entice someone's curiosity, there's no narrative feel or story element to it, it just feels like a title for a boring classroom lecture video. You can see this example everywhere when it comes to "edu-tainment" videos. Channels, such as Veritasium, use this tactic. In fact, Veritasium has even made a video on the effectiveness of clickbait on KZbin. Their videos take advantage of human curiosity through clickbait while giving data-driven information in a way that anyone of any age can digest. KZbin is very difficult, especially when you first start. KZbin is always ever-changing. Sometimes, people will have to use clickbait in order to get more eyes on their content, otherwise how will they grow organically? Obviously, every channels' story is going to be different, so I want to avoid generalizing this statement. I create content in a way that I would love to watch them. A lot of aquatic channels don't use the power of editing as much as they should, and that is completely OK! I acknowledge that not everyone will enjoy my style of video making, but that doesn't get to my enjoyment of creating them. There are channels that go way into more detail than I do and that's amazing and highly recommend them. However, they make me fall asleep, and I cannot keep up with the massive information dump with little to no visuals. I want to create videos that take complex information and make them easily digestible for people, and further drive their thirst for more knowledge on the topic. I'm always looking for ways to improve my content creation, whether that comes down to video editing, research, and story-telling. Ca:Mg ratio is not the end all be all that solves virtually everything. That much is obvious. The type of plant being used, their growth rate, plant density, amount of light they receive, the amount of ammonia present in the water, how much a plant even utilizes NH3/NH4 as a source of Nitrogen, water hardness, pH, water flow, algae, tannins, livestock density, etc. all play a part, but are topics that aren't widely talk about as much as the Big Three. I think it's a little "tunnel-visioned"/one-sided to say it's just a "social experience" now. Sure, social media has played a part in people sharing their creation, no matter how ugly or beautiful it may be, just for the sake of clicks and likes. But, you cannot admit that it has helped spread this amazing hobby. It's even how I came back to this hobby years ago and eventually gave me the drive to share my knowledge and experiences through videos on KZbin. Furthermore, is there no appreciation when it comes to growing plants, having that drive to take care of them and learn how to grow various types of aquatic plants successfully? Is that not a deep enjoyment of nature? If not, then what the definition of a "deep enjoyment of nature"? Some people want to create a garden, while others want to create a biotope. Not everyone posts pictures of their tank. I don't do that as much, despite having an Instagram where I rarely post. It's more about the community building aspect of it that's strong, rather than a social experience.

[@urbansk8r231]

@@TropiscapeAquatics why are some ppl looking for anything to nit- pick. If you feed to much info, then newbies to planted tanks, may think it's too difficult and be discouraged. You chose 1 element of a broad subject that would require a series. Unless you are growing easy plants. I understand why you need to do click bait- to grab ppls attention. Otherwise, you'd be 1 plant in a 20g aquascape (of well-established ppl) it's like when you were at skool and you had that Teacher, that everyone remembers-he/she made the boring lesson fun. Student started paying more attention, and didn't realize they learned something as well. Which was the end goal of the Teacher. Otherwise, students would just be staring out the Window, on social, or spilling tea etc.