Seagrass

[seabass]

Die off and regrowth is fairly common. That said, sometimes the die off isn't followed by regrowth. It's not a problem, until it's a problem. I know, not much help; however, it still sounds OK to me.

[Kiwi]

Just thank you sooo much

[Amphiprion1]

Agreed. Typically you'll see new green growth prior to older leaves dying and/or dropping off. When you don't notice this anymore or new leaves are pale, then issues are already underway. Some grasses, like Thalassia, only seem to start exhibiting this when they are almost too far gone. I can only guess that this is tied to their slow growth rate.

[Kiwi]

just a little update… (maybe you can tell me more about it...

usually I see old leafs dying, and then you can see new ones growing.

one plant lost almost all its leafes, but it still looks fine, and starts growing new ones...

the roots are in a very good condtion! so nothing to complain about here.

but I'm optimistic they'll stay alive and grow!

 

what's intresting: there are sooo many organisms growing on the leafs! hydropolyps, algae (red, green…)

water temperature is at 22°C at the moment (daytime) an 20 at night.

 

the nitrate level is at 10ppm, caulerpa is growing like mad!

 

all I can say: when I do get a large tank, it will be a planted one!

 

have a good day,

Andy

[Amphiprion1]

If a plant is adding substantial mass below the substrate, then that is good. Fwiw, some of my plants have been completely "denuded" before and regrow if conditions allow. Are the plants connected via rhizome or separate? Sounds like there is plenty of nutrient availability. One thing that may help is to very gently remove epiphytes like you describe. Enough epiphytes/epifauna can cause premature leaf drop. For now, I would stay the course--it sounds like they will be okay in the long run.

[Kiwi]

there ase 4 plants, with 2-3 parts where the leafes go out (hese are complete plants, grown from seeds (you where able to see them^^)

I have started to dose carbon dioxide yesterday at daytime, so I hope to give it a little better conditions...

I hope they'll will be ok, but I'm thinking of getting some new lights...

or to stock them up (to 20-30W on 3gal) I recently have 15W over the tank….

the problem is, I can't see, what it is doing under the substrate (just took a little root out, it looked how it was supposed to… a single root with lots of mycro-roots comeing of that one

But I really love the look of it, and I hope, It will grow

 

 

I would be able to get a little portion of halophila ovalis for 25 bucks…. am thinking 'bout it, but it's not too cheap (including shipping )

 

Andy

[Amphiprion1]

Ah, the seedlings. I may try those from LA, since seeds often do better.

 

More light can certainly help--in the right spectrum. Just remember that increased light equals more nutrient requirements.. When they are growing, they put out a large, extensive network of rhizomes. Since they are seeds, a deficiency will show up later than in individual shoots.

[Kiwi]

I hope, it'll grow…. it hasn't really yet, I belive...

I have been thinking about fertilizing it…. any Ideas?

 

aaand another thing…. do you think, sunlight is good for the grass?

 

Andy

[Amphiprion1]

I don't think nutrients are your immediate issue, since you have measurable dissolved nitrogen levels. It may actually be more of a lighting issue. They are not incredibly fast growing plant even with bright light (though it varies by species). It also may not hurt to dose a little iron if you don't already.

 

Sunlight wouldn't hurt as long as long as temps are acceptable for your species. There was a tank that belonged to a member named halophila on RC that ran exclusively on sunlight, if I remember correctly. The species of grass was tropical, though.

[Kiwi]

ok, I#ll get another 11w pl lamp in 3weeks probably, so I'm going to have 27W of light over the tank… that shoulkd be enough, I assume /would be 9W/gal^^

 

but I am really happy to see many,many,many more gas bubbles on the grass since I#ve started dosing CO2….ope, it is Oxygen (O2)

what I don't understand, is the fact, that even corals seem to like the CO2-dosings

 

aaaaaand I have ust removed everythink, that was easy to remove from the grass…looks very clean now… only the hydropolyps aren't affected by It…don't know why ^^

[seabass]

but I am really happy to see many, many, many more gas bubbles on the grass since I've started dosing CO2…. ope, it is Oxygen (O2)

Yeah, some people are against dosing CO2, but it does seem to benefit the plants. However, it can also cause large/dangerous swings to pH. While normally, many reef keepers care very little about pH, you should carefully track it.

 

Only dose CO2 during the day; and, if possible, use a controller with pH probe (and solenoid) to shut it down when pH drops too low. Dose it very slowly (less can be more when other livestock is in the tank), and keep flow/aeration good (a skimmer can be of value here). Also, make sure that your alkalinity stays within recommended ranges.

 

I doubt that your corals are reacting positively to the the CO2 itself; however, this might be causing the seagrass to uptake more phosphate (which they might be reacting to). Keep a log of your phosphate, nitrate, and pH levels. It might even become necessary to introduce more nutrients into the system. To increase nutrients, I prefer clean reagent grade chemicals versus just over feeding; however, increasing food like phytoplankton (which is high in phosphate) isn't a bad strategy (and your pods will love you for it).

[Kiwi]

Parazoanthus have opened much more (tentacles over 2cm now, never seen them so long), and this started,when I begun dosing CO2 2 days ago

right now, I am not dosing chemicals, and I would love to acoid it… especially, because I#d love to be able to feed it with plankton…etc (the more, the better, ihmo)

 

I have been testing Ph during the day several times, wasn't under 8.1, and not under 8 at night…. so it's ok (of course I'll stop Co2-dosings, when I see any negative signs at my corals

 

ohh, and I am using bio-co2…. sugar with yeast in water (at that time I have one bubble every 11 sec.)

 

if I see any changes, I'll tell you

[Amphiprion1]

Heads up for those interested--LA has sprouted Thalassia seeds currently in Diver's Den.

[JLynn]

I have a new resource to add to this thread; I just found an online PDF of all 648 pages of "Seagrasses: Biology, Ecology, and Conservation"! So exciting! This book is a veritable treasure trove.

[Amphiprion1]

Another heads-up for seagrass and enthusiasts--Floridapets currently has Thalassia, Halodule, and Syringodium for sale. Anyone that wants the Thalassia needs to act quickly, as it will be out of season once these are gone. Can't vouch for quality yet until I receive the order, but I like to keep track of which retailers supply these grasses which are less common in the hobby. Enjoy.

 

 

[Speaker73]

Another heads-up for seagrass and enthusiasts--Floridapets currently has Thalassia, Halodule, and Syringodium for sale. Anyone that wants the Thalassia needs to act quickly, as it will be out of season once these are gone. Can't vouch for quality yet until I receive the order, but I like to keep track of which retailers supply these grasses which are less common in the hobby. Enjoy.

 

But alas they still don't ship to California......