Dustymac

To be honest, before getting Diana's book, pruning was never a big problem. Plants would get planted and grow very slowly or not at all. Even with ferts and CO2 generation, without a soil substrate, results were anything but predictable.

Now, after adopting the NPT model, the situation has flipped and I just don't have any experience with all this plant growth. Here are my questions...

#1) I planted about 10 Bronze Crypts in two NPTs and everywhere they have grown into little mini jungles. In a couple areas the plants have met and form dense hedges where all the but the smallest fish never swim. Right now I pinch off the stalks individually and I can't keep up. I'm tempted to razor some of them off flush to the gravel and start over but I'm concerned they might not grow back. What should I do?

#2) One of my Anubias, species unknown, has morphed from a sweet little plant into a giant monster. Unfortunately I planted it in a 10 gallon tank and I knew I was in trouble when one of the leaves found it's way out of the water and around the hood. When the second leaf emerged, I replaced the hood with a desk lamp angled over the tank.

That was a few months ago. Now there are 7 stalks/leaves above the water. The largest is 10 inches long and the tallest is a foot above the surface. It shades 2/3 of the tank; the rest of the plants have stopped growing. I suspect water quality is starting to fall off, although the fauna seem unaffected. I'm starting to think it needs to come out or a radical pruning but I have no idea how to prune such a beast that will solve the problem. Any suggestions?

TIA,
Jim