plantbrain

Regarding why excess nutrients cause algae: most stuidies do not include aquatic plants in a shallow lake etc and with 50% or more substrate/surface coverage. Those lakes are typically dominated by aquatic plants, not algae.

If you add PO4, you get more plants, not algae.

Phillips 1978, is a well cited paper on this issue but failed to account for the PO4 locked up in the plants but did account for the PO4 locked up in the Phytoplankton so this was a big error. When the plant PO4 was added, suddenly there is no pattern, eg a very low R^2 value.

Canfiled and Hoyer have donme a fair amount of work on macrophytes and lakes that are like out tanks, shallow, warm and chocked full of weeds.

These are far more applicable to our tanks than some northern lakes in WI or Demark that freeze each winter, are often deeper and only have a few plants around the edges.

Regards,
Tom Barr

Bert H

Tom, I love that line! Mind if I use it?

But, seriously, very good thread. I recently upped my NO3 dosing in one of my tanks, as you had suggested, and I have noticed a spurt in all the plants. My lobelia has grown bigger leaves than ever (something I actually didn't want). But I had always been hesitant to add stuff for the 'algae fear factor'. (Do I see a new TV show?) Since I had no algae, and decent growth, I was hesitant to change what I was doing. Then come along certain plants which just don't quite make it under the circumstances you have and you realize you need to re-think your protocols, etc. The additional NO3 has pushed me into ordering a Hach NO3 test kit to see where I really am and where I was beforehand.

I assume you have found the same results with traces, namely that an excess of them will not cause algae issues, assuming you have your other nutrients in line.

plantbrain

Traces, PO4, NO3 mainly.

But not K, GH, KH, color temps of lights etc

Trimming harder will help keep many plants smaller with less work FYI.
Reworking a section more often seems helpful also.

This prevents anything from having a chance to grow on leaf surfaces also.You can trade some plants that are slow growing, Lobelia is pretty good and easy to work with.

You can also work in more Rock or Wood etc and stuff Java ferns etc in the darker unfilled spots.

Regards,
Tom Barr