Maintaining a planted aquarium requires a daily chart, akin to the type that hospital ward nurses used to have clipped to the end of a patient's bed, which details statistics such as: Temp, photoperiod, aeration, CO2 bpm, PH test, KH test, GH test, NO3 test, PO4 test, Fe test, NO3 ml added, PO4 ml added, traces added etc. Keeping track of dosing and statistics requires a consistent approach whether you does daily or weekly, rich or poor (just-in-time).
Daily dosing or just-in-time dosing would, for most aquarists add more stress to their lives (somewhat like the job of maintaining a farm of 2 litre DIY CO2 bottles for multiple tanks at 30-45 bpm).
Having a consistent (perhaps weekly) schedule of adding chemicals to an aquarium with minor changes made after observing plant reactions and requirements possibly makes for an easier life for the aquarist and a healthier life for plants, possibly. If we take inspiration from nature, we find the fertilizing pattern is less easy to spot. Anyway, in nature aquatic plants are not often in as beautiful condition as we find them in better aquarium.
Aquariums are a far cry from natural environments. In a natural aquatic environment there would be periods of high rainfall and subsequent run-off thereby adding different types of chemicals to the water body. There would be high evaporation rates in the summer concentrating certain chemicals and driving others out of the water. Temperature variations throughout the year.... etc. Consistency is driven by seasons and associated events.
Consistency is a cardinal rule followed by many aquarists in maintaining their tanks. Consistent amounts and timing of feeding fish, of CO2 injection, of lighting periods, of adding NO3 PO4 etc. The consistent method seems to be reasonably solid providing one makes changes when needed - plants are added, removed etc.
Am I rambling? Apologies.
Andrew Cribb |