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brenmuk · 07-01-2009, 03:40 AM

For your NPT I would
1) Prune about 1/2 to 1/3 of the plants - I find this encourages healthy growth
2) Reduce to 1 or 2 50% Water changes per year - top up any water evaporation with rain water if possible - this will stop unnecessary removal of nutrients that the plants require and save you having to add extra ferts. Don't worry about fish waste the more the better your plants will lap it up and you effectively remove excessive waste/toxins etc by pruning.
3) Power sockets permitting I would introduce some form of gentle water circulation.

It can be frustrating when you get conflicting advice for other enthusiasts (its always well meaning) the only thing I can say is that if you want an easy life with a planted tank then follow a tried and tested method - i try to follow Diana Walstads advice as far as I can for my NPT.

I agree with Supercoley1 about excessive light causing algae issues to appear sooner ie the amount of light and plant mass dictates nutrient demand but I have also read that the full photo period of 10 -12 hours light is physiologically important to plants and you should try to get sunlight into your tank for some/all of the day. You might want to have your lights set up so that they are on for the full photoperiod but only at their most intense for a few hours in the middle of the photoperiod. This is what I do and it works quite well for me with 2 tubes.

07-01-2009, 03:40 AM	#27 (permalink)
brenmuk Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Peterborough, Uk Posts: 31 iTrader Ratings: 0 Plant Points: 4350	Re: How To Keep Ferns? For your NPT I would 1) Prune about 1/2 to 1/3 of the plants - I find this encourages healthy growth 2) Reduce to 1 or 2 50% Water changes per year - top up any water evaporation with rain water if possible - this will stop unnecessary removal of nutrients that the plants require and save you having to add extra ferts. Don't worry about fish waste the more the better your plants will lap it up and you effectively remove excessive waste/toxins etc by pruning. 3) Power sockets permitting I would introduce some form of gentle water circulation. It can be frustrating when you get conflicting advice for other enthusiasts (its always well meaning) the only thing I can say is that if you want an easy life with a planted tank then follow a tried and tested method - i try to follow Diana Walstads advice as far as I can for my NPT. I agree with Supercoley1 about excessive light causing algae issues to appear sooner ie the amount of light and plant mass dictates nutrient demand but I have also read that the full photo period of 10 -12 hours light is physiologically important to plants and you should try to get sunlight into your tank for some/all of the day. You might want to have your lights set up so that they are on for the full photoperiod but only at their most intense for a few hours in the middle of the photoperiod. This is what I do and it works quite well for me with 2 tubes.