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According to what I've read by Dianne Walstad, the vast majority--if not all--truly aquatic plants uptake ammonium more readily as a nitrogen source than nitrates. Only marginal plants found around a water's edge use nitrates more readily.
http://www.aquabotanic.com/plants_and_biological_filtration.htm
From what I've learned in botany classes, beneficial bacteria on plants convert nitrates quickly enough into ammonium for plant uptake. Because of this, I choose the "safer" route of using nitrates as a nitrogen source. I don't know if in actuality its "safer" or not, but after witnessing the damage of ammonia poisoning on fish I get a little uneasy around the A-words :shock:.
I look forward to reading more posts in this thread. Hopefully someone with first hand experience dosing ammonia/ammonium/urea will chime in and enlighten us.
http://www.aquabotanic.com/plants_and_biological_filtration.htm
From what I've learned in botany classes, beneficial bacteria on plants convert nitrates quickly enough into ammonium for plant uptake. Because of this, I choose the "safer" route of using nitrates as a nitrogen source. I don't know if in actuality its "safer" or not, but after witnessing the damage of ammonia poisoning on fish I get a little uneasy around the A-words :shock:.
I look forward to reading more posts in this thread. Hopefully someone with first hand experience dosing ammonia/ammonium/urea will chime in and enlighten us.