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I've always understood the "excess nutrients do not cause algae" statement to either mean:
a: short term excesses aren't a problem. ie, dosing high amounts of Nitrate (20+ ppm) because the plants are going to remove it from the water column in a short period.
corallary: As long as nutrients are in balance *and the plants are growing* then excess levels aren't much of an issue (in the short term)
b: One can add an excess of one nutrient because that tank uses X nutrient more than others.
My response to that is: Prolonged excesses of all or some nutrients will contribute to algae. If there are levels of nutrients higher than the macrophyte population is able to absorb/utilize then algae will pick up the slack.
a: short term excesses aren't a problem. ie, dosing high amounts of Nitrate (20+ ppm) because the plants are going to remove it from the water column in a short period.
corallary: As long as nutrients are in balance *and the plants are growing* then excess levels aren't much of an issue (in the short term)
b: One can add an excess of one nutrient because that tank uses X nutrient more than others.
My response to that is: Prolonged excesses of all or some nutrients will contribute to algae. If there are levels of nutrients higher than the macrophyte population is able to absorb/utilize then algae will pick up the slack.
