Do you use fertiliser on your plants ?

[Ingrid]

Do you need to use or do you use fertiliser on your plants ?

 

[Kritastrophe]

I use fertilizer in one of my tanks but only because my water is so soft and lacking in nutrients - I have needier plants in my 75 gallon that get holes in their leaves due to deficiencies if I don’t use fertilizer. Two of my three tanks I don’t use fertilizer because the plants in those tanks are less needy and seem to do fine with just fish waste and light.

 

[Back in the fold]

My tanks are small and I'm hesitant to add anything that could monkey with the water and stress my fish.

 

[Byron]

I use plant fertilizer but minimally, meaning, only what I need to as best as I can tell. Back in the fold is correct, the less added to tank water the better because all of it gets inside the fish.

 

[Lilyann]

I use an all- in- 1 liquid fertilizer (ThriveC) and Flourish Root tabs.

 

[Fishmanic]

I only occasionally add seachem comprehensive fertilizer. My anubias and hygrophiia difformis seem to do fine without it.

 

[Jan Cavalieri]

I'm really fond of the tablets you place in the substrate that slowly release the fertilizer into the water - put them on/next to your plants (or if you are setting up a new tank, put a tablet every few inches. No rapid chemical release just a slow doses of fertilizer. They last for a long time.

 

[Byron]

I'm really fond of the tablets you place in the substrate that slowly release the fertilizer into the water - put them on/next to your plants (or if you are setting up a new tank, put a tablet every few inches. No rapid chemical release just a slow doses of fertilizer. They last for a long time.

Agree, the Flourish Tabs are good for substrate-rooted plants (wouldn't help floating or non-substrate rooted though). I don't know how Seachem manage it, but their claim is true that the nutrients are not released into the water column until they are actually taken up by the plants. The benefit of this is that you are not increasing nutrients in the water column so algae is not being advantaged, and it does not get in side fish.

Replacing the tabs every 3-4 months ensures good nutrient supplementation for the rooted plants. The API tabs are much less effective, and more mess than the Seachem Flourish Tabs. Years ago I got hold of a substrate fert called Plant Gro Sticks made by Nutrafin; replaced once a year, and boy did the swords take off. I have not been able to find these anyway online for several years now so presumably they are no longer available/made. But the Flourish Tabs are a pretty good substitute.