brown edges of frogbit

[cindy]

I put a few things of frogbit in my tank 2 weeks ago. I've read on
this message board that it is a good way to monitor iron levels. They
have looked healthy - but recently the edges or tips of the leaves
have begun to turn brown. Do you think this indicates low iron?

TIA,
cindy

[Greg]

I thought they get yellow from low iron? Mine go brown because of aphids,
or if they are right underneath my eheim fertilizer doser.
"cindy" > wrote in message
m...
> I put a few things of frogbit in my tank 2 weeks ago. I've read on
> this message board that it is a good way to monitor iron levels. They
> have looked healthy - but recently the edges or tips of the leaves
> have begun to turn brown. Do you think this indicates low iron?
>
> TIA,
> cindy

[Allen Smith]

I am not sure, but I think the leaves turning brown and looking like
they are dying is more a sign of nitrate defiency than iron. Iron
defiency looks like yellow where there should be green, not brown
where there should be green.

[Chuck Gadd]

On 12 Nov 2002 20:08:15 -0800, (Allen Smith)
wrote:

>I am not sure, but I think the leaves turning brown and looking like
>they are dying is more a sign of nitrate defiency than iron. Iron
>defiency looks like yellow where there should be green, not brown
>where there should be green.

Any signs of holes in the leaves of any other plants? Potassium can
brown the edges of frogbit.

Additionally, aphids (little bugs) can often cause similar damage.
The bugs are visible, so you can easily tell if you've got them.

If the frogbit is still growing new leaves, than I wouldn't put
nitrate at the top of my list.


Chuck Gadd
http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua

[Allen Smith]

How big are aphids? I have little bugs, about the size of a small
grain of sand. They rest on top of the frogbit and are dark black in
color. Are those them? I always left them there, as I figured they
were a good source of free food for baby fish - I assume baby fish are
eating them, because I keep having new baby cherry barbs everytime I
look at the tank. If I disturb the bugs by blowing on them or just
opening the top they bounce around on the top of the water. I don't
know what else I can say to describe them.

Are aphids or the animals I describe harmful in any way? The leaves of
my frogbit are almost never brown, usually only one leaf or two is
brown, but it isn't enough to worry me.

I stopped supplementing for about 2 weeks and the frogbit leaves
started to turn brown, so I assumed it was just the nitrate and not
anything else. They were, however, putting out small new leaves, not
as large as normal leaves, but there was new growth. I did occasionly
dose potassium, but never dosed nitrate. Reason I stopped dosing so
much is that I ran out of CO2 and haven't gotten it filled yet -
plants are still fine, just a little extra algae is all.