I kept trying and trying and trying to grow good plants, but they would
always die or the fish would eat them, I tried all sorts of things. In the
end I bought the dreaded plastic ones!! (Shame!! shame!!). But now they're
all covered with algae, they look really good, you can hardly tell they're
fake.

Jen

"Andrew" wrote in message
oups.com...
I'll assume you have actual aquatic plants and not something like
purple waffle, mondo grass or Spathiphyllum that many aquariums sell
despite their intolerance of submerged culture.

What type of plants are they? Can you tell us anything else about the
appearance of the plants? (spindley?) Which leaves are you talking
about? Old leaves or new leaves? How much light is over your tank?

Old leaves do die and some aquarium plants eg Crypts will drop their
leaves in response to changed conditions. Some aquarium plants are
often sold with emergent leaves (not aquatic leaves). Basically the
nurseries grow them out of water and sell them to aquarium shops, where
they're promptly put into tanks for sale. You buy them put them in your
tank and for the next month or so the emergent leaves die as the plant
produces new aquatic leaves.

The problem may also be a nutrient deficiency especially if you're not
adding fertiliser. Sounds a little like iron deficiency. Your fish will
give your plants nitrogen and phosphorus but all those other elements
you find in store bought fertilisers are generally absent from your
tank. You'll find suitable fertilisers at all aquarium shops. Ideally
the fertiliser should not contain nitrogen and phosphorus. Don't use
garden fertilisers or the nitrogen and phosphorus will give you algae
problems. Most aquarium liquid fertiliser brands are fine. Just compare
the dosage/volume and get the one that will give you the most value for
money. It's very to get ripped off (by the manufacturers) when it comes
to fertiliser. Another option is planting substrate fertilisers (again,
available of aquariums) at the base of your plants. This might be a
good option if you only have 3 plants. Again, compare the price to how
long the fertiliser will last.

Try rec.aquaria.freshwater.plants for more advice.
FWIW I agree with Basil's post. Planted aquariums are not hard to
maintain. So long as you have enough light, add fertiliser and keep
appropriate plants your plants will thrive, the fish waste gets removed
and your fish will be all the better for it. CO2 fertilisation is good
but definitely not necessary. The average aquarium doesn't have enough
light to make it worth the effort anyway.

Andrew