Help with browning leaves on floating plants

[powerin]

Here's a picture of my tank from August 13th - it shows what my aquarium looks like and the floating plants I have.

I've noticed some of the floaters have browning edges on their leaves.

I know I have Frogbit, and a couple other types. The Frogbit is fine, it's the others I'm concerned about.

Can anyone help me figure out what the other floaters are and why their leaves are browning?

[powerin]

I forgot to mention a few things about my tank's setup. I dose with 10ml of Flourish Comprehensive Supplement weekly during water changes on Sundays. My Fluval Plant 3.0 LED light runs 6-7 hours a day at 60-70% intensity, no CO2.

The plants tend to bunch up mid-week, just sitting under the light, not moving with the current. I clear out some every Sunday to free up space and they start moving again. I'm wondering if being under the light for so long is causing this browning on the edges of my floaters' leaves.

[boomer]

Nothing to worry about here. The large floating plant in the open rectangle is indeed Pistia stratiotes, or Water Lettuce. I've had my fair share of experience with this plant, and I must say, it's a magnificent one. As for the smaller floater, I'm quite certain it's Salvinia, likely S. molesta. My own plants used to look similar, but I noticed a decline in their health when our municipal water supply increased the soda ash levels, pushing the pH up to 8-something.

From what I've observed, Salvinia is a small floating fern that thrives in bright light and good water circulation. It's not too fussy, but it does require decent nutrition from the water. The two surface leaves are quite striking, with a beautiful silvery sheen - but they can turn brown and melt if conditions aren't ideal. I've read that Salvinia auriculata is often associated with aquarium plants, but some authors believe this might be incorrect. Kasselmann suggests that S. molesta is the species most commonly found in aquaria, and it's likely a natural hybrid of S. auriculata and S. biloba.

As for Pistia stratiotes, it's a variable plant that can grow quite large under optimal conditions. I've seen it grow up to 20 inches in diameter, although it usually stays smaller. The so-called "Dwarf" Water Lettuce isn't a distinct species, but rather a result of less-than-ideal conditions. It's a magnificent floating plant that's best suited to an outdoor pond or large aquarium. I've noticed that the "dwarf" form can develop into a normal, large plant when conditions improve.

Given your setup, with the Fluval Plant 3.0 LED light and the Flourish Comprehensive Supplement, I think the browning edges on your Salvinia might be due to the plants sitting directly under the light for extended periods. It's worth adjusting the light schedule or providing some shade to see if that improves the plant's health.

[powerin]

Hard to see in your post, you mentioned Water Lettuce - what's the other floater you think I have?

Just to clarify, this isn't a current picture. I'll take another one tonight and post it showing the browning edges.

[boomer]

Here's a picture of my tank from August 13th - it shows what my aquarium looks like and the floating plants I have.

I've noticed some of the floaters have browning edges on their leaves.

I know I have Frogbit, and a couple other types. The Frogbit is fine, it's the others I'm concerned about.

Can anyone help me figure out what the other floaters are and why their leaves are browning?

I've identified the two floaters in your tank as Pistia stratiotes, or Water Lettuce - that's the larger one in the open rectangle. The smaller one is Salvinia, and I'm pretty sure it's S. molesta, but I'm not 100% sure on the species.

[powerin]

Nothing to worry about here. The large floating plant in the open rectangle is indeed Pistia stratiotes, or Water Lettuce. I've had my fair share of experience with this plant, and I must say, it's a magnificent one. As for the smaller floater, I'm quite certain it's Salvinia, likely S. molesta. My own plants used to look similar, but I noticed a decline in their health when our municipal water supply increased the soda ash levels, pushing the pH up to 8-something.

From what I've observed, Salvinia is a small floating fern that thrives in bright light and good water circulation. It's not too fussy, but it does require decent nutrition from the water. The two surface leaves are quite striking, with a beautiful silvery sheen - but they can turn brown and melt if conditions aren't ideal. I've read that Salvinia auriculata is often associated with aquarium plants, but some authors believe this might be incorrect. Kasselmann suggests that S. molesta is the species most commonly found in aquaria, and it's likely a natural hybrid of S. auriculata and S. biloba.

As for Pistia stratiotes, it's a variable plant that can grow quite large under optimal conditions. I've seen it grow up to 20 inches in diameter, although it usually stays smaller. The so-called "Dwarf" Water Lettuce isn't a distinct species, but rather a result of less-than-ideal conditions. It's a magnificent floating plant that's best suited to an outdoor pond or large aquarium. I've noticed that the "dwarf" form can develop into a normal, large plant when conditions improve.

Given your setup, with the Fluval Plant 3.0 LED light and the Flourish Comprehensive Supplement, I think the browning edges on your Salvinia might be due to the plants sitting directly under the light for extended periods. It's worth adjusting the light schedule or providing some shade to see if that improves the plant's health.

Alright, so I've got it narrowed down now. The browning edges are on the Salvinia. I'll take another picture and post it here a bit later tonight.

[powerin]

Got a new picture. Leaves turning brown are below the water line. Ones above water are fine.

Can you take another look and confirm which plant is affected?

[boomer]

I'm seeing something different in these new photos - is that another plant I'm looking at? You only mentioned Salvinia and Water Lettuce, did you introduce something else to the tank?

[powerin]

Nothing to worry about here. The large floating plant in the open rectangle is indeed Pistia stratiotes, or Water Lettuce. I've had my fair share of experience with this plant, and I must say, it's a magnificent one. As for the smaller floater, I'm quite certain it's Salvinia, likely S. molesta. My own plants used to look similar, but I noticed a decline in their health when our municipal water supply increased the soda ash levels, pushing the pH up to 8-something.

From what I've observed, Salvinia is a small floating fern that thrives in bright light and good water circulation. It's not too fussy, but it does require decent nutrition from the water. The two surface leaves are quite striking, with a beautiful silvery sheen - but they can turn brown and melt if conditions aren't ideal. I've read that Salvinia auriculata is often associated with aquarium plants, but some authors believe this might be incorrect. Kasselmann suggests that S. molesta is the species most commonly found in aquaria, and it's likely a natural hybrid of S. auriculata and S. biloba.

As for Pistia stratiotes, it's a variable plant that can grow quite large under optimal conditions. I've seen it grow up to 20 inches in diameter, although it usually stays smaller. The so-called "Dwarf" Water Lettuce isn't a distinct species, but rather a result of less-than-ideal conditions. It's a magnificent floating plant that's best suited to an outdoor pond or large aquarium. I've noticed that the "dwarf" form can develop into a normal, large plant when conditions improve.

Given your setup, with the Fluval Plant 3.0 LED light and the Flourish Comprehensive Supplement, I think the browning edges on your Salvinia might be due to the plants sitting directly under the light for extended periods. It's worth adjusting the light schedule or providing some shade to see if that improves the plant's health.

I've only had these plants in the tank since the beginning. I've got four types that I know of - Water Lettuce, Frogbit, Salvania, and also Duckweed.

[boomer]

I've taken another look at the latest photos, and it appears to be Frogbit. Initially, I thought there were only two plants present, Salvinia and Water Lettuce. However, now that I know Frogbit is in the tank, I can see some of it in the distance of the first photos. I don't see any Duckweed, though.

In my experience, Frogbit can be a bit finicky, but this doesn't seem to be cause for concern. It's possible that this isn't the tropical species, but I wouldn't worry too much about it.