Who Gives A Fish Forums

I've been struggling with my planted tank for months now. The plants just aren't thriving like I expected. How long did it take for your tank to really start thriving? I'm using a 20-gallon with Fluval Stratum, CO2 injection, and a Nicrew light. Water params are good, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 10 nitrate.

Took my tank about 3 months to really hit its stride. You gotta remember, plants need time to adjust. What's your lighting schedule? I run mine 8 hours with a siesta in the middle. Also, how often are you dosing ferts? I swear by Thrive+.

saltWaterFreak wrote: ↑Fri Apr 25, 2025 3:06 am Took my tank about 3 months to really hit its stride. You gotta remember, plants need time to adjust. What's your lighting schedule? I run mine 8 hours with a siesta in the middle. Also, how often are you dosing ferts? I swear by Thrive+.

I agree with the adjustment period. My 40-gallon took 4 months. Zenora, what plants are you struggling with? Some species just take longer to establish.

My tank was a hot mess for the first two months. Then I switched to ADA Aqua Soil and bumped my CO2. Now it's lush. You might wanna check your CO2 levels, maybe crank it up a bit. Also, what's your water change routine?

Yo, zenora, patience is key, my dude. My first tank was a disaster till I got the flow right. What filter you running? I swapped to a canister and boom, plants went wild. Also, you dosing any iron? Some plants go nuts for it.

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I'm running a Fluval 307 canister, dosing Thrive twice a week. Plants are mostly Anubias, Java Fern, and some stem plants that keep melting. Lighting is 7 hours straight, no siesta. Maybe I'll tweak that.

My tank took forever to grow. I don't know why. Maybe the light was bad.

I've heard Anubias can be slow starters. Maybe give them more time. What's your substrate depth? I've found 2 inches works best for root feeders.

My plants grew fast. I used dirt and sand. Maybe try that.

zenora wrote: ↑Fri Apr 25, 2025 7:42 am Thanks for the advice, everyone. I'm running a Fluval 307 canister, dosing Thrive twice a week. Plants are mostly Anubias, Java Fern, and some stem plants that keep melting. Lighting is 7 hours straight, no siesta. Maybe I'll tweak that.

Melting stems usually mean unstable conditions. Try reducing your light to 6 hours and see if that helps. Also, check your CO2 drop checker color. Should be lime green, not yellow or blue.