Hardy plants that I simply cannot seem to keep alive...

[echoofformless]

It's funny, but in the time I've been keeping planted aquariums (a little over a year now) I have found that some of the supposedly hardy species haven't been so hardy for me after all.

I have tried giant hygro, wisteria and sunset hygro. All have died within weeks. This is with fertile substrate (flourite/peat) and with plain gravel. Low light, medium light, and in high light. And this happens in tanks where supposedly less hardy species like rotala are thriving beyond measure.

Moneywort lasted even less than a week.

I just don't get it...I'm not really looking for advice just for responses, thoughts and musings. Why would suppsedly hardy species die off so quickly? It amazes me from my own experience that the accepted cannon insists that these plants are excellent for beginners or for establishing tanks. Is it Philadelphia tap water? Do i have bad breath or something? :joke:

 

[Aquabum]

What are your water parameters? Did you dose macros and micros accordingly? What were the symptoms in your plants? Yellowing, holes, melting, stunting, etc.?

Please tell us a bit more.

 

[RockabillyChick]

same thing happened to me. i've killed myrio, hornwort, wisteria, bacopa, ludwigia. i have sucessfully growing in my tank sunset hygro, rotala rotundifolia, dwarf sag, dwarf hairgrass, crypts, java fern, and watersprite.

 

[echoofformless]

Well the parameters are all different in my tanks. But yet I dose, water change, CO2 in some cases, etc.

Too much detail to go into here, as every tank is very different in every way be it water chemistry, hardware, etc. All I know is that most of the plants labelled as "hardy" have been anything but hardy to me; and this is only annoying because I'm able to keep other plants in thriving conditions. If you can explain to me why rotala, crypt and water sprite grow like weeds in the same tank where moneywort, hygro, wisteria and valisneria died within days then I will certainly be impressed. Especially considering that this tank in particular has a flourite substrate and 3wpg of cf light, recieves CO2 and excel, and is given consistent water changes to provide nitrates. The plants that thrive in there are thriving almost to the point of obnoxious. I'm rather convinced that there are just some things in this hobby which are unexplainable. Maybe something about Philadelphia tap water that doesn't agree with certain plants? The phase of the moon? The positions of the other planets? The color shirt I am wearing...

 

[amd]

its the shirt=)