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issues with Pogostemon Helferi? curly leaves

tovtm

tovtm

Member
Joined
2 Jan 2011
Messages
249
I've had my Pogostemon Helferi for the past month which was really healthy when I first put them in now they look like this 4b053d27.jpg

what I want to know is why have the leaves started to turn curly and back under themselves?

I have pressurized co2, EI dosing two T8 38w (I think or 44w) on 7hrs a day
 
still :s il up co2 more again will leaves be ok or will they need cutting back all the curly ones?

thanks clive
 
Poor co2 can mean not enough co2 or flow problems. If your drop checker is light green/ lime then I'd look at what your flow is like. Helferi loves co2 and with it being low on the substrate that tends to be where flow is least. How is your flow in your tank, do you run spray bars on the back blowing forward and down?
 
tovtm said:
still :s il up co2 more again will leaves be ok or will they need cutting back all the curly ones?
Click to expand...
Hi mate,
You can just cut them back later on. I always tell people to stop worrying about the deformed leaves and concentrate on getting the CO2/flow/distribution right. Once CO2 uptake is fixed, pretty new growth will appear and then you can trim the older deformed leaves. Remember we talked about your flow and the negative effects of those 3D backgrounds (was it with you or did I dream that?) Anyway, I'm sorry but you'll have to try harder mate. We're told that 95% of all problems in a planted tank are CO2 related, so you'll have to put your thinking cap on. Did you remember to cut out the top section of the background to install the spraybar, or had you gone in another direction?

Holes in plants, falling leaves, black spots, browning, translucency, deformed growth, disintegration and mushiness in plants are all CO2 related. I wish I had just 10p for every time I've had to say it... :geek:

Cheers,
 
Yeah, no doubt. With the Klingon population, probably a Trillionaire or mayhap even a Quadrillionaire.....

Cheers,
 
first of all you didn't dream it but it was quite a real conversation haha I brought the new filter to give me my 10x water flow which has a spray bar fitted right across the length of the 4ft tank. didn't have to cut anything out in the end as I released I could use long arm suckers to attach it to the braces at the top of the tank.

the spray bar is facing horizontal (the holes) with a slight shimmer to the waters surface. the co2 is making the drop checker is lime green. I think I may turn the timer to come on 2hrs before lights come on though as when lighs come on it's not dark green but in-between. co2 also goes off a hr before lights out.

I have noticed new shoots emerging from this last night funny enough which the new leaves look fine but they are only about 5mm long so not much to go on yet.
 
right this is a picture of my drop checker at 10pm when co2 shuts off and is a hr before lights off. to be fair I think this picture shows the checker a little bit yellower than it actually is. would I be ok to leave it this level or should I turn it down abit if it will effect the discus

957832d0.jpg
 
Ermmm if it's that an hour before lights off I'd say that looks a little bit too high as that's what the co2 is an hour or two before that time. Either that or you could agitate the water a little at night. Do your discus look ok once lights are off? No sitting up near the surface?
 
there about middle to top not gasping at the surface maybe il turn it down abit and just extend the length of time it's on for. it's just nice to get second opinions.
 
Hi mate,
Just to make sure, that's 4dkh water in the checker right? OK, yes, thanks for confirming... you did explain the configuration, it's just hard to keep track. :crazy:

I think you also said that there was definite improvements, right? So now, we just have the last of the fine tuning, because deformity symptoms are an improvement over algae.

I don't really worry too much if I'm in the yellow vs green as long as the fish aren't uncomfortable. If they are getting uncomfortable late in the photoperiod then you need to shut the gas off earlier.

This is another fine point people miss. You don't need to run the gas late into the photoperiod. The most important time is at the beginning of the photoperiod. That means you can drive a higher bubble rate and shut the gas off much earlier, say 3 hours prior to lights out. Turning gas off earlier gives the fish a break and you can increase the injection at the front end, get it? Do it carefully though, maybe a few bpm increase at a time :!:

Cheers,
 
4DKH now not the tank water I was using. :s haha I do get a very little bit of green blanket algue which easily wipes off
 
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