AHHH Java Ferns turning brown

[newworldan06]

I got some java ferns, rotalas, moss and crypts. Everything seem to be growing fine except for the ferns. The Big ones i have are turning brown and look like they are dieing. My rotalas and crypts seem to being doing just great. I put a squirt of nutrients in like every 3 days. Any ideas on what happening? or what I can do?


thanks

 

[farm41]

Do you have the ferns rooted in the substrate?

They will not survive if the rhizome is in the gravel, they need to be tied onto a rock, pot, or driftwood.

 

[mike klinger]

besides the good advice that farm gave you, you could also put the java ferns in the current. if kept in still water the leaves turn brown and start forming adventitious plantlets on the dying leaves. put them directly in the current of your filter and they should start growing fine. if the problem was a buried substrate you can attach to rock or driftwood with staples or fishing line. but dont try to use staples with a rock ; )

 

[cdawson]

There's a condition called java melt/rot that I've had before. It's due to a lack of nitrates available in the water column. Any fast growing rooted/floating plants will get them before the java fern as it's quite the slow growing plant.


I had an entire driftwood piece covered in java fern melt in one day in my eunotus tank.