Right up front, my question is this: do these plants have a tendency to grow greener when adjusting to a new tank? Additionally, does the new growth typically come in green and not red?
This is what mine looks like:
http://imgur.com/CvoeVtN
This is what I've seen online:
http://www.bamaplants.com/index.php?main_page=popup_image&pID=201
I've seen pictures of this variety of plant online and it is as red as can be. I ordered some and they too were quite red on the bottom leaves and a dark green sort of color on the top. Since having planted it in my tank the coloration on the older leaves appears to be more or less the same shade but the newer leaves are a much greener coloration with a hint of red.
I know these plants like high light and that may be my issue. I'm also aware that high iron content brings out nice reds and that too could be a slight problem. I am, however, hesitant to increase lighting or fertilization doses since I'm not currently running any CO2 and algae is always a top concern of mine when handling tank parameters.
For lighting I'm running two T5 bulbs directly on top of the tank for a light cycle of about 8 hours. One bulb is 10,000 and the other is 6,500. They are normal output bulbs. Previously I have had good luck growing plants that normally enjoy medium-high lighting. I would say the lights fall somewhere between medium and high, but I could be wrong. Never done any PAR testing.
Should I add lighting? I have a LED tube that puts off a nice amount of light, but I'm concerned it's too much light. When I used it in the past with my T5 fixture it really seemed like the tank was just ridiculously bright. I'm also not too eager to kick off crypt melt-fest 2014, as any light changes would definitely start the show.
Any input is appreciated. Thanks guys and gals.
EDIT: Not sure why but I can't get the images to work right now, so I've also added the URL under the image.
This is what mine looks like:
http://imgur.com/CvoeVtN
This is what I've seen online:
http://www.bamaplants.com/index.php?main_page=popup_image&pID=201
I've seen pictures of this variety of plant online and it is as red as can be. I ordered some and they too were quite red on the bottom leaves and a dark green sort of color on the top. Since having planted it in my tank the coloration on the older leaves appears to be more or less the same shade but the newer leaves are a much greener coloration with a hint of red.
I know these plants like high light and that may be my issue. I'm also aware that high iron content brings out nice reds and that too could be a slight problem. I am, however, hesitant to increase lighting or fertilization doses since I'm not currently running any CO2 and algae is always a top concern of mine when handling tank parameters.
For lighting I'm running two T5 bulbs directly on top of the tank for a light cycle of about 8 hours. One bulb is 10,000 and the other is 6,500. They are normal output bulbs. Previously I have had good luck growing plants that normally enjoy medium-high lighting. I would say the lights fall somewhere between medium and high, but I could be wrong. Never done any PAR testing.
Should I add lighting? I have a LED tube that puts off a nice amount of light, but I'm concerned it's too much light. When I used it in the past with my T5 fixture it really seemed like the tank was just ridiculously bright. I'm also not too eager to kick off crypt melt-fest 2014, as any light changes would definitely start the show.
Any input is appreciated. Thanks guys and gals.
EDIT: Not sure why but I can't get the images to work right now, so I've also added the URL under the image.