[Arturosito]

Hello, I am using EI on my newly cycled tank and things are great: 3 days after dosing with the EI dosing all algae is gone, but red plants that were becoming red are now becoming green, therefore I need to reduce the Nitrogen dosing which I'm dosing with EI to be about 20 ppm.

At what ppm should I reduce Nitrogen to keep plants healthy but red plants reddish?

I'm asking this for EI and PPS, since after some time with the EI I want to jump to PPS. Thanks.

 

[Preeths]

Some plants get red due to nitrogen deficiency. You may have to completely eliminate nitrates for a few weeks to see that result. Some plants are naturally red and will need bright light. Which plants do you have in your aquarium?

 

[Arturosito]

I'm pretty sure it is not nitrogen deficiency but the opposite. My test says nitrogen is at 20ppm, I have ludwigia arquata, and rotala colorata, they were becoming red and after I dosed with EI for the first time they started going green. It is nitrogen abundance.

Some plants get red due to nitrogen deficiency. You may have to completely eliminate nitrates for a few weeks to see that result. Some plants are naturally red and will need bright light. Which plants do you have in your aquarium?

 

[Deanna]

Hello, I am using EI on my newly cycled tank and things are great: 3 days after dosing with the EI dosing all algae is gone, but red plants that were becoming red are now becoming green, therefore I need to reduce the Nitrogen dosing which I'm dosing with EI to be about 20 ppm.

At what ppm should I reduce Nitrogen to keep plants healthy but red plants reddish?

I'm asking this for EI and PPS, since after some time with the EI I want to jump to PPS. Thanks.

Take a look at this guide: https://www.advancedplantedtank.com/blogs/freshwater-aquarium-plants-guide/how-to-grow-red-plants?_pos=2&_sid=94f941fe1&_ss=r

In fact, you may find the entire site to be useful.

 

[Quesenek]

I'm pretty sure it is not nitrogen deficiency but the opposite. My test says nitrogen is at 20ppm, I have ludwigia arquata, and rotala colorata, they were becoming red and after I dosed with EI for the first time they started going green. It is nitrogen abundance.

I assume you mean ludwigia arcuata just for accuracy so that I know what plant you have.
What kind of substrate do you have? If inert + root tabs or high quality rich substrate you can go lean on the water column dosing because the substrate provides what you need.
You will also need high intensity lighting, but you can quickly go into an unstable environment that grows algae if something goes out of balance.

The plants that will grow red under nitrate limitation need 0-5ppm of nitrates in the water column; however, this doesn't mean no nitrates are in the system. Through the root tabs or rich substrate, the plants can get the nutrients they need, you're just limiting what is being dosed directly in the water column. If you want to go this route, I recommend you watch Filipe Oliveira's videos on red plants, and his fertilization routine on youtube for more information.

 

[Arturosito]

Thank you, I use the H.E.L.P. substrate for planted tanks. My tank is 25 gal, and my lamp is a 50 watt Hiro aquatics, which I'm very happy with, everything is going great so I know it has to do with the Nitrogen. I will lower it. As for the root tabs, the tank is mostly Utricularia Gramminifolia dominated. The rest is red stem plants. From what I've read, Utricularia is not a big fan of fertilizers anyways, so if I aim for what's needed only for the red stem plants and keep nitrogen at 0 -5 ppm I guess I will be fine, correct?

 

[Quesenek]

Thank you, I use the H.E.L.P. substrate for planted tanks. My tank is 25 gal, and my lamp is a 50 watt Hiro aquatics, which I'm very happy with, everything is going great so I know it has to do with the Nitrogen. I will lower it. As for the root tabs, the tank is mostly Utricularia Gramminifolia dominated. The rest is red stem plants. From what I've read, Utricularia is not a big fan of fertilizers anyways, so if I aim for what's needed only for the red stem plants and keep nitrogen at 0 -5 ppm I guess I will be fine, correct?

The H.E.L.P. substrate for plants looks to be a nutrient rich soil, so you should be fine dosing a lean fert routine.
Depending on how long you keep the tank running, you'll eventually need to add root tabs once the nutrients in the soil run out, so just keep an eye out for when that happens and you start to see deficiencies.
Just to make sure a second time, your plants will still have the nutrients they need, but instead of adding a lot of it to the water column through EI dosing, you have it in the substrate.

 

[SirNut]

My nitrates typically stay pretty low, but I've noticed that high light seems to be the biggest assisting factor

 

[Arturosito]

Thanks for your replies, btw, that Filipe Oliveira video was amazing. So now I understand I can just play with nitrogen as needed. I'm going to keep it low or don't dose it at all to keep the plants red and then dose it once in a while for plant health and to fight algae blooms.