Anubias Barteri dying or melting or being eaten?

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

So in the past week or too, I got an Anubias barteri. I don’t know why but its leaves have been falling off, and some of the leaves are partly transparent or have a hole. What is causing this and how do I fix it?

Edited October 7, 2022 by Just a Pygmy Corydora

[TheSwissAquarist]

Normally melting only really happens around the leaf edge on anubias. Is there any new growth around the stem?

[JoeQ]

What is your nutritional plan? It could be cannibalizing itself in search of nutrients.  Did you burry the rhizome? 

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

On 10/7/2022 at 4:31 AM, JoeQ said:

What is your nutritional plan? It could be cannibalizing itself in search of nutrients.  Did you burry the rhizome? 

I did not bury the rhizome, I did put in easy green.

On 10/7/2022 at 3:48 AM, TheSwissAquarist said:

Normally melting only really happens around the leaf edge on anubias. Is there any new growth around the stem?

 Leaves are only falling off, there is no sign of growing.

[Kurt Brutting]

It could be Anubias rot. Is the Rhizome mushy? If so cut off the mushy section with scissors if possible. 

[Flumpweesel]

I picked up a beautiful large leaved anubias and all but one of its leaves melted back at the base but it is now putting out new leaves. I think it was about 6 weeks till  I spotted the first new leaf but it has a few now,  Bought the plant in June.  

My advise would be if its not showing any signs of rot leave it in place and see what it does 

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

Should I keep using easy green or just let it be?

[The Arthritic Aquarist]

I have two Anubias species (Nana and Nana petite) which are now doing very well.  I experimented with ferts and light levels for some time before getting it right.  I use a bit of EasyGreen every week, along with another fert (which is basically just iron and potassium).  I also use root tabs for some of my other plants.  At any rate, the Anubias took off.  The larger plant (purchased from a Big Box store) wasn't in the best shape when I bought it.  It's now quite beautiful in comparison and putting out a new leaf at least once a month or so.

[TheSwissAquarist]

On 10/10/2022 at 3:16 PM, The Arthritic Aquarist said:

I have two Anubias species (Nana and Nana petite) which are now doing very well.  I experimented with ferts and light levels for some time before getting it right.  I use a bit of EasyGreen every week, along with another fert (which is basically just iron and potassium).  I also use root tabs for some of my other plants.  At any rate, the Anubias took off.  The larger plant (purchased from a Big Box store) wasn't in the best shape when I bought it.  It's now quite beautiful in comparison and putting out a new leaf at least once a month or so.

It’s always nice to see people take on fish and plants who aren’t 100% and give them a second lease of life!

(Welcome to the forum btw!)

[JoeQ]

On 10/8/2022 at 11:02 PM, Just a Pygmy Corydora said:

I did not bury the rhizome, I did put in easy green.

 Leaves are only falling off, there is no sign of growing.

Are you on a regular dosing schedule?  Is it getting enough light on account of the clarity of your water?

Edited October 10, 2022 by JoeQ

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

On 10/10/2022 at 6:57 AM, JoeQ said:

Are you on a regular dosing schedule?  Is it getting enough light on account of the clarity of your water?

Can you add on to what the clarity of water is? Should I put in more or less light if my water is cloudy?

[JoeQ]

In the first picture you posted your water looks like pea soup which would impact how much light the plant recieves. Clarity basically refers to how clear your water is.

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

How do I cure/remove the cloudy water? I have been doing water changes with a siphon every week. I have my LED light for 7 and a half hours. Should I change the light hours? I have a sponge filter, and a heater.

Edited October 13, 2022 by Just a Pygmy Corydora

[JoeQ]

A well cycling tank should clear your cloudy water issues. But it looks to me like the green water appearance was caused from algea on the front glass. If it were me id chalk the melt up to the plant adjusting to growing in your environment, and be sure to provide regular water column fertilization. Then observe for the next week or 2 for new growth.  Which, from the new pictures you posted there appears to be.

 

Edit: also the rhizome or the roots should not be buried! Anubis are water column feeders.

Edited October 13, 2022 by JoeQ

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

Then why is the plant dying? There appears to be no growth. My other Anubias nana’s leaves started falling off too, and I bought it a year ago.

[Torrey]

On 10/14/2022 at 5:07 PM, Just a Pygmy Corydora said:

Then why is the plant dying? There appears to be no growth. My other Anubias nana’s leaves started falling off too, and I bought it a year ago.

 

Let's start with the plant on the left:

A- algae is growing on a weakened plant. Either a nutritional, lighting, or carbon imbalance (frequently a combination of them) See chart to help identify deficiencies that make plants susceptible to being nibbled on, and susceptible to algae growth

B- Plant has cannibalized itself where the leaf meets the stem. This leaf can't repair itself, and is no longer feeding nutrients to the rhizome. It needs to be removed at this point. (Fun experiment: You can do the reverse respiration soak to kill the algae, and see if the single, salvaged leaf attempts to grow roots. I have had it happen, rarely. It's a type of propagation, and is always worth a try if you have the space and the patience)

C- Looks like some new growth, may also be an unhappy rhizome. My anubias do better when I suspend in the tank and don't let any part of the rhizome touch the bottom.

Plant on the right:

D- definitely an unhappy rhizome. Gently lift up and out of the tank. Rinse *very gently* in clear, dechlorinated water. Gently slough off any mold, mildew, or "funky smelling" parts. If it's mushy to the touch, get clean scissors (sterilize with rubbing alcohol, then rinse with distilled water, cut off the rot until you get to firm rhizome, then wipe scissors down with rubbing alcohol again. Please don't get any rubbing alcohol near your tank or near your plant, I don't want you to curse me when the alcohol kills the bacterial filtration in your tank if it somehow gets into your tank.😅

Once you have revealed some healthy rhizome, use Guppysnail's airline holder method of suspending the healthy rhizome in your tank. New groth will appear in 6 to 8 weeks, if we can identify what is causing the imbalance and correct it.

 

E- More algae, but this leaf still has a healthy stem, so it can probably be saved.

 

 

 

 

 

This is my favorite "identify the deficiency" chart.

Anytime a tank's balance is disturbed with a large water change, a fish/snail population explosion, a change in lighting, or even something as simple as a change in fertilization schedule/amounts, the tank is going to be "out of balance" until all the various components (fish/animal stock, plant stock, nutrients, pH, TDS, beneficial bacteria, etc) rediscover their "new" homeostasis "sweet spot".

This temporary imbalance (what I call growing pains in new tanks) causes a predictable sequence of algal growth. Having sufficient numbers of algae eaters (shrimp, snails, etc) will help shorten the amount of time the tank is in its "awkward teen stage". Diatom, followed by hair algae is a natural part of the cycle.

The anubias is telling you, something is out of balance.

The amount of algae in the tank is telling you there is an imbalance.

The lack of clarity in the water is saying there is an imbalance.

The rhizome condition is saying the rhizome isn't happy touching the substrate (some anubias can really be that picky. They give new meaning to "they need to feel free"). The most likely scenario, based on what I can see, is the rhizome on your one year old plant decided it didn't want to be on the substrate anymore, possibly a fish moved some substrate or mulm onto the rhizome, or it didn't appreciate a gravel vac that kicked something up on top of it.

Doesn't matter what started it disliking the substrate, now it's a matter of making her happy again. So move her off the substrate (some of mine don't even like to be touching wood. They want to free float, and find their own happy place).

The fuzzy stuff needs to come off, it's interfering with photosynthesis which causes an imbalance.

Personally, unless a tank is on CO2, I prefer siesta lighting so that I can see my tanks earlier in the morning, as well as later at night, when I can actually enjoy them. My plants are happier, and I no longer have algae problems, by limiting my tanks to 4 hours of light at a stretch. All of my tanks now have dimmable lights, so I start tanks at 10% lighting until plants are established, and increase by 10% every 2 weeks (this is a new approach, but all tanks and plants are responding well for nearly 6 months now).

My plants and tanks weren't always algae free, this past spring I was struggling with Blackbeard, cyanobacteria, filamentous green algae staghorn and hair algae.

This post on reverse respiration didn't save my temperamental Roseafolia (I didn't try it in time), but it did eliminate algae from everything else, improved plant health, and 3 months later I am very happy with the results.

 

Hope all of this helps! Don't give up, try to view it as a learning opportunity. I have no idea how many foreign languages you know, this is an opportunity for immersive learning of how to speak anubias. I see hopeful potential in each plant, I suspect the substrate touching them started an unhappy rhizome, which interfered with nutrient absorption, which made them vulnerable to algae, which has led to inadequate photosynthesis.

I would take them both out, clean any rhizome rot, soak *completely submerged* overnight in plain seltzer water (literally liquid CO2 in H2O) in a completely dark space (covering a container with a black plastic trash bag works), then rinse off with fresh, dechlorinated water in the morning (or just add an airstone and light after 12 hours to allow the plant to use the CO2).

While any affected plants are getting their spa treatment of reverse respiration, this is a good time to check that filters are working properly, water parameters have been staying stable, glass is cleaned, and change the light schedule if you aren't using CO2.

Check on the health of all residents in the tank.

Is there any decaying food?

Evidence of underfeeding/overfeeding?

Other plants having problems?

Notate what you discover, so you have a hard copy to refer back to. Memories are fallible to anchoring and selection bias. Physical notes make it easier to identify what is going on.

It'll take several weeks to see new growth to indicate if there are any environmental nutritional deficiencies, so be patient. Old growth can't heal, only new growth lets you know if you made the proper corrections.

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

On 10/14/2022 at 10:32 PM, Torrey said:

 

Let's start with the plant on the left:

A- algae is growing on a weakened plant. Either a nutritional, lighting, or carbon imbalance (frequently a combination of them) See chart to help identify deficiencies that make plants susceptible to being nibbled on, and susceptible to algae growth

B- Plant has cannibalized itself where the leaf meets the stem. This leaf can't repair itself, and is no longer feeding nutrients to the rhizome. It needs to be removed at this point. (Fun experiment: You can do the reverse respiration soak to kill the algae, and see if the single, salvaged leaf attempts to grow roots. I have had it happen, rarely. It's a type of propagation, and is always worth a try if you have the space and the patience)

C- Looks like some new growth, may also be an unhappy rhizome. My anubias do better when I suspend in the tank and don't let any part of the rhizome touch the bottom.

Plant on the right:

D- definitely an unhappy rhizome. Gently lift up and out of the tank. Rinse *very gently* in clear, dechlorinated water. Gently slough off any mold, mildew, or "funky smelling" parts. If it's mushy to the touch, get clean scissors (sterilize with rubbing alcohol, then rinse with distilled water, cut off the rot until you get to firm rhizome, then wipe scissors down with rubbing alcohol again. Please don't get any rubbing alcohol near your tank or near your plant, I don't want you to curse me when the alcohol kills the bacterial filtration in your tank if it somehow gets into your tank.😅

Once you have revealed some healthy rhizome, use Guppysnail's airline holder method of suspending the healthy rhizome in your tank. New groth will appear in 6 to 8 weeks, if we can identify what is causing the imbalance and correct it.

 

E- More algae, but this leaf still has a healthy stem, so it can probably be saved.

 

 

 

 

 

This is my favorite "identify the deficiency" chart.

Anytime a tank's balance is disturbed with a large water change, a fish/snail population explosion, a change in lighting, or even something as simple as a change in fertilization schedule/amounts, the tank is going to be "out of balance" until all the various components (fish/animal stock, plant stock, nutrients, pH, TDS, beneficial bacteria, etc) rediscover their "new" homeostasis "sweet spot".

This temporary imbalance (what I call growing pains in new tanks) causes a predictable sequence of algal growth. Having sufficient numbers of algae eaters (shrimp, snails, etc) will help shorten the amount of time the tank is in its "awkward teen stage". Diatom, followed by hair algae is a natural part of the cycle.

The anubias is telling you, something is out of balance.

The amount of algae in the tank is telling you there is an imbalance.

The lack of clarity in the water is saying there is an imbalance.

The rhizome condition is saying the rhizome isn't happy touching the substrate (some anubias can really be that picky. They give new meaning to "they need to feel free"). The most likely scenario, based on what I can see, is the rhizome on your one year old plant decided it didn't want to be on the substrate anymore, possibly a fish moved some substrate or mulm onto the rhizome, or it didn't appreciate a gravel vac that kicked something up on top of it.

Doesn't matter what started it disliking the substrate, now it's a matter of making her happy again. So move her off the substrate (some of mine don't even like to be touching wood. They want to free float, and find their own happy place).

The fuzzy stuff needs to come off, it's interfering with photosynthesis which causes an imbalance.

Personally, unless a tank is on CO2, I prefer siesta lighting so that I can see my tanks earlier in the morning, as well as later at night, when I can actually enjoy them. My plants are happier, and I no longer have algae problems, by limiting my tanks to 4 hours of light at a stretch. All of my tanks now have dimmable lights, so I start tanks at 10% lighting until plants are established, and increase by 10% every 2 weeks (this is a new approach, but all tanks and plants are responding well for nearly 6 months now).

My plants and tanks weren't always algae free, this past spring I was struggling with Blackbeard, cyanobacteria, filamentous green algae staghorn and hair algae.

This post on reverse respiration didn't save my temperamental Roseafolia (I didn't try it in time), but it did eliminate algae from everything else, improved plant health, and 3 months later I am very happy with the results.

 

Hope all of this helps! Don't give up, try to view it as a learning opportunity. I have no idea how many foreign languages you know, this is an opportunity for immersive learning of how to speak anubias. I see hopeful potential in each plant, I suspect the substrate touching them started an unhappy rhizome, which interfered with nutrient absorption, which made them vulnerable to algae, which has led to inadequate photosynthesis.

I would take them both out, clean any rhizome rot, soak *completely submerged* overnight in plain seltzer water (literally liquid CO2 in H2O) in a completely dark space (covering a container with a black plastic trash bag works), then rinse off with fresh, dechlorinated water in the morning (or just add an airstone and light after 12 hours to allow the plant to use the CO2).

While any affected plants are getting their spa treatment of reverse respiration, this is a good time to check that filters are working properly, water parameters have been staying stable, glass is cleaned, and change the light schedule if you aren't using CO2.

Check on the health of all residents in the tank.

Is there any decaying food?

Evidence of underfeeding/overfeeding?

Other plants having problems?

Notate what you discover, so you have a hard copy to refer back to. Memories are fallible to anchoring and selection bias. Physical notes make it easier to identify what is going on.

It'll take several weeks to see new growth to indicate if there are any environmental nutritional deficiencies, so be patient. Old growth can't heal, only new growth lets you know if you made the proper corrections.

Thank you for responding so throughly. It was a big help to me. What is guppysnail’s airline holder method?

Should I submerge them in carbonated water like talking rain?