Java Fern: Melting or deficiency?

[Juxtaposed]

This java fern was placed in a newly cycled tank about a month ago. It came preattached to driftwood with moss.

I've recently noticed that the larger leaves are turning brown and that it is putting out a lot of plantlets. Is this still melting caused by adjusting to a new tank, or is it possibly a nutrient deficiency? 

I've been using Flourish, but just put my first dose of Easy Green in yesterday. 

[CJs Aquatics]

Sounds like melting to me, if I’m not mistaken when it’s not happy it puts out baby plantlets so perhaps once you dial in the dosing  and perhaps lighting things will turn around also…

Edited March 26, 2023 by CJs Aquatics

[lefty o]

ive never had java ferns melt. that looks like die off.

[Juxtaposed]

Any remedies? 

[lefty o]

a little bit of fertilizer, and time. the bad leaves wont ever recover, but it will grow new ones.

[Juxtaposed]

Tangentially related question: what size dose of Easy Green should I be using? I know the smaller bottle has a dropper, but I purchased the larger. I assume half a pump would treat my 5 gallon tank, but half a pump seems pretty subjective. Would that measure out to .5ml? 

I also ordered a bottle of API Leaf Zone in case it's a potassium issue. 

[Twood]

I'm having the same issue with my Java fern. I can't seem to get them to survive. Ton's of other plants are thriving in the tank, but the Java fern just won't grow well. Maybe I need to try more fertilizer?

 

[Sleepy]

Flourish is very watered down.....Easy Green will do much better for you also you may want to look at your lighting schedule as Java ferns dont like a lot of direct light this will make them turn black. One other suggestion is to test your water parameters to see exactly where you are at with everything.

[Juxtaposed]

Yeah, @Sleepy, I'm thinking that Easy Green and occasionally Leaf Zone will be more effective than Flourish. 

I hooked the lights up to a smart plug this past weekend and have the lights set right now for 6 am to 4 pm. I'll probably back it up to 8 or 9 am.

As far as testing goes, I have simple test strips from Walmart right now that may not be very effective. They showed 20 nitrates, 0 nitrites, 25GH, 80 KH, and about 7.0 pH. I've been using distilled for water changes but switched back to tap water on Saturday, so I'm hoping my well water will supply some needed minerals.

[Sleepy]

On 3/28/2023 at 12:32 PM, Juxtaposed said:

Yeah, @Sleepy, I'm thinking that Easy Green and occasionally Leaf Zone will be more effective than Flourish. 

I hooked the lights up to a smart plug this past weekend and have the lights set right now for 6 am to 4 pm. I'll probably back it up to 8 or 9 am.

As far as testing goes, I have simple test strips from Walmart right now that may not be very effective. They showed 20 nitrates, 0 nitrites, 25GH, 80 KH, and about 7.0 pH. I've been using distilled for water changes but switched back to tap water on Saturday, so I'm hoping my well water will supply some needed minerals.

Sounds like a good plan to me! Just as a side suggestion also though I wouldn't flip flop too much on the water I would stick with tap or mixing because that will cause the plant to melt also trying to always adjust to the different parameters.

Edited March 28, 2023 by Sleepy