@sudiorca the tanks look very beautiful
please share some more details regarding the setup you are using
Thank you for your appreciation.
Here are the details of my tanks along with some important factors that play crucial roles imo to keep a planted tank healthy for long time without pressurized CO2 injection.
I use remineralized ro-di water to about 6 dGH and almost 0 dKH. pH - between 5-6 in all of my tanks. Most plants actually prefer lower KH (low pH) because lower KH means most of the available CO2 in the water will be present in the form of dissolved CO2 gas rather than bicarbonates in planted tanks based on the pH range. Although there are many plants which can use bicarbonates as source of carbon but it is energetically more costly for them to use it compared to dissolved CO2 gas. This is the reason why almost every single aquatic plant will first use dissolved CO2 if it is present in the water rather than bicarbonates (even if it is present in significant amount). Another issue with bicarbonates is that at higher concentration it does affect uptake of other nutrients by plants (I have read some scientific papers on some non-aquatic plants that higher bicarbonates have negative impact on iron uptake mechanism).
I use commercial aquasoil as substrate (approximately 2-3 inches deep). I have used several brands such as ADA Amazonia regular and light versions, SL aqua and Landen and I have got good results with all of them. I do supplement the root zone with ammonia containing root tabs every 1-2 months. I have tried osmocote and ADA bottom plus in the past and they both work. I have started to make my own root tabs now and the plants are still growing fine.
I also use a commercial all in one liquid fertilizer (Nilocg ThriveS) which contains very small amounts of N and P but has a decent concentration of K, Fe and other micro elements except copper (this product is actually developed for shrimps, although tiny amounts of copper won't harm them). I only dose it once or twice a week (1 mL for 5 gal tank), I used to dose it on a regular basis but lately I am relying more on root tabs than liquid fertilizer and I am yet to see any growth issues. Any available brand of all in one liquid fertilizer will work or people can make their own versions using dry salts or just dry dosing as long as they don't overdose.
I also have light with decent PAR value. Most people tend to have very low lights in non-CO2 supplemented tanks. However it is quite beneficial to have medium even slightly high light if the tank conditions allow. Good amount of light means one less thing to worry about for the plants growing in sub-optimal conditions with low CO2. This allows the plants to focus more on putting their resources on CO2 uptake rather than spending some of that energy on light harvesting system.
There is also growing scientific evidence of photo-oxidation (sunlight - primarily UV but visible light also contributes) being one of the major causes of breakdown of dissolved organics in freshwater into simpler molecules (thus helping bacteria to decompose further to CO2) along with complete breakdown to CO2. Is this relevant to my tanks? maybe... I don't have any scientific evidence but I am pushing more than 150 PAR at the substrate level (I did use a PAR meter and I will share the images sometime in the future) in majority of my tanks with minimal algae for most of the year unless there is major lapse in maintenance for several weeks or some kind of imbalance in the tank) and I am not injecting pressurized CO2.
I do weekly 40% (approx) water change along with gently cleaning the substrate using turkey baster and hose.
I use hob filters in majority of my tanks, mainly for good water circulation, decent gas exchange and for harboring many species of beneficial aerobic bacteria.
I don't uproot the plants frequently in my non-CO2 tanks, I believe good root systems are very critical in non-CO2 tanks because some plants can absorb CO2 from the sediment CO2 (produced by decomposition of organic matter by soil microorganisms, root respiration etc.) and roots also keep the substrate oxygen rich when actively performing photosynthesis which helps those microorganisms in return.
I have also noticed that most plants in my non-CO2 supplemented tanks perform better in winter when the water temperature stays around low 70F. I have seen many plants struggle during summer when water temperature increases close to 80F. This I believe is due to lower solubility of gases such as O2 and CO2 in high temperatures along with higher metabolism rate of plants and microorganisms in summer.
I will keep sharing more images of my tanks with further details in the future. I have made thousands of images of my tanks in the last few years and I am absolutely confident about my methods and its replicability by other hobbyists if executed properly. I can grow majority of the plants that I have tried and are available in the hobby with decent health, form and color in my non-CO2 supplemented softwater tanks with some exceptions such as many of the
Eriocaulon sp. (I haven't tried all varieties but I have tried and failed to grow
quinquangulare,
sulawesi and
cuspidatum without CO2 injection so far), many of the mutated plants such
Hygrophila sp. Chai,
Ludwigia sp. white,
Cryptocoryne flamingo or pink panther etc;, some of the members of Lythraceae family such as any of the
Rotala ramosior varieties, Florida and Sunset and several other plants available in the hobby which I can't grow in these setups and there are many that I haven't tried yet.
Please feel free to ask more questions.
Thanks,