caring for rotala rotundifolia

[mattify]

Everywhere I've read says Rotala Rotundifolia is easy to grow, but mine's been pretty stagnant. My tank's around 2-3 months old and I've just been letting it do its thing. I watched some videos on Rotala today and I'm starting to think I'm missing something. I've only cut the stems once, got a few runners off and replanted them. I'm using Aqua Soil, CO2 and following a Seachem dosing schedule. I've got other stem plants like Limnophila Sessiliflora, Bacopa Amplexicaulis and Ludwigia which I'm cutting twice a week, and Vallisneria that's getting out of control. But the Rotala just isn't moving. Any tips or recommendations on how to speed things up would be great.

[willie32]

I think the issue with your rotala rotundifolia might be the competition from the other fast-growing plants around it. Did you add them in their submerged or emerged form, that could be making a difference. Also, I've noticed that when rotala is stressed, the leaves tend to be more elongated and elliptical, are yours round and circular or have they changed shape.

[petal9]

Having similar experience with my rotala rotundifolia. Lots of stem growth but the red coloration is lacking.

[Giggletons]

Can you send a pic of the plant? I'm wondering if it's still in an emersed state and just needs some time to adjust to being submerged.

[mattify]

I've been reading everywhere that Rotala Rotundifolia is a breeze to grow, but so far, mine's been pretty stagnant. I've had it in my tank for about 2-3 months, just letting it do its thing, and I've only trimmed the stems once to get some runners going. Today I watched some vids on Rotala and I'm starting to think I'm missing something - my plant's just not growing like I expected. I'm using aqua soil, CO2, and following a Seachem dosing schedule, which seems to be working for my other stem plants like Limnophila Sessiliflora, Bacopa Amplexicaulis, and Ludwigia - I'm cutting those guys back twice a week, and Vallisneria's going crazy. Any tips on how to get my Rotala moving would be awesome.

[Giggletons]

Here's my tank, I've attached some photos. I'm really hoping someone can help me out. I've been trying to figure out why my rotala rotundifolia isn't doing great. The tank's been set up for about 2-3 months now and I've been pretty hands-off with the rotala. I've only trimmed it once and replanted some runners. I've been watching some videos and I'm starting to think I might be missing something. I'm using aqua soil, co2, and following a sechum's dosing schedule. My other stem plants like Limnophila Sessiliflora, bacopa amplexicaulis, and ludwigia are doing great, I'm having to trim them twice a week. Even my vallisneria is getting a bit out of control. Any tips or advice would be great, thanks.

[mattify]

I've considered upgrading my light, the one I'm using is the original that came with my Aqua One Horizon tank, but when it comes to choosing a new one I'm not really sure what I'm looking for or what would be best for my setup. I've looked at other options but it's hard to know what to go for, some people seem to have great results with cheap lights from Amazon, while others say you should just spend as much as you can afford.

[mattify]

I'm still using the original light that came with my tank, would love to hear about any good lighting options people have used, I've already swapped out the filter for an upgrade, always looking for ways to improve things.

[starlord]

Seems alright to me, but if you're looking for that red color, you'll need to bump up the lighting.

[mattify]

I was expecting a lot more growth from my rotala rotundifolia, especially since it was one of the first plants I added to the tank. I've only had to trim it a handful of times in 3 months, and even then it was just a few stems that were getting close to the surface. The cuttings I've replanted seem to just be hovering around 6 inches tall, not really doing much.