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Why do my plants seem to get destroyed?

I have around eleven to thirteen small fish, including Hypostomus plecostomus.

My usual temperature inside aquarium was around 26 - 27 °C at first but I quickly made a fan cooling system which took it down to 21 °C at night and 23 °C during daytime. I do not have any carbon dioxide system, but an ordinary air bubbler pump. I still haven't bought any fertilizer because I can't afford it till next week and I don't have any aquarium LED red/blue'ish light. The aquarium itself isn't in direct sunlight at any time of day, but is still near window.

My aquarium dimensions are 90 x 30 x 40 cm. The substrate is a mixture of coarse gravel and fine sand.

What should I do to revive my plants? What is the most urgent step I should take first?

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  • What lighting do you have on the tank? Plants need sufficient lighting and nutrients to grow. Near a window is unlikely to provide sufficient lighting to grow plants and directly under a window is likely to cause algae problems.
    – Jestep
    Aug 18, 2016 at 20:15

2 Answers 2

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You'll need to give your plants some fertilizer (I assume that's the word you didn't know).
This site gives an overview of some symptoms and what might be missing then.

Having a general/allround fertilizer would be a good start (CO2 is probably not really required). Personally, I use Profito and my plants grow really well.

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  • actually yesterday got two, one is fertilizer, and second is general vitamin... in fertilizer write 2 cap for 100 littre, and the other 4 cap for 100 littre, the first is noted that it is weekly, but the other said nothing... i gave not much as it said, but 2/3 pill of CO2 (said 1 per 20L, mean i need 5 actually, but my plant are strong, and fish helps too, and more, i'm on shortage, so i didn't listen i do CO2 for close to a single month), BTW, i didn't saw that product not in the shop, nor in the internet of local(i mena by country) store Aug 26, 2016 at 9:53
  • still my red plant don't grow, but they don't seem to die either, those with leaf are in same shape, and those without leaf, are in their last shape too. Sep 12, 2016 at 12:37
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From your pictures, it seem like you don't have a lighting system. If it's the case that's definitively the next thing you need to add here.

Plant need light to do photosynthesis and to feed themselves. So adding a decent lightning system is next. You don't need any fancy stuff for not too demanding plants (I don't know if yours are hard or easy plant). The best is something with the same spectrum as the sun about 5700k. The package generally say something like daylight or similar. Get a couple of those bulb and light the tank from above. From the dimension you listed (the tank look way bigger from your pictures), I would say you will need minimum 3 lamps. They can be suspended from above or clipped to the side of the tank or what ever.

I also suggest you put the lights on a timer so plants and fish have a consistent lighting schedule but this is optional. After the lighting is done for a couple of week (3-4+) you can look to supplement fertilizer to your plants if they still look to have difficulties.

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  • sry for beign late, didn't expect anyone to answer after so long..., at first i got 2 long tube LED lamp, it went better, but not enough, ... i though it's for gravel, but after speaking with other one, he said your light isn't good, and gave me this SOBO LED-900P lightening System, Which most of important things is writen in japones/chines, but there are this info: L870-400P/3528/10000K-30W, IT's So Bright can light up a room, 4 line of white a,d a line of pink LED. Still my red plant leaf got rotten, and some of my green plant leaf too, not all the green leaf, just some. Aug 26, 2016 at 9:43
  • This look like a reef light, it still better than nothing but not the best for your plants. Np i often answer question and never hear back from the op so it's cool you came back to check it out
    – Rémi
    Aug 26, 2016 at 9:51
  • Sry it's two line of White LED, lol :) Thank, I'm here to ask another question, mostly i see notification at work, and i have to avoid them :-s Aug 26, 2016 at 10:00

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