# Roots from leaves?



## v-paw (Feb 17, 2013)

I have a few plants in my 20 gallon planted that have roots growing from the leaves? They are relatively old. I'm making sure they aren't dead? 

Sand substrate
Seachem fertilizer once a week
Plant bulb
Sponge filter
Root tabs

My nitrates are very high and I think it might be dead plant matter.










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## BettaGuy (May 6, 2012)

Looks like some sort of algae to me, not roots. Roots normally don't grow from leaves, only seen them do that on java fern so far, guess plants similar to it would od the same. I would get the nitrates down a bit and see if there is anything else wrong with the tank, too much light, too much/too little fertilizing etc


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## Obsidian (May 20, 2007)

Yeah that is a beard algae, though hard to tell which kind from the picture since you can't make out the color very well.


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## v-paw (Feb 17, 2013)

Obsidian said:


> Yeah that is a beard algae, though hard to tell which kind from the picture since you can't make out the color very well.


Ya, I'll get a better picture now, i just added fluorite and it made he water cloudy, but it's clear now, I've never heard of beard algae, is it bad? How do I remove it?

Light - 12 hours a day
Fertilizer- seachem half a cap every week after a water change 


It seems like my other plants have some algae on their leaves too, which is why I'd like to put cherry shrimp in there, but I have 2 ADF and they eat them :/
























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## v-paw (Feb 17, 2013)

Alright, I did some research and it isn't good. I took all the plants that I saw the beard moss on and tried to take it off but for the most part just threw away the effected leaves and put them on trial in my 30 non planted. Hopefully that'll do it.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Good luck! That's stuff is a pain.


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## BettaGuy (May 6, 2012)

cut the lights to 9h a day, or 10. But you really don't need more light than that. And it is a pain, not really dangerous though, just kills plants and looks bad.


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## v-paw (Feb 17, 2013)

BettaGuy said:


> cut the lights to 9h a day, or 10. But you really don't need more light than that. And it is a pain, not really dangerous though, just kills plants and looks bad.


I didn't know it killed plants. Yikes, maybe that's why my nitrates are so high?


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## BettaGuy (May 6, 2012)

well it grows on the leafs and therefore blocks their light, since those leafs become useless they die off so that they don't rob the plant of its energy.


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