50 % of Aquarium Owners have Technical Questions about Plant Fertilisation

The JBL customer service team receives up to 10 calls a day from aquarium owners wanting additional information about the use of basic fertilisers ( JBL PROFLORA Ferropol ) and daily fertilisers ( JBL PROFLORA Ferropol 24 ).

The questions are justified because there is no noticeable reason to use fertilisers without some background knowledge about the availability of minerals in water.

A basic fertiliser, such as JBL Ferropol, can fertilise about 80 % of all aquarium plants perfectly. But 20 % of the aquatic plants either need more minerals or need trace elements which cannot be supplied on a long-term basis in fertilisers, since the water changes them to a state which can no longer be absorbed by the plants.

The chemical background is as follows: As everyone knows, iron rusts in water. Another expression for rusting is oxidating, which means that iron (Fe2+) reacts with the dissolved oxygen in the water and transforms into water insoluble iron (Fe3+) which aquatic plants can no longer absorb normally. To prevent this oxidation JBL protects the iron when it is produced by forming a protective cover (chelator) which also functions as nutrient carrier for its absorption into the plant. Most minerals can be protected from oxygen in water with the help of such chelators. But not all! Some minerals, such as manganese, bromine and further 7 trace elements can’t be protected with the help of chelators alone. They oxidise in water very quickly. Using the daily fertiliser JBL Ferropol 24 every day reduces the dwell time of minerals in water and the minerals can be absorbed by the plants BEFORE they oxidise! The JBL daily fertiliser also contains iron and magnesium to increase the concentration of both substances for demanding aquatic plant species. With the combination of both fertilisers, which complement each other, aquarium plants, such as Rotala, Myriophyllum, Ammania and many others can easily be cultivated with the additional use of a CO2 fertiliser system!

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