Help, My plant is dying

[KingBrian]

Hi, I have a 60Gal aquarium that has the following plant (1 good leaf shown)

http://www11.brinkster.com/kingbrianii/LeafAlive.jpg

We've had it the last year or two. It used to grow great giving off many new shutes and propagating thoughout the aquarium. I've even transplanted one shute into another 10Gal aquarium sometime last summer, which also grew great.
Now they are both dying at an alarming rate (a typical leaf is also shown)

http://www11.brinkster.com/kingbrianii/LeafDead.jpg

The 10 gallon aquarium had a heater go faulty that seen the temp rise to about 95°F for about 1 to 1.5 days before it was noticed (no fish died), but since then the plants have been dying off. There are a few new leaves (the one above was from this plant), but I am worried.
The 60 gallon aquarium is even more mysterious. There has never been a temperature spike but the roots seem to be just rotting. They break VERY easily, and no small feeder veins are growing from it. This was the original plant but refuses to grow back. What might have been the problem with this one?

What can I do to fix it? All of the flourscent tubes are the same, and has never been changed. (They have a pinkish/bluish tint to them, I think they are grow light spectrums, not really sure though).
I have complete aquarium specs posted at http://www.aquariumpros.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=998 (please note that the 55gal tank has no live plants, my goldfish eat them)

[Nooboon]

Welcome KingBrian,

That was a good idea posting the pics but unfortunately they won't load for me. Could you try again?

You mention a pH spike in all of your tanks. What sort of magnitude are we talking here? Just about .2 units or bigger?

From what you have written I would say the problem would be the lighting. Fluorescents fade over time. While you may not notice it, your plants certainly will. The useful life for a fluorescent in a planted tank is about 6 months (absolute max 1 year). After that the output is significantly reduced and the plants that previously flourished will begin to suffer. I would change the tubes with new high intensity plant tubes. Phoenixshade (another mod on this forum) recommends these (http://www.aquariumcenter.com/view_item_plants.php?id=696&). Also record the date of installment for future reference. You can maintain a 6 month cycle for each tube by changing one tube every 3 months (for a 2 tube system; adjust depending on number of tubes) so intensity remains rather constant and the cost is evened out a little.

You could also try fertilizer if you don't already. Substrate ferts are great for rooted plants. Try to avoid those containing phosphates and nitrates as they will encourage algae growth.
I use seachem flourish tabs found on this site here (http://www.aquariumpros.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=APG&Product_Code=SCH05050&Category_Code=ADap) (note: not the right pic).
Phoenixshade recommends these (http://www.aquariumpros.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=APG&Product_Code=AQBTRP20&Category_Code=ADap)

Hope that helps. Phoenixshade might have some more specific information for you.

[KingBrian]

Thank you for your help.
Maybe you can help me identify what it called by the link given here (http://www11.brinkster.com/kingbrianii/Leaf.htm) . (I created a small html page for it, I don't know why my server didn't let me post a picture)
BTW, if you right-click and select "Show Picture" it will display it most of the time.

[phoenixshade]

Brian,

I'm having a bit of difficulty identifying the plant from the leaves. If you know what it is, or if you could post a pic of the whole plant, that would be helpful. Here is some tentative advice pending identification.

Blackening and rotting of leaves is usually a symptom of low light conditions, especially if the rotting leaves are near the bottom of the aquarium. The weakening of the roots supports this diagnosis. As Nooboon said, replace both flourescent tubes with plant growth tubes, and hereafter change one tube alternatively every six months.

Another possibility is "Crypt rot," an ailment that strikes plants of the Cryptocoryne genus. This is often caused by changes in water condition, such as the pH spike you mentioned in the other thread. If this is the case, leave the rhyzomes (roots) in the tank. Prune the dying leaves. Even if all the leaves die, the plant will usually grow back if provided with constant water conditions and a bit of patience. However, the leaves pictured do not look like typical Cryptocoryne leaves, so I'd first try adjusting the lighting.

Prune leaves from the plant as soon as holes start appearing. Rotting plants can quickly overload your biological filtration, causing a spike in ammonia and nitrite levels.

By the way, what are the small cichlids in your 10 gallon? Many cichlids, especially Africans, will destroy plants.

--Wil.