Why my plants are getting like this?

[Rocksor]

Rocksor
Thanks. should I only keep the fishes and no plants?

That's entirely up to you.

 

[FJB]

Keeping fish in planted tanks is entirely possible. But it takes the right kind of plants and fish, and some planning.

 

[Deadeye]

Keeping fish in planted tanks is entirely possible. But it takes the right kind of plants and fish, and some planning.

View attachment 1470226

And a whole lot of luck with silvers lol. Still amazed that you pulled that off.

Aimara
Thanks very much for your useful analysis. this is not just a plant tank. I have many fishes in this tank.
I have 8 pea puffers, 1 green spot puffer , 1 figure 8 puffer and 4 amazon puffers. are these puffers plant eaters?

Puffers may nibble but really aren’t plant eaters.

Very hard to give objective suggestions without additional information (water characteristics, temperature, frequency of plant liquid food and root tabs, etc.), were the plants doing well before?
1st photo - Amazon swords like both liquid fertilizer and root tabs. The former, perhaps once a week, the latter perhaps once in na while (2-3 months or so).
2nd photo - (seems to be Bacopa, or similar), in flower pot, seemingly still with the "cotton" that they are sold with? Need to be planted in real substratum, and responds well to fertilization as described above.
3rd photo - Can't tell what plant, as it is covered with algae. Presumably something attached to driftwood, such as java fern or Anubias? Algae needs to be removed mechanically (as frequently as needed), or there is no hope. After removing most, removing from tank, spraying with peroxide, and placing back should help.

General observations-
1- The black gravel is too coarse. Although plants can grow in it, they prefer sand, or much finer gravel. In addition, that gravel allows too much waste to go to deeper layers. Sand will not.
2- You have a lot of Assassin snails, possibly introduced to combat other snails. When numbers of snails that serve as food fro assassin snails decline (due to they preying upon them), assassin snails turn to eat whatever they can find, including detritus and plants. In nature they are scavengers.
3- There seems to be at least one puffer? (perhaps I am wrong). Not the best friend of plants (even though primarily carnivores).

But better description is needed for real suggestions. Good luck!

As far as the snails go, I remember he added them as puffer food.

 

[professorjimjam]

Deadeye
yes, the snails all of them are empty shells, that gravel is the graveyard of all of those eaten snails. my puffers have eaten 450 Helena snails in 35 days. paid a lot of money for 450 snails, but the puffers are very happy

 

[professorjimjam]

General observations-
1- The black gravel is too coarse. Although plants can grow in it, they prefer sand, or much finer gravel. In addition, that gravel allows too much waste to go to deeper layers. Sand will not.

Can I replace the black gravel with sand? will it not kill all the good bacteria? can you refer some good sands so that I can buy?

 

[Rocksor]

Can I replace the black gravel with sand? will it not kill all the good bacteria? can you refer some good sands so that I can buy?

You can if you want, but I've known plant keepers who use regular gravel so that the fish poo can get into the crevices and help fertilizer their plant. I wouldn't worry about the bacteria in the substrate if you have sufficient filters on that tank.

I would get no smaller than #20 mesh sized silica type sand. (greater than 0.841mm)

 

[eon aquatics]

i got rid of algae by leaving the lights off but if you have plants that need light as well that complicates it

 

[duanes]

Plants are very sensitive to things like water hardness, type and length of light, your water change schedule, substrate, fish species, and many other mysterious factors.
I find them much harder to have success with, than fish.
3 years ago, I added at least 6 different species of plants to my 180.
Vallisneria, Hydrocotyl, Hydrilla, Amazon sword, Water Hyacinth and lily, and Eponium.
Only 2, the Vallisneria, and Hydrilla thrived, the Amazon sword plodded along (even with root tabs), the rest died off.

The Hydilla thrives only on the left side of the tank, the Val on the Right.
Lately I added a much larger sump/refugium to the system, in an area with more natural light, and planted it with Val and Hydrocotyl, although its a little early to tell, the Hydrocotyl (which failed miserably a couple years ago) is thriving on the bright right side in a higher current, and strong light, and the Val on the darker left.

My point is, all water parameters are the same except light (direct half day sun), and current (heavier now for Pennywort)
pH 8 to 8.2., same fish, same water change schedule (40% every other day).

If a plant isn't working , move it.
If algae is taking over, up the water change schedule.

I like sand as a plant substrate, and have used it for decades (never had success with gravel)
I have also found getting just one plant of a species hasn't worked as well as 3 or 4 plants of a species (they like company of their own kind)
Throughout my time as an aquarist Val has always been the easiest, but its a process of elimination,.
What works for you, or someone else, might not work for me.