Missed this, so KG, are you doing stock clearance anytime soon? haha
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Hi Ryan,
Sera floredepot is meant to be a base fertiliser. if you pour the contents out and pour water in, there will be a lot of floating dried peat like substance. So it is always recommended to cover it with some heavy gravel like holland/lapis over it before adding water.
Base fert is generally meant to be a thin 1.5-2 in layer at the back and sloped to zero at the front then a 2 inch layer of inert gravel like holland/lapis sand over it.
Some use netting[plastic ones] to keep the layers separate so that when they do rescape or pull out a plant, the layers don't mix.

Same with ADA Aquasoil[top layer]+Powersand/Powersand special[base layer] which according to witness reports, work very well in combination as some plant roots actually glued themselves to the bottom layer glass!
Powersand is all about feeding the aerobic bacteria that converts organic detritus into nitrate and other harmless substances for a healthy aquarium.

The reason the nutrient rich base is separated from the water column is because initial breakdown of proteins/mulm are NH4+ which are algae food and is a known green water cause.

FYI, the substrate and plants leaches nutrients into the water, so always aim to plant heavily in the beginning stages to reduce algae problems. The idea of starving algae is really outdated. The new picture is more about getting the plants growing well.

As an analogy, algae is like cancer, if you live long enough, you'll get all sorts of cancer.
If your plants are really slow growing/not growing and doesn't renew it's leaves quick enough, chances are high some algae will be able to attach to it.

Regards

Stan

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