I've noticed that my eelgrass has been looking rather brown and not doing very well for a while - but today when I looked, the plants are beginning to be covered in thickish black fur! Especially the java fern. Will it suffocate and kill the plants? Also the back wall is very heavily coated, too. My nitrate has been quite hard to keep down for a while so I'm guessing that could be the problem? But what to do now? It looks gross.
By the way, the tank is lit about 9 hours a day. Is this too much?
Thanks,

hello pixiefish

i hope someone who is plant wise answers your question because i too am haveing the same problem. i read a small blurb in a fresh water aquarium plant book that you can't scrub it off so just chuck the affected part. that little pearl won't work for me or i'll have to chuck the whole plant (anubis nana). i have 4 otto's but they never touch the stuff (black beard).

I can't be of help but I was in a LFS recently and one tank was COVERED in the stuff. It's kind of freaky looking actually. I'd be interested to learn how it can be extracted from the plants.

just a few post down i found this link. thank you fellow posters.

http://www.thekrib.com/Plants/Algae/red-algae.html

Thanks Clear Water! That was very interesting. Now I will know what to do to avoid this in my tanks!