Anemone not growing

[Wrench]

I picked up this BTA a year or so ago. It grew fast with regular feedings. Eventually it split, then again so I have 3 now. None of the 3 have grown since they've split which was 8 months ago. I feed them several times a week with small pieces of meaty foods. This includes shrimp, squid, mysis and clams. Tank specs and lighting are in my signature, here are my parameters. What would keep them from growing? Otherwise they look healthy.

SG 1.026
NO3 10ppm
Ca 420-430
Alk 3-3.5 dKH
Phosphate; undetectable
pH 8.0-8.2
Temp 79-81

 

[garygb]

Hmm, not sure. Nitrates would be better if undetectable, but I doubt that is it. ph would be better if 8.2-8.4, but I doubt that is the issue either. Do you have corals that could result in the reduced extension of the anemones?

 

[Wrench]

They seem to be fully extended. Even when they're closed they're tiny. Right around the size of a golf ball I guess .Corals are mostly SPS, one small toadstool, zoos, a good sized kenya tree and I have a few clams. I do weekly water changes with IO of 15-20g to keep up on the trace elements and to try and keep the nitrate down (tank is heavily stocked). Are nems sensitive to low levels of trace like strontium, iodine, molebdynum etc?

 

[garygb]

I would expect you have high enough levels of those trace elements since you do regular water changes. I would wonder if there could be a lack of growth because of allelopathy. That seems to be the current catchall for anything mysterious, but I think it very likely could be the issue in your aquarium. I know that toadstools and zooanthids release stuff into the water.

 

[Wrench]

The toadstool has only been in there for a couple weeks and the nems haven't grown in 8 months so it must be the zoos. Is running carbon not enough to neutralize the chemicals?

Thank you, by the way.

 

[garygb]

Generally the recommendation to reduce allelopathy is to run small amounts of carbon and to change it weekly, of course, along with protein skimming. I don't know if it is enough or not. Ideally, I think that anemones are kept in species tanks--in other words, only one species of anemone and no coral. There are many examples of aquarists that successfully keep mixed reefs, so obviously it is possible.