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What Are Some Popular Freshwater Aquarium Live Plants?

26 9:18:45
By nature, you would always want to decorate your new digs with remembrances from your old home. By the same token, an aquarium looks best if it is a close replica of the fish's natural habitat. Freshwater aquarium live plants do that job very well.

But that is not the only good thing. Aside from turning the aquarium into a real home for the fish, there are other benefits as well. The first practical benefit is the plants' ability to give off oxygen which is used by the fish.

In turn, the fish gives off carbon dioxide which is badly needed by the plants. Aside from turning the aquarium into a miniature eco-system, the plants help the fish control stress. With the plants' presence, the fish inhabitants would feel more secure in having some places to hide.

live plants have many benefits to your fish and to you as you view them in your fish tank. Foremost of these is the fact that they produce oxygen which your fish needs and in turn absorb carbon dioxide and ammonia which are harmful to them.

This miniature ecosystem in your aquarium is also beneficial to the fish in other terms. It means less stress because of the secure environment for them to hide, explore and live on. (Some fish are herbivores and sometimes use the plants as one of their food supplements.)

Plants For Your Tank

There is some need to do research on what plants you want and what plants is best in combination with the fish species you had chosen. be careful because some plants can harm certain fish species so simply ask a store clerk for a compatibility chart.)

Some plants are easier to take care of than others. Some plants need more light while others need more oxygen and many also need to be near the top of the aquarium while others are fine on the bottom of the tank. Lots of live plants do thrive in the aquarium environment. (java ferns, vallesneria, hygrophila, etc.)

The following are some of the more popular aquarium plants. They are popular because of their looks, their color, their sturdy nature and their value in the total ecosystem within your tank.

Cabomba

With its fan-shaped leaves, Cabomba (Carolina Fanwort) is a fast-growing live aquarium plant that provides the much-needed shade to your fishes. It is also used as a good hiding place as well as providing materials for spawning.

Cabomba plants also help in oxygenating and clarifying the water to minimize growth of the irksome algae. It is receptive to good lighting. It is beautiful and hardy and can grow as much as an inch a day. (You need to have a regular schedule of trimming sessions with the plant.)

It can be propagated by cuttings from mature, healthy plants. It will root if the shoots are buried in the gravel.

Java Fern

Few will argue that Java ferns are one of the best, if not the best, all-around aquarium plants. It is hardy and does not need much of the requirements like the other plants. It gets its fertilizer from the fish wastes and the dissolved carbon dioxide in the water.

The tough and unpleasant taste of its leaves makes it ideal to keep with plant-eating species of fish that tend to nip on the leaves of most plants. It also grows even in low light conditions.

To reproduce java ferns, get a new plantlet that grows out of older leaves of parent plants. Secure it to a rock or driftwood until the roots form and it can be planted.

Hornwort

Used mainly by fish breeders, the free-floating hornwort acts as a great cover for spawning. (The small fries love hiding in its lush foliage.) Planted or left floating, it is also a good oxygenator.

New aquarium owners regard hornworts as a perfect plant for their tanks. It can survive any type of lights, it grows as much as an inch a day, and it sucks out fish wastes (carbon dioxide, ammonia, nitrites, phosphates, nitrates) fast.

Hornworts can be kept in either cold or tropical type aquariums. It can be left floating around or buried in the gravel and it can still grow as usual.

Sagittaria

This is another easy-to-grow rosette plant that can thrive in most aquariums. There are many species of the plant, but all are perennials, with arrowhead-shaped leaves. (Some are narrow and look like grass leaves.)

Sagittaria thrives in low to high lighting and grows quickly, propagated by runners which form dense groupings by themselves. This one is a favorite of many of the fish in an aquarium because of the density which fish can use to hide from predators and it goes from the bottom all the way to the top of the tank to the surface.

Vallisneria

Vallisneria is among the most prized plants around: they are counted as the hardiest, easily grown, and with the least requirements. All it needs is lots of light and some leftover nutrients around.

They look great grown as backgrounds, on the sides of the tank and in the central areas, too. They are similar to the arrowhead Sagittaria, though with pointier leaves and lighter green shades.

Anubias

One of the most undemanding aquatic plants, Anubias is also one of the best-looking around. They are also one of the toughest plants.

They can thrive on either low or high light, can withstand very soft or hard water, any pH from 5.5 to 8.5, and any temperature between 20 and 30 degrees Celsius. They also possess tough leaves which are unpleasant to herbivorous fish.

Their only downside could be their slow growth. Aquarium owners mistakenly remove them thinking they are not growing at all. With this, their leaves are prone to algae growth. (It is best to plant them in a shady area to avoid algae propagation.)

Plant Choices

Just like all the work that you do in preparing your aquarium, the choice of freshwater aquarium live plants is crucial to the many things in your tank - the health of your fish, the balance of the aquarium's ecosystem and obviously, the beauty of your aquarium.