Freshwater Aquarium Plants – How to Care for Them

If you haven’t added live freshwater aquarium plants to your aquarium you're missing out on a big piece of your hobby.  It will take your aquarium to the next level. Yes they take a little extra care, but caring for your fish and the aquarium is what you got into this hobby for, right?

Live freshwater aquarium plants come in many varieties, sizes, shapes and colors. You can let your imagination run in designing your aquarium décor. The three basic things you need to have for beautiful freshwater aquarium plants is proper water conditions, good lighting and some patience.

Why You Want Live Plants

Live freshwater aquarium plants help keep the biological balance in your tank. At the same time they do a lot for the aquascape. These live plants can condition the water in the aquarium by removing carbon dioxide as well as sulfur substances.  They also foster the growth of bacteria to help remove other wastes in the tank. This biological filtration breaks down ammonia into less harmful substances that live plants use for food. Plants will use these nitrites and nitrates as a source of much needed nitrogen for themselves.

I’m sure everyone has heard of photosynthesis. This is the process where plants use light to create food within themselves and give off oxygen in the process. This is very useful in keeping the water in the tank healthy for your fish.  Just remember when you turn off the light in the aquarium and it gets dark, those plants will reverse the process and absorb oxygen and give off carbon dioxide similar to your fish’s respiration process.

Live plants can also be a food source for some species of fish that like a large amount of vegetation in their diet. Of course this means you may have to keep replacing the vegetation if your fish have a big appetite.

You might also find your fish’s color is brighter in a naturally planted aquarium and those live plants will also give them more sense of security.  A well planted aquarium will provide a little shelter for pregnant fish trying to get away from the more aggressive males.  At the same time it provides protection for the smaller shy fish and those delicate, long-finned fish.

Plant Types

Aquatic plants are the most common found in home aquariums. Be careful when you buy your plants. Many aquatic shops mistakenly sell grow-in-the-earth (terrestrial) plants as aquatic plants. These won’t survive very long submerged in a home aquarium.  Aquatic plants need to be submerged in order to survive. They will quickly die if removed from the water. Sagittaria and Pygmy Sword are good examples of aquatic plants.

Rooted plants are the type that will anchor themselves in the substrate. Many varieties of these can grow quite large so make sure you get what your aquarium can handle.

You can find these as potted plants with a small hole around the roots. With these you can bury the entire pot in the substrate or removing the plants and planting them directly. I recommend removing the pot since these always seem to work their way to the top of the substrate where you don’t want to see them.

Varieties of plants are sold in aquarium stores as cuttings. These often grow very rapidly. A small group of cuttings can be planted together until the take root and then can be separated and spread around the tank to get the effect you want.

There are also floating plants available. These will drift around the top of your aquarium. They grow very quickly and can become quite bushy. They’ll have to be pruned or they will eventually cut off most, if not all needed light from the aquarium.

Aquarium Conditions for Plants

To make sure your plants stay health and thrive, you need to maintain the right conditions in the aquarium.  You need to have the water temperature, proper substrate, good water conditions and adequate lighting.

Both your fish and your plants will have temperature requirements. Make sure they are compatible. By far the majority of aquatic plants are tropical and require warm water. When your shopping for your plants check out the tanks they are being grown in – if it’s cold water they probably won’t survive in your home aquarium.

Live plants need about one to two inches of substrate. It’s best if it is made up of fine gravel or curse sand. This type of substrate will allow the plants to gather nutrients and let their roots spread as they grow.

The proper filtration is important not only for your fish but for the plants as well. If the tank is dirty, this dirt and debris will settle on the leaves of the plants and clog the pores.  If this would ever happen, clean the leaves by gently brushing with a soft toothbrush. If your tank water gets to dirty, it will cut down the amount of light that gets to your fish and plants. Make sure the aquarium water is well filtrated. Use a filtration pump that doesn’t generate a lot of bubbles. This may look nice but it actually drives out the CO2 the plants need.  A power filter or canister filter would be the best for a plant-heavy aquarium.

Remember that ordinary tap water doesn’t contain all the nutrients needed for healthy plant growth.  It’s best to tablets or use a liquid feeder in the gravel near the plant’s roots for proper fertilization. Never use household plant fertilizers. These are very bad for the fish because they have extremely high amounts of phosphates.

Good Lighting is another very important need of your freshwater aquarium plants. Most tropical plants require a continual source of light during the day to thrive. That means at least eight hours of light per day.  If your aquarium is heavily planted it will require more intense lighting than a tank with only fish.
There are some plants that require low level of light. Make sure you check out the lighting requirements when purchasing plants to insure they are compatible.  One way to compensate for differing light requirements is to use taller plants requiring more light to shade the shorter plants needing less light.

One of the most important supplements you can give your plants is an iron supplement. They iron for photosynthesis. Make sure you get iron supplements for your aquarium. There available at most aquarium stores or online.