Tropical Aquarium Plants

Lush & healthy plants are stunning to look at & will generate a way more natural surroundings in the aquarium. Most fish species feel safer & less stressed when they have plants to hide among, & plenty of species will never prosper in an unplanted aquarium. If your fish species inhabit densely grown waters in the wild, they will feel very insecure in a plant without any vegetation. Plenty of fish species are however rock dwellers & can get the same sense of security from caves & rocky formations in the aquarium. If your fish disturb the plants & destroy them by nibbling of the leaves or digging up the roots, caves & wood can be a better solution than plants. If uprooting is the main issue, you can pick plants that float & do not require any anchorage in the substrate. If your fish are vigorous plant eaters, artificial plants can be used in lieu of live plants. If your fish only nibble on the plants, you can pick strong & quick growing live plants that can tolerate some snacking.

Plants won't only provide your fish with valuable shelters & make your aquarium look beautiful; they will also help you to keep the water quality up. Fish & plants coexist in the wild & will complement each other well in the aquarium. The waste products released by fish will contain compounds that the plants can use as nutrition. Organic waste will therefore be contained within the plant in lieu of floating around in the water where it can harm the fish. You ought to however keep in mind that these compounds won't "disappear", they will be confined within the plant. In the event you permit dead & decaying plant material to stay in the aquarium, the organic compounds will be released again & start to pollute the water. Plants must therefore be regularly pruned & unhealthy parts must be removed from the water as soon as feasible. In return for the organic compounds that they get from the fish, the plants will produce oxygen which is essential to the fish. The plants will also use dissolved carbon dioxide & thereby lower the levels of carbon dioxide in the aquarium.

The direct exchange between fish and plants is important, but it is not the only thing that help keeping the water quality up. The plants will also provide a home for a variety of micro organisms that are beneficial for the ecosystem in the aquarium. Plants are also able to inhibiting ugly algae growth since plants and algae compete over the same nutrients.

Lots of fish species will never spawn in an unplanted aquarium. Some species need the plants to feel safe to spawn, while others need leaves to attach their eggs on. A densely planted aquarium will also increase the fry survival growth in case you need to raise fry in the same aquarium as adult fish, since the fry will hide among the plants. Busy plants with lots of smaller leaves are ideal for this purpose. It ought to however be noted that there's other ways to provide fry with nice shelters. Newly hatched fry can for example hide among larger marbles on the bottom of the aquarium. Caves, roots, stones and artificial aquarium decoration will also give the fry hiding places where they can stay out of harms way.

Unlike lots of other aquatic plants, Java Fern ought to not be planted in the substrate in the aquarium. Java Fern ought to in lieu be attached to rock, wood or aquarium decorations where it will form roots. One time your have bought your first Java Fern or Java Moss, the plants will propagate themselves