Best Plants For 2.5 Gallon

Hi!!!

I have a filtered, just cycled 2.5 gallon aquarium with a male betta fish with some cheep plastic decorations. The tank is unheated so it is at room temperature 67-70 degrees. I am interested in adding some live plants to that tank. I have never owned or cared for live aquatic plants so this is what I'm looking for:

~ Easy maintenance
~ Rally low lighting or no light at all (the tank does have a light but I hardly have it on and the tank
itself is in a really dark room. But I can have the light on or move the tank if I have to.)
~ Can survive in standard gravel substrate from Walmart
~ Looks nice
~ Does not get too big

I've researched a little bit and here are some plants I like the look of but need advice whether they can go in a 2.5 with a betta. I listed the plants by my favorite to my least favorite:

~ Anubias
~ Java Fern (too big??? is there a smaller version???)
~ Amazon Sword (too big??? is there a smaller version???)
~ Java moss balls

Can someone confirm that these would be ok? Do all these plants need warmer water than 67-70 degrees? The Java Fern and Amazon Sword both seem to be really big and tall once they grow up but could that be solved by trimming the leaves down when they get to big? Is there a dwarf version of these plants?

Thank you all!

 

You absolutely need to heat the tank, bettas require 78 to 82 degrees. If you have him at 67 his body will not be able to fight off disease as well. Not only that, but most aquarium plants prefer slightly higher temperatures as well. There are some minI aquarium heaters suitable for your tank size.

There's no plant that can grow with no light at all, unfortunately.
What kind of light came with the tank? Lights that come with tanks aren't too good for growing plants either.
Amazon sword appreciates higher light as well.

Anubias nana petite doesn't get big at all, maybe start out with that and see how it goes. It's rhizome should not be planted, it has to be attached to decor, rocks, or wood, so your substrate won't matter.

 

Bettas definitely heated water. Preferably 78, but a minimum of 76.

Most of those plants need warmer waters as well. I keep S. Repens, Amazon Sword, Anubias Nana, and Java Moss in mine.

However, I fert.

In answer to your question, no plant will do very well without a decent light.

You can get a desk lamp at walmart for $8 and a 5500k bulb for $10. I bought that pair yesterday.

That'd allow you to keep Java Fern, Anubias, MAYBE a micro sword, java moss, moss balls... opens up a lot of options.

 

Marimo Moss Bolls~ Need to be taken out and "massaged" in some tank water to clean them from the stuff they pick up, since they act as minI filters too. Might be pricier than java balls though
Micro Sword~ Bettas like swords and sleep on top of them during the day which is kinda cute :] Smaller substitute for amazons
Banana~ You don't even have to bury this one in the gravel, just lay it down in a corner somewhere the light can reach it

 

A marimo moss ball is a good option, pretty much the only one unless you want to get some decent lighting or a bigger tank Either way I would add a heater for the betta, they live longer healthier lives in temps 78-81 ish.
Java fern -yes there are smaller more specialized varieties but they are more expensive and you would want plant specific lighting for after spending more. Regular Java might be ok size wise if you get a small enough portion. It won't grow well without lighting, but it's a tough plant and as long as you don't mind replacing it every few months you could be ok.
Amazon sword -smallest tank I would but one of these in would be a 29 gallon, and even that would be small. Again, there are smaller varieties, but they all need good lighting and ferts, specifically root tabs.
Anubias -again, they need lighting, but they are tough little plants. Same as the Java fern... without decent lighting, they won't really grow but it will take some time for them to die. Again, if you don't mind replacing every so often could be a good choice.
Java moss and such- I think for a ball the marimo is better. Moss might do ok, but it tends to be pretty messy looking... all depends on the look you are going for.

All low light plants require lighting above typical stock lighting, it makes it tricky because many people buy the low light plants and don't realize that plant growth specific lights are still needed. There are lower lights such as a finnex stingray that will grow lower light plants well, then medium light plants and their lights like finnex 24/7 for low to medium light plants, depending on tank depth and width, and high lights (for carpeting, co2 injected tanks). All plants need light at a specific wavelength to grow , and they need to be on for a minimum of six hours, sometimes up to 12, depending on the tank.
Stock lighting is usually not the correct wavelength, and little to no light won't work at all

 

A few things to note: some plants will grow without any light, but require a lot more organics and oxeygen. Bronze wendtiI is a good hardy crypt that grows in low light that doesn't get too big. Java ferns can too, but it grows slowly as it is and much slower with low light(no light will kill it)
Most of the really awesome plants that would go well in a tank that size require a lot of light and a good substrate.(carpeting plants like microswords and dwarf hairgrass)
Moss balls are good but do like medium light.
A heater in a tank that size can be very problematic depending on the type you get, but that is way to cold for a betta. Another option that you might look in to is a good aluminum reflector with a clip and a *halogen flood light. Gives off adequate light and plenty of heat which you can adjust by how far you set the lamp from the water.
DISCLAIMER* can get very hot and melt plastic lids etc.

 

OK thank you all for the awesome information!

A lot of what you guys said was that most plants need the light. I do have a single LED light fixture above my tank but I always have it off because the betta doesn't need light that much. But I can have it on.

I will try to get a small filter to keep the water warmer as soon as I can. I have owned many many bettas before without a heater and they did fine but I'm sure they would be even better if they had heat!

I also have a 10 gallon tank with Walmart gravel substrate that I will soon be converting to sand that is lighted with a strand of 2 LED lights. Those lights are on 12 hours a day. Would some of those plants mentioned in my first message as my favorites be ok in the 10 gallon?

 

Additional info on the 10 gallon:
It is heated (75 degrees), filtered, there is an air stone, well lit (12 hours per day), and has been cycled for a really long time. Right now all the decorations are fake. I am really pleased with the decorations that are in that tank right now but I think it would be cool to have some live plants as well.

Image

• adh/smile
• Mar 25, 2017

10 gallon tank: 3 male guppies and 2 neon tetras (soon to be 6 neon tetras).

 

OK thank you all for the awesome information!

A lot of what you guys said was that most plants need the light. I do have a single LED light fixture above my tank but I always have it off because the betta doesn't need light that much. But I can have it on.

I will try to get a small filter to keep the water warmer as soon as I can. I have owned many many bettas before without a heater and they did fine but I'm sure they would be even better if they had heat!

I also have a 10 gallon tank with Walmart gravel substrate that I will soon be converting to sand that is lighted with a strand of 2 LED lights. Those lights are on 12 hours a day. Would some of those plants mentioned in my first message as my favorites be ok in the 10 gallon?

Not all lights are the same, and usually lights that come with aquariums don't grow anything very well. I think I know what you mean by a "strand" of LEDs, do they look somewhat like this?


12 hours of the correct type of lighting is too much usually, 8 hours is recommended to control algae.

If you really want to have some nicer plants, a better light for both tanks is highly recommended. Most stock lighting can only grow moss balls and java moss well.

 

Basic kit leds will probably be fine for java fern and anubias. I've had a 20 gallon kit with those in it for 7 months or so and the plants do fine. You'll just need to have them on long enough! I bought a cheap Walmart timer (that plugs into the wall outlet) and hooked the light up to that. I have the lights on for a total of about 10 hours, with a break in the middle (so like 5 hours on, 3 hours off, 5 hours on, then off for the night).

The other advantage of those two plants is that you can attach them to decor partway up in the tank. That extra few inches closer to the lights can make a world of difference.

 

Not all lights are the same, and usually lights that come with aquariums don't grow anything very well. I think I know what you mean by a "strand" of LEDs, do they look somewhat like this?


12 hours of the correct type of lighting is too much usually, 8 hours is recommended to control algae.

If you really want to have some nicer plants, a better light for both tanks is highly recommended. Most stock lighting can only grow moss balls and java moss well.

No, my strand does not look like that. There are only two, 2'' strips of rectangular "light bulbs" that are on the strand. Their light reaches to all corners of the tank except for one where the filter casts a shadow. I will try to cut down the lighting hours. I haven't had any algae problems AT ALL so far, but I'm sure it will come so thanks for the heads up!!!

Basic kit leds will probably be fine for java fern and anubias. I've had a 20 gallon kit with those in it for 7 months or so and the plants do fine. You'll just need to have them on long enough! I bought a cheap Walmart timer (that plugs into the wall outlet) and hooked the light up to that. I have the lights on for a total of about 10 hours, with a break in the middle (so like 5 hours on, 3 hours off, 5 hours on, then off for the night).

The other advantage of those two plants is that you can attach them to decor partway up in the tank. That extra few inches closer to the lights can make a world of difference.

Ok! I will try your light schedule and try to get some Anubias plants. How many plants do you think could go into a 10 gallon? They will expand over time right? Like, once their tuber or main root "thingy" (i'm not sure exactly what it's called) can I split it so there are two plants instead of one? And I tie them onto a decoration and not plant them in the substrate right?

 

You can slice the tuber in pieces about 1" long, yes. Anubias are slow growers though, especially under low light, so it may be awhile before you can divide them. And yes, tie or superglue them on a decoration. You can also tuck some of the roots in your gravel as long as you're careful to keep the rhizome above.

 

Do they need fertilizer? I'd rather not have to do any fertilizer or chemicals in my tank if I don't have to.
Because they are tied to decorations they must get most of their nutrients from the water right? Do they feed off ammonia, nitrite, nitrate???
Thank you so much for your help!

 

If you want to do a extremely low tech tank with plants you still have a few options. As long as your stock lights are one for at least 6hrs a day I would.start anubis (nana because your tank is so small) any java fern or java moss, and there's a few of both types.

Your bigest problem is tank size as there as a heap of plants that eill grow inblow light but will get to big for a 2.5g

 

Do they need fertilizer? I'd rather not have to do any fertilizer or chemicals in my tank if I don't have to.
Because they are tied to decorations they must get most of their nutrients from the water right? Do they feed off ammonia, nitrite, nitrate???
Thank you so much for your help!

You shouldn't need fertilizer for those.

 

Ok thank you all so much for your help! I think or my 2.5 gallon I will just get some better fake plant(s) and structure(s). Hen I don't have to worry as much about a plant over growing the whole tank. I will continue to research about plants for my 10 gallon though. Thanks again!!!!!