Favorite Plants for Small Tanks

My current favorite would be chainsword! The way it grows it's little baby plants is awesome, it looks like an underwater spider plant and it grows super fast. Otherwise moss balls for sure and Crypts.

 

Frogbit is at the top of the list for sure, lol but the Mighty Anubias has no comparison!
Great thread!

Great to see another anubias fan. I’m a huge fan of frogbit too!

 

Moss balls cos they behave themselves and do not require too much messing with.....and rarely harbour any pesky critters

The exception being that recent shipments to the USA and Canada have been found with Zebra Mussels, which makes marimo balls nearly impossible to find at the moment, and might have a devastating ecological impact if ANY water from an infested tank gets released into local waterways. :|

But, on a lighter note, I love sußwassertang! It's slow growing, super easy to care for, and I love its unique growth and shape!

 

Blyxa Japonica and Hydrocotyle Japan

 

Torn between Hydrocotyle leucocephala, Limnobium laevigatum and Nymphoides peltata.

 

I've always been fond of Ludwiga super red.

 

I guess I have to say Vals right now because that's all I have. I like how the Red Ludwegias look.

 

Moss Balls, Amazon Swords and Red Tiger Lotus.

 

Moss Balls, Amazon Swords and Red Tiger Lotus.

Oh, plus one for the Red Tiger Lotus!

 

This is coming from someone who is only doing low tech.

Ease of care.

Marino balls for the simple reason that they are cute, can be put anywhere or on anything and the silver dollars don't bother them.

Java moss, Christmas moss, subwassertang. Nice fillers, can be attached to anything to make statements of choice. Or just let do their own thing, they do tend to end up in just the right place even if you didn't know that was the right place.

Anubia's. There is always one of just the right size to add interest. Small ones attached on a rock or drift wood, Taller ones for the back of the tank, and on and on. Also, the silver dollars don't bother them.

Amazon swords. Grow them in gravel, grow them in plant substrate, the don't seem to care. Just make sure you get a variety that is the right size for the tank. And the silver dollars don't bother them.

Crypt's, like Amazon swords, just don't seem to care how they are planted, they do great. And there are many different type to choose from, including some that add a splash of reddish color to a low tech tank. And the silver dollars don't bother them, lol.

And finally, while I should have added this in the moss group, I left them in their own group because I find them unique. Another plant that has many uses, very fast growing and has it's own charm in that it has a different texture and is a lighter green than most low tech plants.

 

My current favorite would be chainsword! The way it grows it's little baby plants is awesome, it looks like an underwater spider plant and it grows super fast. Otherwise moss balls for sure and Crypts.

I have some spider plants in my house too. I’ve never heard of chainsword but I love spider plants so now I want to check it out!

The exception being that recent shipments to the USA and Canada have been found with Zebra Mussels, which makes marimo balls nearly impossible to find at the moment, and might have a devastating ecological impact if ANY water from an infested tank gets released into local waterways. :|

But, on a lighter note, I love sußwassertang! It's slow growing, super easy to care for, and I love its unique growth and shape!

I’ve been wary of that recently. Got 2 new ones a couple month ago and had to make sure they were mussle free.

 

I kill most plants I get so far I like anarcharis and anubias barteri.

 

Oh, plus one for the Red Tiger Lotus!

They are super cool!

I kill most plants I get so far I like anarcharis and anubias barteri.

Some can be tough to care for properly. I’m a big anubias fan too.

 

I would say Amazon swords have been my favorite so far.

 

Java moss, Christmas moss, subwassertang. Nice fillers, can be attached to anything to make statements of choice. Or just let do their own thing, they do tend to end up in just the right place even if you didn't know that was the right place.

Couldn’t agree more!

 

I have some spider plants in my house too. I’ve never heard of chainsword but I love spider plants so now I want to check it out!

Yeah! They’re really fun, and I can’t emphasize how fast they grow, it’s kind of crazy, there’s a new baby on the “chain” like every 2-3 days. Here’s a picture of the “chain” with all of the little baby plants (it’s a little hard to see with all of the plants in the background but if you zoom in you should be able to see the chain and where all of the little babies grow on it), and another picture of the mama plant:
I'm sure I could pinch off the babies and plant them in the substrate but I actually love the way it looks right in the front of the tank, and my betta loves to rest in the roots of the babies.

 

I guess I have to say Vals right now because that's all I have. I like how the Red Ludwegias look.

Vals are nice too. Never heard of Ludwegias but they look pretty cool.

 

Would you count driftwood as a plant?

 

Torn between Hydrocotyle leucocephala, Limnobium laevigatum and Nymphoides peltata.

All great options but definitely a mouthful to say out loud

 

Would you count driftwood as a plant?

I say yes! I love driftwood, I have it in both my tanks as the center piece

 

All great options but definitely a mouthful to say out loud

That's nothing.

(Says the person that reads medieval latin on a daily basis recently.)

 

I say yes! I love driftwood, I have it in both my tanks as the center piece

Currently soaking two pieces right now! I like mixing driftwood and spiderwood together; the end result is great. It’s good for breaking up aggression and allowing fish to hide.

 

That's nothing.

(Says the person that reads medieval latin on a daily basis recently.)

Wow that’s impressive! What has you doing that?

 

Currently soaking two pieces right now! I like mixing driftwood and spiderwood together; the end result is great. It’s good for breaking up aggression and allowing fish to hide.

Yess!! I only have room for 1 piece each since they're 5 gallons, but they're both fairly large pieces of spiderwood that really fill the space well. One of my betta's loves to rest on the branches, and the other likes to swim around between the branches and explore/hunt for fallen food. And I love how you can never find two pieces that are the same! One of my pieces is much taller with branches that mostly go one direction, and my other piece has many branches that go in every direction.

 

Currently soaking two pieces right now! I like mixing driftwood and spiderwood together; the end result is great. It’s good for breaking up aggression and allowing fish to hide.

Driftwood has so many benefits and looks fantastic. Wish I had some

Would you count driftwood as a plant?

For sure!

 

Wow that’s impressive! What has you doing that?

Last paper before the master thesis. Want to know more, PN me, don't want to be off topic right now.

Would you count driftwood as a plant?

For sure!

In that case I would like to say: Leaf litter and seedpods.

 

Driftwood has so many benefits and looks fantastic. Wish I had some

After mixing in cryptocoryne with wood in the 30 gallon I’ve managed to create a natural feel that the cories and amanos embrace. Take a look and hopefully find inspiration.


These are my favourite plants.

 

After mixing in cryptocoryne with wood in the 30 gallon I’ve managed to create a natural feel that the cories and amanos embrace. Take a look and hopefully find inspiration.
View attachment 780610
These are my favourite plants.

Natural feel is perfect. Bet the little cories love it

In that case I would like to say: Leaf litter and seedpods.

Leaf litter can make it look like you just took a slice of nature and put in your home. Such a cool look

 

Natural feel is perfect. Bet the little cories love it

When I woke up the other day I saw one of my C.Paleatus sleeping on a leaf. It was adorable.

Another reason why I come to like my plants is because my fish like them too.

 

Leaf litter can make it look like you just took a slice of nature and put in your home. Such a cool look

My style.

 

Well anubias are my favorite. But next up is giant hygro.Hygro angustifolia just a great easy growing plant.

 

Well anubias are my favorite. But next up is giant hygro.Hygro angustifolia just a great easy growing plant.View attachment 780674

Discus look great with that aquascape!

 

lutea crypts are easily some of the most underrated aquarium plants. Highly recommend.

 

I love my moss ball, and my anubias nana

 

Hemianthus callitrichoides
Eleocharis parvula
Hydrocotyle tripartita
Rotala h'ra

 

I am going to be the outlier here and say that I love Stargrass, when its good, its amazing. When its bad, well it looks like a crackhouse.

For my corys, it is the plant of choice for spawning. I have no idea why, but they love it.

 

i actually really love the fine look of hairgrasses, especially umbrella hairgrass (eleocharis vivipara)
I also love how vallisinaria looks but ive never been able to get my hands on any. My dream is to have an entire wall of it...

 

I love my moss ball, and my anubias nana

Those are exactly what I have in my 5 gallon!

 

Thought this would be a fun way to see which plants are the most popular. I really like most anubias species but my favorite has to go to marimo moss balls because of their ease of care. They are also the meeting place of my “shrimp council”

Definitely Hornwort and Java moss those two are just great!

 

Jungle val all day. I like how it waves in the water.