Page 38 - Encyclopedia of Aquarium and Pond Fish, 3rd Edition

36 FRESHWATER FISH: SETTING UP THE TANK

Choosing plants

Plants play a key role in the aquarium, offering shade
and shelter so that fish feel secure and providing food
Disguise pot
for herbivorous species. Thriving freshwater plants will with rockwork Roots trail
or gravel
freely in water
restrict algal growth and help to improve the water
Rooted substrate plants, such as Floating plants, such as this Butterfly
conditions by absorbing nitrate and giving off oxygen. this cryptocoryne, are often sold in Fern (Salvinia species), are the easiest
open-mesh pots, which make them type of plant to maintain. They move
With hundreds of different colors, leaf shapes, and easy to transfer to the aquarium. around the tank on surface currents.
sizes available, there is endless scope for you to exercise
your creative powers in the design of your aquarium. Healthy green Leaves die back
naturally about
color every nine months
It is best to devise a rough planting plan before making any Attaching a Some plants have
purchases. The standard approach is to have one or two eye- weight specific growing
catching central plants toward the back of the tank, with to a cutting conditions. The tubers
taller plants flanking these and extending around the sides. will anchor it of this Wavy-Edged
Swordplant (Aponogeton
in the substrate
Low-growing foreground plants will give your aquascape a until it roots. Green crispus) must rest in cool
more natural look while still allowing you to appreciate the Cabomba (Cabomba water at 50°F (10°C) for
fish and the background flora. Floating plants add another tier caroliniana), shown here, two months after their
of interest and create attractive dappled shadows below. prefers bright light and leaves die back. They will
soft-water conditions.
then sprout again.
When choosing plants, make sure they have requirements
similar to those of the fish that will live in the tank. For example, Weight Tuber
not all plants will thrive in the hard water needed by Rift Valley Establishing new plants
cichlids, nor in brackish surroundings. The behavior of the fish After buying plants, return them to water as soon as possible;
should also influence your choice. Include bushy plants for allowing the leaves to dry out, even for a short time, may
nervous fish that like to hide in thick vegetation and broad- fatally damage the plant. Leaves also become bruised by
leaved plants for shade-loving bottom dwellers. Floating plants careless handling, so hold the plant by its base or container.
provide a refuge for fry and spawning sites for bubble nesters, Check leaves for snail eggs, which are laid in jellylike masses,
such as gouramis. If the fish like to dig in the substrate, position and trim off affected parts, along with dead or dying leaves.
substrate plants behind tank décor, where they Floating plants usually make a trouble-free
are less likely to be uprooted. transition to new surroundings, but do not
allow condensation from the hood to drip on
them—this will cause the plants to blacken
and rot. Rooted substrate plants also establish
themselves quickly, but you should constrain
their root growth with pots; otherwise, the
undergravel filtration will be impaired. Some
substrate plants are sold as bunches of cuttings,
which need to be separated and planted individually to
give them space to grow. Other plants are available as swollen
stems, called rhizomes and tubers, that you partially bury in
the substrate, leaving any shoots uncovered. Rhizomes can be
cut into slices, each of which will root. Tubers cannot be
It takes patience and care to establish an attractive, well-planted
tank (left), just as it does with a garden. A planting tool (above) can
be helpful for putting plants in place when the tank has been partially
filled and for adding new plants without causing serious disruption.

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