Guides

Planted Tank

42 articles · All guides

Root-feeding Cryptocoryne aquarium plant in substrate

Plants

Root Tabs for Aquarium Plants: When and How to Use Them

Feed heavy root-feeding plants without unnecessarily enriching the water column.

Liquid fertilizer bottle for plant nutrients

Plants

Liquid Fertilizer for Aquarium Plants: A Beginner Guide

Dose water-column nutrients carefully while watching plant growth and algae response.

Cryptocoryne wendtii — a plant known for melting after transplant

Plants

How to Prevent Aquarium Plants From Melting

Understand why new aquatic plants lose leaves and how to support healthy submerged growth.

Plant leaf showing nutrient deficiency patterns

Plants

Aquarium Plant Deficiencies: Reading the Leaves

Use patterns in old and new leaves as clues while avoiding rushed single-nutrient dosing.

Male Black Tiger Badis in a planted aquarium

Freshwater

Black Tiger Badis (Dario hysginon)

The Black Tiger Badis is a tiny, colourful micro-predator suited to peaceful planted aquariums. Discover its diet, water conditions, tank mates, se…

Freshwater

Threadfin Rainbowfish (Iriatherina werneri)

A practical care guide to the Threadfin Rainbowfish, covering aquarium size, water conditions, diet, breeding and compatible tank mates.

Small nano aquarium fish in a planted tank

Fish Species

Nano Fish Species Guide

Nano tanks need nano fish — species under two inches that thrive in planted small volumes without crowding.

Equipment & Maintenance

CO2 Regulator and Diffuser Basics

Stable injected CO2 transforms high-light planted tanks — but only when regulators, diffusers, and drop checkers work together safely.

General Guides

Betta Tank Setup for Beginners

Bettas are hardy — not indestructible. Build a heated, filtered, planted home instead of a bare bowl, and your fish will show real colour and per…

Aquascaping

Carpeting Plants That Actually Work

Which carpeting plants succeed in real home aquariums — and which ones only thrive with high light and CO2.

General Guides

Nano Aquarium Setup for Beginners

Nano tanks are beautiful — and unforgiving. Learn the setup rules that keep tiny aquariums stable instead of swinging into disaster.

Plants

Beginner Planted Tank: Low-Tech Setup Without CO₂

You do not need pressurised CO₂ to grow plants. A low-tech planted tank rewards patience with hardy species, modest light, and steady care.

Aquascaping

Dutch Aquascape Layout Guide

How to design a Dutch-style planted aquarium with bold plant streets, colour contrast, and disciplined trimming.

General Guides

Black Beard Algae (BBA): How to Get Rid of It

Black beard algae clings to hardscape and slow plants. Here’s how to identify BBA, knock it back, and stop it returning.

Plants

Monte Carlo (Micranthemum tweediei)

A planted-tank guide to growing Monte Carlo (Micranthemum tweediei) with practical light, nutrient, and placement advice.

Plants

Mayaca fluviatilis

A soft, needle-leaved stem plant that forms airy green curtains — delicate texture for midground and background accents.

Plants

Hygrophila corymbosa

A fast, leafy stem plant sold in several leaf forms — easy colour and height for beginners learning to prune stems.

Plants

Dwarf Sagittaria (Sagittaria subulata)

A grass-like runner plant that forms easy foreground meadows — tougher than hairgrass for many low-tech tanks.

Bolbitis heudelotii (Bolbitis heudelotii)

Plants

Bolbitis heudelotii (African Water Fern)

A dark green lace-leaved fern for wood and stone — slower than stem plants, dramatic when attached in gentle current.

Plants

Cryptocoryne pontederiifolia

A robust Crypt midground plant with broad green leaves — settles into durable stands once past transplant melt.

Invertebrates

Ramshorn Snail (Planorbella / Planorbarius spp.)

Disk-shaped snails in wild and brightly coloured forms — helpful scavengers that multiply when overfeeding leaves excess food.

Invertebrates

Crystal Red Shrimp (Caridina cantonensis)

Striking red-and-white Caridina shrimp for soft-water nano tanks — more parameter-sensitive than Neocaridina, breathtaking in mossy aquascapes.

Plants

Riccia fluitans

Crystalwort liverwort used as floaters or tied carpets that pearl under CO2 — a Takashi Amano–famous aquascape texture plant.

Plants

Salvinia natans

Fuzzy floating fern leaflets that shade tanks and soak nutrients — excellent for fry cover and algae competition.