Keeping fish in a regular aquarium that doesn’t contain live aquatic plants or decorations and only contains fish can sometimes be boring. Not all fish are suitable and can use live plants or decorations in the aquarium. Some of the larger fish are likely to damage or eat live plants. If you use artificial decorations, it is possible that the fish will be injured because they have less space to move.
But most small fish such as betta fish, guppies, mollies, and tetras can and are very suitable to live in aquariums filled with plants. In fact, the fish will really like the plant because it is similar to the original place of life. For those of you who keep guppies and are considering filling your aquarium with live aquatic plants but are still confused, this article will help you decide which plants to use.
In essence, guppies like any aquatic plants, so it depends on you which plants to care for. In this article I will give some easy-care plant suggestions for beginners. Although this plant is easy to care for, if you are creative, you can create a beautiful aquascape.
Anubias nana
This is one of my favorite aquatic plants that is very easy to grow and maintain making it perfect for beginners. Anubias plants have many types, Anubias nana is a type of anubias that is small so it is suitable for small aquariums.
Anubias nana does not require basic fertilizer as this plant can be grown simply attached to wood or stone. Most of the nutrients are taken directly from the water and not the soil, so as long as anubias nana is in the water the plant will grow. Anubias nana can be tied using rope or fish-safe glue to stone or wood. One of the reasons anubias nana is suitable for beginners is because it is very easy to care for and does not require high light.
If I’m not mistaken, I used a 5 watt LED lamp and anubias nana can grow without liquid fertilizer. Its slow growth is also one of the reasons why anubias nana is suitable for beginners. CO2 is not required to maintain anubias nana, applying liquid fertilizer once a week is sufficient if you wish.
After this plant is mounted on stone or wood, you don’t need to do anything else and just enjoy it because its growth is relatively slow. Anubias nana also does not require maintenance such as cutting because it grows slowly and will not grow too large.
Anubias nana is a plant that has rhizomes and then roots. So this rhizome will elongate and the leaves will continue to grow. To reproduce anubias nana is very easy, just cut the rhizome with a size that is not too short and contains leaves. Later the pieces will live and can be propagated again after the rhizome is long enough. Anubias is suitable to be placed in the front position of the aquarium because of its small size.
Java fern
Just like anubias nana, java fern is a plant that grows with rhizomes. Java fern also does not require basic fertilizer because it takes nutrients directly from the water. Because of its size, java fern is more often attached to wood.
Java fern is suitable to be placed in the middle or rear position because of its large size. Java fern can also be used as the main plant in an aquascape and use smaller plants such as anubias nana in the foreground to complement.
Java ferns also grow slowly like anubias nana and do not require high light. Due to its slow growth, java fern requires almost no care once the plant is placed in an aquarium.
The method for multiplying java fern is also the same as for anubias nana, just cut the rhizomes and make sure they contain leaves. Java fern may not be very suitable for aquariums that are too small because this plant can grow up to about 30 cm.
Java ferns will be very suitable for guppies because they can hide behind many and tall java fern leaves. In addition, the appearance of the aquascape will also be more pleasing to the eye. Just like anubias nana, java fern can live without CO2.
Java moss
Java moss is one of those plants that is also easy to grow and doesn’t require much maintenance. The use of java moss or any type of moss is mostly the same, namely affixed to stone or wood. Java moss can be affixed using glue that is safe for fish, usually G glue. The important thing is that the glue is cyanoacrylate, usually this type of glue will stick or dry immediately when it hits a wet surface.
If you don’t want to use glue, java moss can be tied using a rope and over time the rope will not be visible. To make sure java moss is running properly, make sure not to paste a large amount of java moss.
It’s a good idea to stick the java moss as thinly as possible on a wooden or stone surface. Do not stack too much because the java moss which is located at the bottom will not get enough light and will die.
The use of java moss is not only limited to wood and stone. If you are creative, java moss can be used to create a wall filled with java moss and placed at the back. Java moss can also grow in the same lighting as anubias and java fern from low to medium.
Java moss would be great if combined with java fern affixed to a large enough wood. Java fern in the middle and the rest of the twigs can be pasted with java moss. Java moss can also grow well without the addition of CO2.
Bacopa monnieri
Unlike the other plants that I have mentioned before, bacopa is a stem plant . But the similarity is that bacopa also takes nutrients from the water so it doesn’t depend too much on basic fertilizers. Bacopa can also grow without the help of CO2.
Bacopa is suitable to be placed at the back because it will grow quite high up to about 30 cm. Since bacopa is a stem plant, it can be quite difficult to grow it. Bacopa does not have roots at the bottom so it cannot be attached to basic fertilizers or sand.
If the sand or base fertilizer is not too deep, the bacopa can come off and even float. To avoid this, bacopa should be tied together at the bottom and then planted together and make sand or basic fertilizer rather deep. If not tie it to a ballast to keep the plant afloat and not float due to passing fish or hard water movement.
To reproduce bacopa is very easy, just cut the bacopa as desired and then plug it in and the plant will grow. Bacopa can also grow taller and out of the water if the tank is short enough.
But I think this can be used as part of the aquascape design itself. Bacopa that comes out of the water will not die as long as the rest of it is still in the water. The lighting needed by bacopa is also the same as that needed by anubias nana, java fern, and java moss.
Hornwort
Hornwort also includes stem plants that are very easy to live. This one plant can also grow to a very high height, reaching 300 cm in nature. It does not require much maintenance other than regular cutting to limit its height. Because it is easy to live, hornwort does not need the help of CO2.
Besides being used for aquascapes, hornwort is also very good to use if you are interested in cultivating guppies. As a stem, hornwort does not have to be planted or planted in soil or sand. Hornwort can be left to float on the surface of the water and will continue to grow as long as it gets light.
Then why is hornwort good for guppy fish farming? Because hornwort will provide shelter for guppy fish fry. Adult guppies will usually eat very small guppy fry. With hornwort, guppy fry have shelter from adult guppies.
Hydrocotyle tripartita/pennywort
There are many types of hydrocotiles, but the most commonly seen are tripartite or pennywort hydrocotiles. This plant can be used in a variety of ways, such as being used as a carpet plant or left floating and attached to wood.
If you want to use it as a carpet plant and cover the front of the aquarium, you should use high lighting to make it grow faster and of course use basic fertilizer. Because the growth can be tall and can be used in several methods, this plant is also good for guppies.
If you have a male and female guppies, chances are they will give birth. With this hydrocotile, it will provide shade or a place to hide for the fry from adult guppies. Guppies are quite easy to give birth to, so when you have a female and a male, it is likely that they will give birth whether you like it or not.
Kapu – kapu
Just like duckweed, kapu – kapu is also an aquatic plant that floats on the water surface but its size is much larger than duckweed. Kapu roots will be very long in the water later so it is not suitable for aquariums.
Kapu-kapu is rarely used for aquariums, but it is often used for guppies cultivation. Its function is the same as hornwort in that it provides protection for guppy fry from the pursuit of adult guppy fish.
Its many and long roots will make a perfect hiding place for guppy fry. In addition, kapu-kapu will also provide protection from direct sunlight. Kapu – kapu is also easy to find, just look for it in the nearest rice field then you can get a lot of kapu – kapu for free.
Cryptocoryne wendtii
If you want to be a little more fussy and use basic fertilizer, then you can plant cryptocoryne wendtii. This plant takes nutrients from its roots, so basic fertilizer is necessary for this plant to grow. Cryptocoryne requires medium light to grow well. Usually the leaves of this plant will wither some time after planting, but this is normal. The leaves wither because they are still adapting to the new environment.
In addition, it is possible that the visible leaves are still land leaves so they are not suitable when placed in water. Along with the withering of the old leaves, new leaves will appear.
Conclusion
Guppies are suitable for almost all aquatic plants, now it depends on the ability of the aquarium owner to take care of what kind of plants. Knowing the needs of plants is very important before buying them. All the plants that I recommend above are plants that require very easy care.
Not only maintenance but all these plants do not require CO2 or high lighting. Of course it would be great if added with CO2 and high lighting. But not everyone can and wants to use such a system.
So all of the above plants are very easy for beginners who are the first time using aquatic plants and do not require much and complicated care.