Freshwater Plants Selection

July 2018

When choosing plants for this 14,500litre aquarium, we had to take into consideration both the aesthetics of the display and the ongoing maintenance of the system. Other critical factors such as water depth, light exposure, temperature, livestock compatibility and Co2 demand all played an important role in the selection process.

Foreground Plants

For most of the foreground, we used plants that mimic a carpet of moss. There are several carpeting plants available for aquariums. However, most of these, although beautiful, are high maintenance, requiring a trim with scissors at least twice a week. A relatively easy task for a small aquarium. But much more difficult when the area covered is so large and located 2 metres below the surface of the water!

After reviewing a wide variety of species, we have chosen Helanthium Tenellum and Marsilea Crenata.  These plants grow slightly slower than some others available, require low light and can tolerate higher temperatures. Keeping them looking good is one of the most demanding tasks for the maintenance team.

Mid-ground Plants

Mid-ground plants should play several roles. They must provide a smooth transition between foreground and background plants in terms of height and colour. They also need to hide the lower leaves of the taller background plants, which usually yellow and fade as upper plant growth begins to block their light.  In our case, they must also represent the ferns and other sub-canopy plants found in a forest.

For the mid-ground plants, we have chosen Cryptocoryne Beckettii, Cryptocoryne Wendtii, Cryptocoryne Undulata, Microsorum Pteropus, Cryptocoryne Crispatula and Helanthium “Quadricostatus”.

The selected plants add depth to the aquascape and their growth pattern and colour variations of green, reds and brown create an interesting visual.

Background Plants

Plants toward the rear of the aquarium are generally those that grow largest, providing additional verticality to the aquascape.

We have chosen Vallisneria Gigantea and Cyperus Helferi, both relatively easy to look after and suitable for large aquariums.  In front of this, Rotala rotundifolia ads texture and colour will represent some of the larger sub-canopy plants found in a forest.

This aquarium is maintained once a week by our maintenance team who use a variety of custom made tools to enable them to trim the plants and clean the entire display. This is not an easy task as the display is 1.7metres tall and holds hundreds of fish, which means that most of the aquarium and plants out of arm’s reach.