Blackwater plants

[Kittkat1981]

I'm looking to setup a black water biotope in a 50 gal tall. I know that golden anubus will do well in that low ph and light.  What other bright plants can I add to the build list.     Side question. Do you think cardina shrimp thrive in this tank?  Tank mate will include 3 discus maybe 4. And something creepy and labyrinthy. I'm open to suggestions as well

Edited July 20, 2021 by Kittkat1981

[AnimalNerd98]

I know Serpa Design did a video on his black water tank for his betta. He put in some Crypt. wendtii “bronze” and same flame moss. I would also be tempted to add an aquarium Lily to the list. 

I have never kept Caridinia shrimp. But I do remember something from an interview with the owner of AquaHuna. He said that Caridinia need that ADA soil to buffer that pH and get it down to where it needs to be. In the long run though, I would expect most of the shrimp to get sniped off if they haven’t had a chance to colonize prior to the introduction of the discus AND if the visibility of the water isn’t enough to conceal them from the discus. 

Something SimplyBetta did on her channel is buy “evil driftwood”. You should definitely check it out. I think making it like a dystopian scene from something would look pretty awesome. Maybe a graveyard/Halloween aquascape. 

[Gator]

I have Amazon swords, several Crypts, Hygrophila difformis, Hygrophila polysperma, Anubias nana, and Java fern in all three of my black water tanks, and they're all growing very well.

[Kittkat1981]

What bright crypts are there? Maybe a low light plant that like to makes flowers?

[Odd Duck]

Good old wendtii ‘Green’ gets 6-8” tall with fairly slender, rather wrinkly leaves.  Crypt. pontederiifolia is a nice bright green, has wider leaves and longer stems than wendtii for some texture variety, gets 4-10” tall, running about 6-7” in my tanks.  For a smaller crypt in a bright color, parva stays very small (2-4”), narrow, usually smooth leaves, and if you’re patient enough, could eventually carpet for you.  With a bit higher light you could go for some Pink Panther or Pink Flamingo, but you need slightly more light to get better color and CO2 to get *bright* pink.

Anubias nana ‘Golden Coin’ is currently my favorite Anubias.  Has a really nice, light green color even with low light.

First pic you can see Crypt. pontederiifolia at bottom left.  Second pic you can see the Anubias nana ‘Golden Coin’ at the bottom left.  Yes, that’s cory eggs on the glass of the 100 gallon.  Disregard the dirty glass.  Why do they always breed just before I’m due for maintenance?

Third pic is parva fresh out of the tissue cup.  Nice color but it’s got a looooong way to go.  😆 

Edited July 21, 2021 by Odd Duck

[Kittkat1981]

Yeah. I mentioned the gold anubias. I have some of those in a 65 gal. The water is pretty tea stained and those guys stand out like a sore thumb.