Floating plant suggestions

[lmhicks101]

I’ve now ran out of space in my 29 gallon for plants if I wanna leave any room for the chains to carpet and others to grow. I’ve now decided to switch to floating plants. What’s some good suggestions or should I not get any?
 

Here’s my current tank plants, parameters, and fish stock. I also run a fluorescent bulb that can’t be dimmed and is at medium light 12-14 hours a day.

I’m dosing with prime and stability daily and will be doing water changes in a couple days when done with the med trio. Also running aqueon 30 HOB and a sponge. And dosing flourish once a week. When that runs out I’m switching to easy green and iron.
 

plants

• Lobelia Cardinalis x3
• Narrow leaf Chain Sword x2
• Spiralis x2
• Java moss x2
• Anacharis x2
• Normal Amazon Sword
• Flame Amazon Sword
• Red Melon Sword
• Bronze Wendtii
• Green Wendtii
• Red Wendtii
• pothos leaf in a soap dish under the HOB

Water 

• Ammonia - 2
• Nitrite - 0
• Nitrates - 5
• pH - 6.6 (steady)
• KH- 2
• GH - 6-7

Fish

• Cardinal tetras - 18
• Harlequin Rasbora - 6
• Pygmy Corridors - 8
• Khuli Loaches - 6
• Hillstream Loach - 1
• Betta male - 1
• Snails 

 

 

[Zenzo]

I like floating plants. You could consider floating plants like red root floaters, frog bit, and water lettuce. I am enjoying the frog bit that I have in a few tanks. Some of these are easy to remove when they propagate. Easy to lift out and put in another tank (or compost). 

[lmhicks101]

@Zenzo where can I get some at? My local stores and box chains don’t have any floaters. 

[Zenzo]

On 10/13/2021 at 6:47 PM, lmhicks101 said:

@Zenzo where can I get some at? My local stores and box chains don’t have any floaters. 

I got mine locally at our fish club. You should be able to find sellers online pretty easily. 

[gardenman]

On both Etsy and e-Bay you can find floating plant collections where you get two or three of a variety of floaters. The collections often include a dwarf water lettuce, frogbit, red root floater, or something else. It's a good way to test which works best for you. This is a good time of year to order things as it's not too hot or too cold.

[lmhicks101]

I appreciate that guys. Thank you. 

[Torrey]

On 10/13/2021 at 7:47 PM, lmhicks101 said:

@Zenzo where can I get some at? My local stores and box chains don’t have any floaters. 

I have had the most interesting luck buying floaters at pond stores halfway through the summer season.

Warning: they come with guests, and some guests will eat fish (like the damselfly larvae I got this year). I consider it a tradeoff: the damselfly cull the weakest, slowest fish, and then eat flies and other bugs when they mature and fly out of the tank. 

Azolla needs a LOT of light, or it will die.

Duckweed is nerm glitter, frogbit and dwarf water lettuce are great.

RedRoot floaters have been getting difficult to locate, but water sprite is lovely and easy to propagate, and the emmersed leaves turn a gorgeous bronze under high light. 

[lmhicks101]

@Torrey yeah I found a store that had duckweed and I regret that so bad. This stuff is aquarium glitter and gets every where. 

[KaitieG]

I second the water lettuce and frogbit suggestion--I have a hard time with floaters in my tanks in general,and my frogbit has mostly died out, but water lettuce that I sourced on ebay has been the most successful for me.  I like that it's super easy to remove when it overgrows (which it does).  Mine looked awful when it arrived and even smelled like dead plant, but I put some of the best pieces (even they were lacking roots) into the tank, and within a week they had roots a couple inches long and were greening up.

[Hobbit]

For floating plants, I love salvinia minima! Its roots stay small, it grows fast, and it’s way easier to remove than duckweed if you decide you don’t want it anymore. Here’s some on my summer tubs (it’s the small plant—the flower belongs to the lily):

[Torrey]

On 10/16/2021 at 4:29 AM, lmhicks101 said:

@Torrey yeah I found a store that had duckweed and I regret that so bad. This stuff is aquarium glitter and gets every where. 

I mean, duckweed does = nerm glitter, right @Griznatch?

 

Most of what I used to think was an issue, or a problem, is now something I have learned to depend on as a part of a healthy ecosystem.

[anewbie]

I've not try sylvinia so can't comment on it; i strongly recommend you avoid duckweed at all cost or buy a gold fish to eat it. Between frogbit, red root floaters and water lettuce i prefer frogbit first red root floaters 2nd and water lettuce last but none of them do well if you have strong surface currents. red root floaters sounded neat when i got them and i don't have anything against them but the roots are very short and the plant a bit more sensitive. frogbit and water lettuce can have nice roots (see picture); but water lettuce is a bit ughly and can get too large. Frogibit is both attractive plant and not too large (imho). 

 

I also pretty happy with hornworth but it grows too fast and can be a bit messy. On the really good side of things it doesn't block light to lower plants and frys love it.

 

Two picture one with hornworth circle in red and one with frogbit/water lettuce roots:

[Helan]

I would go with salivinia  too , duckweed gets everywhere which is why I don’t like it

[lmhicks101]

I got some frog bit and a little red root. I’m happy so far. Trying to get rid of the duck weed.