Matilyn Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 I really love how floating plants look, and I'm planning on getting some soon. I have a little duckweed, and I know many people hate the stuff, but I wanted to try my hand at something smaller before buying the bigger and nicer floating plants. The problem is, a lot of the duckweed seems to be dying ( as shown in the picture ) so I have a few questions. #1 What are the easiest floating plants to begin with? #2 Is there something specific I should do to help them along? ( I already got easy green and my other tank plants are thriving ). #3 Are floating plants harder to care for? Thank you for any input! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JettsPapa Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 Water sprite is one of my favorites. You often see it planted, and it's usually sold that way, but in my experience it does better floating (and it looks good floating also). Pearl weed and guppy grass are good choices for providing cover for fry or shrimp. Red root floater is another popular one, but I don't have any experience with it. Hornwort is one of the best at removing nitrates from the water, though all floating plants do well since they have access to unlimited carbon dioxide. Just about any stem plant will do fine floating also, though they generally aren't as attractive floating as rooted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chick-In-Of-TheSea Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 (edited) Anacharis does great floating. Edited October 13, 2022 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anewbie Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 (edited) I will only comment on the plants i have: pearl weed grows like a weed in my 10; i don't float it but it doubles every couple of months - here is a picture of hte 10; i gave it a hair cut about 3 weeks ago and it is getting close to needing another one - this was from one small piece that @JettsPapagave me. hornworth i let just float; it is similar to pearl weed as in fast growing and my fishes love hiding under it: red root floater is extremely sensitive to current; frogbit is sensitive to current (not as bad as red root floater) and water-lettuce gets pretty darn large - of the three i've come to prefer frogbit with a touch of red root floater: Anacharis is my least favorite; i have a little in another aquarium - and i keep a little just to say i still have it but i keep it tightly controlled. Edited October 13, 2022 by anewbie 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chick-In-Of-TheSea Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 Very nice @anewbie. I like the madagascar lace; @Guppysnail and I were just discussing those. Also it looks like you hatched yourself a little snail clutch eh? I see the little guys roaming around in there. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrashBandit05 Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 I keep water spangles in my 9 gallon and amazon frogbit/water spangles in my 29 gallon. Water spangles stay pretty small and the roots don't get long (perfect for the 9gal). Amazon frogbit has much longer roots which look nice IMO in the 29gal. I have a bit of dieoff in both tanks but generally cull back once a week due to the amount of growth. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anewbie Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 On 10/13/2022 at 11:59 AM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said: Very nice @anewbie. I like the madagascar lace; @Guppysnail and I were just discussing those. Also it looks like you hatched yourself a little snail clutch eh? I see the little guys roaming around in there. I don't hatch them; they hatch themselves and after i while i get annoyed and collect a bunch and toss them into the larger aquarium (which has 12 clown loaches); also sometimes the plecos get annoyed with them and starts batting them off the zuc with their tail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chick-In-Of-TheSea Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 On 10/13/2022 at 1:02 PM, anewbie said: sometimes the plecos get annoyed with them and starts batting them off the zuc with their tail. How rude. LOL I see one of the plecos in your second pic. Stunning. 🤩 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JettsPapa Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 On 10/13/2022 at 11:56 AM, anewbie said: . . . Anacharis is my least favorite; i have a little in another aquarium - and i keep a little just to say i still have it but i keep it tightly controlled. I forgot about that one. It thrives in one of my tanks, but has struggled in every other one I've tried. In any case, for me it doesn't exactly float. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matilyn Posted October 13, 2022 Author Share Posted October 13, 2022 @Chick-In-Of-TheSea I have that plant! I buried it in the gravel and it's growing like crazy. I imagine when it grows big enough, it will sort of float on the top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matilyn Posted October 13, 2022 Author Share Posted October 13, 2022 @anewbie Thanks for your suggestions! I'm looking into red root floaters and others that look similar. I don't have a strong water current so that sounds pretty good! @CrashBandit05 I'm wanting to get some water spangles! Are they pretty easy to care for? They look beautiful in your aquarium. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anewbie Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 On 10/13/2022 at 1:14 PM, Matilyn said: @anewbie Thanks for your suggestions! I'm looking into red root floaters and others that look similar. I don't have a strong water current so that sounds pretty good! Here is a picture of frogbit, red root floater and water lettuce from the top looking down under strong light (frogbit has smooth leaves; water lettuce has ruffle leaves and red root floater have the smallest leaves and a touch of red); the red root floater and frogbit are pretty much as large as they will get; the watter lettuce - i only keep small plants and toss them when they get to a certain size as they can get 2 or 3 times larger than frogbit. Another popular plant (which i've never kept) is sylvania (sp). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matilyn Posted October 13, 2022 Author Share Posted October 13, 2022 @anewbie Thank you SO much for this! All three of the plants in your tank are some I've really been wanting. I just wanted to make sure I wouldn't kill them. 😅 Have any been particularly picky when it comes to growing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anewbie Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 I don't know how water type effect these plants; my water is gh 7 kh 3 and tds 120; but i've not tried them hard or soft water and there are people with a ride range of water types from super hard to super soft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrashBandit05 Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 @Matilyn I got both of mine off Amazon. They arrived a bit later than scheduled but after a few dying off, they rebounded nicely! Very easy to care for. I rarely dose the tanks with liquid fertilizer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matilyn Posted October 13, 2022 Author Share Posted October 13, 2022 @CrashBandit05 Mind linking the plants you bought off amazon? I've been looking at just that, but some don't have terrific reviews. That would be so helpful! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billango Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 Just to mention some things that haven't been brought up yet, salvinia cucullata can add an interesting texture and shape. Riccia fluitans is a mossy looking floating plant that I like. Also not technically floaters, but plants like the red tiger lotus shoots up leaves that will float on the top and is very easy to grow. I personally do like red root floaters a lot and have found it to grow quite easily. And last, water lettuce (and dwarf water lettuce to a lesser extent) grow these dense roots that can be good for some fish to lay eggs in if thats something that youre interested in. Good luck. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matilyn Posted October 13, 2022 Author Share Posted October 13, 2022 @billango This is wonderful! Thank you for this info! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chick-In-Of-TheSea Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 On 10/13/2022 at 2:02 PM, Matilyn said: @Chick-In-Of-TheSea I have that plant! I buried it in the gravel and it's growing like crazy. I imagine when it grows big enough, it will sort of float on the top. Cut pieces off and let them float around and they will grow roots and become new plants. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matilyn Posted October 13, 2022 Author Share Posted October 13, 2022 @Chick-In-Of-TheSea Sure will! Can't wait to try it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrashBandit05 Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 @Matilyn I believe it was this one: 6 Mini Amazon Frogbit + 6 Water Spangles Combo, Betta Fish Aquarium Floating Plants for Beginners https://a.co/d/7bQCoQ5 It may not seem like a lot of plants at first but they'll eventually replicate and you'll be throwing extras away. I try to keep about 30-50% of the surface covered but that's just my opinion and how I like the natural dimming effects. Hope this helps! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matilyn Posted October 13, 2022 Author Share Posted October 13, 2022 (edited) @CrashBandit05 This helps TREMENDOUSLY. What I'm thinking I'll do is get some aquarium tubing for the air pumps and fashion a floating ring out of it to keep them contained in a sort of floating island. I do have one more question. My aquarium has a lid with high condensation and I hear that will hurt floating plants. Do you keep the lid off your aquarium? My biggest fear is that one of my fish will decide to jump the tank. 🫣 Edited October 13, 2022 by Matilyn 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwcarlson Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 (edited) Would highly suggest eradicating any and all duck weed. I've tried a few floaters and the easiest ones for me and my water has been dwarf water lettuce. If you're interested I'll mail you some, @Matilyn Edited October 13, 2022 by jwcarlson 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AquaHobbyist123 Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 I grow floating water sprite. It grows like crazy in my 10 gal and I have to remove some frequently. This particular tank has crappy cheap lighting, and I don't dose with fertilizer. Easiest plant to grow that I have. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllFishNoBrakes Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 (edited) I’ve played around with Salvinia Minima, Frogbit, Water Lettuce, and Red Root Floaters. And duckweed… oh, duckweed. Much like you when I first began I took the shot with it and now highly regret the duckweed. I can keep it tame, but can’t get rid of it. For me, I still like the Salvinia, but I get bored with it. Frogbit didn’t do well in my water. Water Lettuce CRUSHES in my water, and the Red Root Floaters does well in one of my tanks with basically no flow. I try to spread plants out among tanks and some do well and some die off. I haven’t been able to discern why as I basically treat all of my tanks the same. I have lids on every tank and haven’t noticed any detrimental affects. For me a tank is going to have a lid or I’m not going to have that tank. Here’s some pics: Water Lettuce from above Water Lettuce Roots Red Root Floaters Water Lettuce out of the tank Salvinia. And duckweed… Edited October 13, 2022 by AllFishNoBrakes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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