# What are the benefits of putting live plants in a betta tank?



## stellenternet

I am thinking of putting live plants in my tank but I was wondering what does it do? Does it clean out the tank? Do I need a filter? Food? Water conditioner?
I am also wondering what are the things that aren't so great about live plants?


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## LolaQuigs

You will still need food, conditioner, and a filter. Plants will feed on the ammonia and nitrites produced by your fish and its waste, so they do help the water quality. Heavily planted tanks can get by with fewer water changes and/or less water changed each time. But most people just getting into plants aren't going to jump right into a heavily planted setup, so a few plants will probably not allow you to alter your maintenance routine; however, they do help keep the aquarium stable and healthy between changes. Plants also provide a more natural environment for fish, helping them feel more secure and comfortable in their surroundings. And you don't have to worry about them damaging fins like you do with fake plants.

Some fish eat plants, which can be both good (source of food for fish) and bad (if you want your plants to actually thrive). Bettas, however, will not eat plants because they are carnivores, so this is a nonissue if bettas are the only fish you keep.

Some plants, such as marimo balls, can help keep certain types of algae at bay.

There are some drawbacks to live plants. If, for whatever reason, your plants do not flourish and/or you are not careful to trim dead leaves, decaying plant matter can hurt your water chemistry. So you need to check your plants regularly to ensure that they are healthy and don't need pruning. This in itself adds a little more work to the fishkeeper's routine. 

Different plants have different needs as far as lighting, water chemistry, and fertilizers, so you need to research each species that you are considering adding to make sure that the plant is right for your setup. If you want medium--high light plants, you will need to invest in a lighting system that is much better than the standard lights that come with most hoods. Some plants need fertilizer and CO2 to thrive, so that can be an added cost. But there are many plants out there that are perfectly suited to low light tanks without fertilizers, so this shouldn't discourage you; it's just something you'll need to keep in mind when thinking about what kinds of plants to get. Some plants get too large for smaller tanks and/or grow so quickly that they can overwhelm a tank; the size and growth rate is another thing you'll need to consider when researching types of plants. 

Another potential drawback to plants is that, if they are not treated (e.g., with bleach or an anti-snail treatment) or quarantined, they can introduce hitchhikers, like invasive snails, or even disease (if they were kept in a tank with fish at the pet store/fish store) to your tank. But treating/quarantining plants before adding them to the tank can mitigate this issue. Sometimes planted tanks can be prone to algae because you will need to leave the light on in the tank for a good part of the day; if you get plants that need fertilizer, algae also loves ferts. But a low-light setup without ferts shouldn't be too bad in the algae department, and, as mentioned above, some plants (like marimo) can help prevent algae.

Some good beginner plants with low lighting needs and that don't require fertilizers or special equipment include:

most anubias species
java ferns
ancharis
most crypts
marimo balls
dwarf water lettuce
banana plants
windelov


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## kjg1029

hi there!

I absoulty LOVE my aquarium plants. my favorite tank is my plants 5.5 with play sand, root tabs and atleast 7 different types of plants and one male betta. IMHO its better to have a filtered tank because the plants will loose small parts, and leaves (not alot but just enough to annoy me anyways haha) 

it is by far the easiest tank to maintain because i only need one 50ish% water change a week (along with an occasional plant trimming). it never has water quality issues.

my betta definatly enjoys resting in the plants and is always on the move.

usualy once a week Ill dose some seachem flourish for an extra boost. i just use enough to cover the inside of the cap with liquid (if that makes sence) or a few drops works too, you dont really need a ton


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## stellenternet

LolaQuigs said:


> You will still need food, conditioner, and a filter. Plants will feed on the ammonia and nitrites produced by your fish and its waste, so they do help the water quality. Heavily planted tanks can get by with fewer water changes and/or less water changed each time. But most people just getting into plants aren't going to jump right into a heavily planted setup, so a few plants will probably not allow you to alter your maintenance routine; however, they do help keep the aquarium stable and healthy between changes. Plants also provide a more natural environment for fish, helping them feel more secure and comfortable in their surroundings. And you don't have to worry about them damaging fins like you do with fake plants.
> 
> Some fish eat plants, which can be both good (source of food for fish) and bad (if you want your plants to actually thrive). Bettas, however, will not eat plants because they are carnivores, so this is a nonissue if bettas are the only fish you keep.
> 
> Some plants, such as marimo balls, can help keep certain types of algae at bay.
> 
> There are some drawbacks to live plants. If, for whatever reason, your plants do not flourish and/or you are not careful to trim dead leaves, decaying plant matter can hurt your water chemistry. So you need to check your plants regularly to ensure that they are healthy and don't need pruning. This in itself adds a little more work to the fishkeeper's routine.
> 
> Different plants have different needs as far as lighting, water chemistry, and fertilizers, so you need to research each species that you are considering adding to make sure that the plant is right for your setup. If you want medium--high light plants, you will need to invest in a lighting system that is much better than the standard lights that come with most hoods. Some plants need fertilizer and CO2 to thrive, so that can be an added cost. But there are many plants out there that are perfectly suited to low light tanks without fertilizers, so this shouldn't discourage you; it's just something you'll need to keep in mind when thinking about what kinds of plants to get. Some plants get too large for smaller tanks and/or grow so quickly that they can overwhelm a tank; the size and growth rate is another thing you'll need to consider when researching types of plants.
> 
> Another potential drawback to plants is that, if they are not treated (e.g., with bleach or an anti-snail treatment) or quarantined, they can introduce hitchhikers, like invasive snails, or even disease (if they were kept in a tank with fish at the pet store/fish store) to your tank. But treating/quarantining plants before adding them to the tank can mitigate this issue. Sometimes planted tanks can be prone to algae because you will need to leave the light on in the tank for a good part of the day; if you get plants that need fertilizer, algae also loves ferts. But a low-light setup without ferts shouldn't be too bad in the algae department, and, as mentioned above, some plants (like marimo) can help prevent algae.
> 
> Some good beginner plants with low lighting needs and that don't require fertilizers or special equipment include:
> 
> most anubias species
> java ferns
> ancharis
> most crypts
> marimo balls
> dwarf water lettuce
> banana plants
> windelov


Thank you for tons of info!


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## LolaQuigs

No problem! I've recently been testing the waters of plants, so I've been doing quite a bit of research and a lot of this is on my mind!


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## KaisynKai

I have a semi light planted tank and one with silk plants and honestly I like my planted tank much better. I am new to live plants so im taking things slow. I have 3 large anbuias that are doing well, 1 sword with a long stem that might be flowers, micro sword(so far its not dead) and ludwig I beleive it is (read plants stems that looks like it has throns but i think they r roots like little knuckles up the stems) and huge amt of java moss on the way & a few dwarf lettuce which isnt doing that great. My tank is gravel and I have a finnex stingray 7000k light (I upgraded recently) 

it looks much better then my silk tank next to it


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## livenatso

My fish has been tons happier since I added a bunch of plants to his .75 unfiltered temp elive cube (he's going to upgrade soon to a spec! hes a weak swimmer so I dont want to stress him out with too much room too fast... gotta work up I guess lol). There's an amazon sword, anubias, dwarf sag, marimo, cabomba all actively growing like weeds. He likes having leaves to rest his fins on (especially the cabomba) and I find that I don't have to change the water every single day any more to keep the ammonia low which is a huge relief. Also, I now find myself constantly watching videos of aquascaping and planted tanks so I guess the plants could give you a new hobby.


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## suppercat

I use live plants for my Betta tanks because they add some help to the fish health and don't need to regular cleaning.


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## suppercat

Live plant is better for Betta fish tanks because they add some help to the fish health and don't need to regular cleaning.


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