How to Grow Aquarium Plant Bulbs

An aquarium that has real live plants makes your aquascape look authentic.

Just like plant bulbs that you plant outdoors or in pots, every aquarium plant bulb requires specific things to grow successfully. However, there are several measures you can take to provide a positive growing environment for all aquarium bulb plants. Once you get things going with some universal aquarium plant bulb procedures, you can focus on the particular needs of each individual plant you choose to grow in your aquarium.

Things You'll Need

• Low-wattage cable heater
• Full-spectrum lights
• Iron- and potassium-rich substrate
• Carbon filters

Instructions

1. Install a low-wattage cable heater under the substrate. If you use an under-gravel filtration plate, place the cable heater on top of the filtration plate. Heating the substrate provides a warmer environment for the root system and encourages growth.

2. Fill the bottom of your tank with a substrate rich in iron and potassium. These are basic nutrients that help all aquarium plant life. If you have already established a substrate in your aquarium and you do not wish to remove it, you can use small terracotta pots to hold the new substrate. However, pots are not ideal since they can hinder root growth.

3. Install a full-spectrum light capable of providing at least five watts per gallon. Just like plants that live outside, aquatic plants also need sunlight. The bulb packaging will have a chart on it that tells you how many watts the light generates. Match that up with how many gallons of water your aquarium holds.

4. Install filters that have carbon in them. These filters are often called "charcoal" filters. You can install charcoal filters in your under-gravel filter tubes, in a hang-on-back filter or in a canister filter. The carbon infuses with the light and helps spark plant growth.

5. Dig a hole in the substrate large enough to place a bulb. You can use your hand to scoop the substrate. Place the bulb into the substrate so it rests just below the surface, then cover it with the substrate you previously removed. If the bulb already has flowers, prune them off with pruners so the plant can focus on building a root system and not on growing flowers.

6. Prune back dead leaves and leaves with algae growing on them with your pruners. This allows the plant to focus on the healthy growing leaves and flowers. This is the best way to grow large healthy plants.

Tips & Warnings

• If you choose to grow plants in an aquarium with fish or other aquatics, you must make decisions based on your goals for the aquarium. Make sure your fish fare well in brightly lit tanks. Having nocturnal fish in a potted tank is not the best idea for the fish.

• Read all of the directions and recommendations on the packaging that comes with your bulbs. All plants are different, and some need special care like elongated or shortened light cycles. To achieve a successful planted aquarium make sure that you meet as many of the individual needs for your plants as possible. Just like growing fish in a planted tank, growing different species of plants can also require a trade-off.

References

• Aqua Community: Bulb Plants