Beginner aquarium plants

A good first plant is forgiving about light and feeding and hard to kill while you learn. These profiles cover plants rated beginner or easy, with the light and placement each one needs.

Height: 0–59.1 in; 0 in (0.1 cm) to 59.1 in (150 cm); half the list stays at 9.8 in (25 cm) or under
Temperature: 68–82°F; 20–28°C, most of the list
Light: 122 low light; 122 medium light · 9 high light
CO₂: 104 no CO₂ needed; 149 CO₂ beneficial
Growth: 113 slow growing; 65 medium growth · 75 fast growing

206 plants and 49 varieties

Start here

The six plants that survive anything

The java fern is marked beginner, grows in low light without CO2 and is tied to wood or rock rather than planted, reaching 11.8 inches (30 cm). The anubias nana does the same at 4.7 inches (12 cm), a slow plant with leaves that last for years. The java moss grows on anything and gives fry and shrimp somewhere to hide. The amazon sword is the rooted centerpiece, marked easy, medium light and 19.7 inches (50 cm) tall with root tabs under it. The vallisneria spiralis is a grass that spreads by runners to 19.7 inches (50 cm), marked beginner. The hornwort floats or plants, grows fast in low light and soaks up the nutrients that feed algae.

The rule

What makes a plant beginner-friendly

Every plant here is marked beginner or easy, and the profiles agree on what that means: low or medium light, no CO2 required, and a tolerance for the water most people have. The rhizome plants, anubias, java fern and bucephalandra, are tied to wood or rock and rot if the rhizome is buried. The rooted plants, swords, crypts and vals, feed through their roots and want a root tab or a nutrient substrate. Add a fast grower to soak up nutrients and the algae has less to work with.

01
Low or medium light
No plant here lists high light
02
No CO2 required
Beneficial at most, never required
03
Rhizomes above the substrate
Anubias and java fern rot when buried
04
Root tabs for the rooted
Swords, crypts and vals feed from the roots

On wood and rock

Plants for wood and rock

The anubias barteri is the big anubias at 13.8 inches (35 cm), marked beginner, and the anubias petite the small one at 2 inches (5 cm). The Windelov java fern has lace-cut leaf tips and the same care as the plain fern. The bucephalandra kedagang is marked easy for low light, a slow plant with leaves that shimmer blue, 4.7 inches (12 cm) tall. The Christmas moss grows in flat triangular fronds and the flame moss grows straight up; both are marked easy and tied to wood with thread until they grip. None of these goes in the substrate.

Stems

Stems that grow fast

The water wisteria is marked beginner and grows fast to 19.7 inches (50 cm) in medium light. The hygrophila polysperma is the same rating in low light, 17.7 inches (45 cm), and needs cutting back every week. The rotala rotundifolia is marked easy in medium light and turns pink at the tips under more. The giant bacopa is marked beginner for low light, a slow, stiff stem at 15.7 inches (40 cm). The Canadian waterweed, the anacharis of the shops, is marked beginner for low light and reaches 23.6 inches (60 cm). The ludwigia repens is marked easy in medium light and is the red stem that does not need CO2.

Rooted

Rooted plants and carpets

The cryptocoryne wendtii is marked beginner for low light, 9.8 inches (25 cm), and it melts when it is moved and grows back. The dwarf sagittaria is marked beginner, a grass that spreads by runners to 11.8 inches (30 cm) and carpets a foreground in low light. The jungle val reaches 39.4 inches (100 cm) and is the background for a tall tank. The tiger lotus is a bulb marked easy that sends up red-spotted leaves to 19.7 inches (50 cm). The dwarf hairgrass carpets in medium light at 3.9 inches (10 cm), marked easy, and spreads faster with CO2. The staurogyne repens is a low, bushy foreground plant marked easy for medium light.

Floating

Floating plants

The amazon frogbit is marked beginner, a floating rosette with roots that trail 2 inches (5 cm) into the water. The dwarf water lettuce is the same rating and the same habit at 3.9 inches (10 cm). The salvinia natans is a floating fern marked beginner that doubles every couple of weeks. The red root floater turns red at the surface, where it gets the high light it lists, and needs no CO2. The water sprite is marked beginner and grows either floating or planted to 15 inches (38 cm). The guppy grass floats or plants, grows fast in low light and shelters fry.

By the numbers

Smallest

Tallest

No CO₂ needed

Low light

Fast growers

FAQ

Common questions

What is the easiest aquarium plant?

The java fern, anubias nana, java moss and hornwort are marked beginner and grow in low light without CO2 or substrate. Tie the first three to wood or rock and let the hornwort float.

Do beginner plants need CO2?

No. Every plant here lists CO2 as unnecessary or beneficial, never required. They grow faster with it and fine without it.

Why is my anubias or java fern dying?

The rhizome is buried. Both plants rot when the thick horizontal stem is under the substrate. Tie them to wood or rock with thread or glue and leave the rhizome in the water.

How much light do beginner plants need?

Low light means a basic LED for six to eight hours a day. Medium light means a plant-rated LED for the same period. Floating plants shade whatever is under them.

Do I need special substrate?

Not for the epiphytes and mosses, which never touch it. Swords, crypts and vals feed from the roots and do better with a root tab pushed under them or a nutrient substrate.

Which plants help against algae?

The fast growers: hornwort, water wisteria, hygrophila polysperma, amazon frogbit and guppy grass. They use the nitrate and phosphate that algae would otherwise get.

Index