High-light aquarium plants

High-light plants want strong lighting to hold their color and compact form, and most do their best with CO2 and regular fertilizing behind them. This is high-tech territory: carpets, red stems and other showpieces. Profiles list the light, CO2 and growth to expect.

Height: 1.2–31.5 in; 1.2 in (3 cm) to 31.5 in (80 cm); half the list stays at 11.8 in (30 cm) or under
Temperature: 68–82°F; 20–28°C, most of the list
CO₂: 8 no CO₂ needed; 44 CO₂ beneficial · 55 CO₂ required
Growth: 24 slow growing; 38 medium growth · 45 fast growing
Difficulty: 9 easy; 47 medium · 51 difficult

96 plants and 11 varieties

Start here

High-light plants that stay easy

The ludwigia super red is marked easy and lists high light, the brightest red on the site without injected CO2, 11.8 inches (30 cm) tall. The ludwigia brevipes is the same rating, a narrow-leaved stem for the midground. The parrot's feather is a fast, feathery stem marked easy at 15.7 inches (40 cm). The oriental sword is a compact sword that wants high light to stay short. The red root floater turns red at the surface, where the light is strongest, and needs no CO2. The Senegal tea plant is a fast green stem to 23.6 inches (60 cm), marked easy with no CO2.

The rule

What high light asks of the rest of the tank

High light means a plant fixture running at the strong end of its range, and everything else in the tank has to keep up with it. Light drives growth, growth needs carbon and nutrients, and a tank with strong light and nothing else grows algae instead of plants. Most plants here list CO2 as required or beneficial, and the profiles that say required mean it. The stems race under this light and want trimming weekly, and the first sign of a nutrient running short is algae on the glass.

01
Light needs CO2
Strong light without carbon grows algae, not plants
02
Feed to match
Nitrate, phosphate, potassium and iron, dosed on a schedule
03
Trim weekly
Stems race under strong light
04
Algae is the gauge
The first sign that something else ran short

Reds

The red stems

The alternanthera reineckii is marked medium, 19.7 inches (50 cm) of red-purple leaves that stay compact only under high light. The ammannia gracilis is the same rating, a fast stem that goes orange-red. The Rotala H'ra is the red rotala for a tank without an expert behind it, marked medium with CO2 beneficial. The rotala macrandra is marked difficult, the scarlet rotala that needs steady CO2 and soft water. The Ludwigia Pantanal is one of the most demanding stems in the hobby. The rotala wallichii carries fine needle leaves at 11.8 inches (30 cm), marked difficult.

Carpets

Carpets that need the light

The dwarf baby tears is the carpet everyone wants and the one that lists high light and CO2 as required, 2 inches (5 cm) tall and marked difficult. The glosso is the same story at 1.6 inches (4 cm) and grows upward the moment the light drops. The Hydrocotyle mini is marked medium, a fast carpet of tiny round leaves. The Pogostemon helferi grows in crinkled rosettes at 3.1 inches (8 cm), marked medium. The UG, Utricularia graminifolia, and the waterwort are marked difficult and want a mature tank with soft water under the light.

Green stems

Green stems that want the light

The green cabomba is marked medium at 23.6 inches (60 cm), a feathery stem that falls apart under weak light. The Limnophila aromatica turns purple under strong light and stays green under less. The giant ambulia is the big Limnophila at 19.7 inches (50 cm). The star grass is a fast, bright green stem marked medium at 15.7 inches (40 cm). The Pogostemon erectus grows in stiff, pine-like stems at 9.8 inches (25 cm). The Hygrophila Araguaia is a compact stem at 7.9 inches (20 cm) that turns brown-red under high light.

Collectors

The collectors' plants

The Blyxa japonica is a grassy rosette marked medium at 7.9 inches (20 cm) that turns golden under strong light, and the Blyxa aubertii is its demanding relative at 15.7 inches (40 cm). The Tonina fluviatilis and the Syngonanthus Belem want soft water with a carbonate hardness under 4 as well as the light. The Eriocaulon cinereum is a 3.1 inch (8 cm) rosette that feeds through its roots. The Pogostemon stellatus is a 23.6 inch (60 cm) showpiece that needs nitrate, phosphate and iron dosed without a break. All of them list high light and CO2 as required.

By the numbers

Smallest

Tallest

Easiest to grow

No CO₂ needed

Fast growers

FAQ

Common questions

Do high-light plants need CO2?

Most do. The profiles here list CO2 as required or beneficial; the ludwigia super red, parrot's feather, red root floater and Senegal tea plant are marked easy and grow under high light without it.

Why do I get algae with a strong light?

The light is outrunning the carbon and nutrients. Add CO2, dose fertilizer on a schedule, plant heavily with fast stems, and shorten the photoperiod to six hours until the plants catch up.

How many hours should a high light run?

Six to eight hours a day. A longer photoperiod grows algae, not more plant.

Which high-light plants are easiest?

The ludwigia super red, ludwigia brevipes, parrot's feather, oriental sword, red root floater and Senegal tea plant are the ones marked easy.

Do I need special substrate?

The stems feed from the water column and grow in sand or gravel with liquid fertilizer. The carpets and the Eriocaulon rosettes feed through their roots and want an aquasoil.

What does the light do to color?

Red pigment forms under strong light: the alternanthera, ludwigias and rotalas here stay green under less. Iron and lean nitrate deepen it; light is what makes it.

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