Filter Plants

[Hidden Walrus]

Actually, virtually any tropical plant can and will adapt to live rooted in an aquarium, which is effectively a well-oxygenated flowerpot full of fertilizer that never dries out. It's really an ideal way to grow many plants, not only peace lilies, bamboo, or pothos but many others as well. I have purple waffle plant, creeping fig, purple velvet plant, heartleaf philodendron, peace lily, syngonium, and aluminum plant (pilea) rooted directly in the tanks and I have some very long pothos vines that are potted in soil but which cross over the tank and are taking root in the water now too. I have also had great success with sweet potato vine, and only removed it because it grew too big - about an inch of stem and 2 inches of roots every day when it really got going!

The fish love hiding in the roots and it really helps mimic a natural riverbank environment like where the fish come from. The plants also pull up all the nitrogen and keep the water clean.

[ChoclateBetta]

Many plants can do tnat. You are thinking of marsh plants.

[OrangeAugust]

Originally Posted by kfryman

So can you elaborate on the plants take out the chemicals in the air please? I am curious.

There are a number of plants (I think we're talking non-aquatic here, right?) that filter out the air. One of them is Spider plants.
HEY! Chocolate- have you ever put a spider plantlet (AKA spider plant baby) in the filter? While it's best to plant them in the soil, you can also grow them in just water... I bet it would be cool, once you had some roots started, to grow a spider plant in a fish tank with its leaves above the water like you do with lucky bamboo... Maybe I'll try that in my tank. I have a monstrous spider plant in my cubicle at work. It has LOTS of plantlets still attached to it.

[OrangeAugust]

I also just realized I have a Pothos plant in my cubicle at work- two different types, actually (I have a lot of plants. hehe). I always forget the name of that one. You can grow that in a fish tank filter?

[ChoclateBetta]

Originally Posted by OrangeAugust

There are a number of plants (I think we're talking non-aquatic here, right?) that filter out the air. One of them is Spider plants.
HEY! Chocolate- have you ever put a spider plantlet (AKA spider plant baby) in the filter? While it's best to plant them in the soil, you can also grow them in just water... I bet it would be cool, once you had some roots started, to grow a spider plant in a fish tank with its leaves above the water like you do with lucky bamboo... Maybe I'll try that in my tank. I have a monstrous spider plant in my cubicle at work. It has LOTS of plantlets still attached to it.

I think that they just do that to help grow roots not permenantly.

[OrangeAugust]

I've had one in just water for a few months and it's fine.

[ChoclateBetta]

Some plants can take bad conditions for month and I am not 100 percent sure they rot.

[kfryman]

Actually I have seen someone growing a sweet potato in he tank, it was out in a greenhouse type thing, I think it was oriental or something. I do remember her saying she did have them in water though... or was it off to the side in a pot?

She had one next to the pond and one in the filter of another tank.

[kfryman]

Oh yeah, also on pothos, if you look there will be little brown stumps off of the stem/vine. If you cut below that, it will be fine since that is where roots will come from. So you can just cut a piece off your plant at work and stick it in the fish tank.

[ChoclateBetta]

Originally Posted by kfryman

Actually I have seen someone growing a sweet potato in he tank, it was out in a greenhouse type thing, I think it was oriental or something. I do remember her saying she did have them in water though... or was it off to the side in a pot?

She had one next to the pond and one in the filter of another tank.

That us not actually worthy. That was hydroponics which is different.