Low Light Plants

[rdebonis]

Can anyone suggest a Bushy Low to Moderate Light plant? I need a plant that will grow in a tank of Wild Bettas and the water is brown colored with tannins so the light is diminished. The standard plants like Anubias etc. are not bushy or fine leaved enough. Wild Betta's like to sit in the fine leaved plants near the surface. :)

[SwordsRule]

Java ferns are known for being good low-light plants. Unfortunately the leaves are typically a bit big for your purpose. But there is a variety of java fern that has much smaller leaves. I've seen it sold as lace jave fern and bushy java fern. For a picture try:
http://www.aquariumfish.net/images_01/potted_fancy_java_fern_rev_101.jpg

I'm sure some of our LFS that specialize in plants can get it for you. Here are two good stores to try

http://petshanty.com/
http://www.absolutelyfish.com/

[alazandv]

Yeah, java fern is known to do well in low light setups but it's not as pretty as some other vareity of plants available in the hobby.

[Nymsley]

The op is kind of old but here is a brief list if anyone needs some examples in the future. These would be relatively easy to get.


African fern (Bolbitis heudelotii)
http://www.plantgeek.net/images/plantpics/africanfern4.jpg
Hornwort (Ceratophyllum demersum)
http://www.livefish.com.au/images/l08.jpg
Anacharis (Egeria densa)
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/detailed_image.cfm?pCatId=780
Ambulia (Limnophila sessiliflora)
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/myPlantsImage.php?n=191_33.jpg
Java Moss (Vesicularia dubyana)
http://www.killies.com/AquaticMosses01/MossJava011.jpg


Hornwort, ambulia, and java moss would best fit the "bushy" description.

[Appoisire]

I want to move my Discus to a bigger tank with bogwood and low light plants. What are the easiest plants suitable for a Discus set up? thanks

[Nymsley]

I never had discus before but I'm going to guess that you want plants that will do well with higher temperatures? My initial ideas would be Vallisneria, Cryptocoryne, Echinodorus, Ludwigia, Hygrophila, Anubias. The ones listed above could work too.

Some of those choices would depend on what kind of substrate do you have.

[rdebonis]

Since I first posted this, I found an alternative to Low Light plants for my Wild Betta's. I use Water Sprite.
Water Sprite does not require much care, likes medium light and when grown as a floating plant the roots hang all the way down towards the bottom of the tank offering hiding places for the Betta's. it also reduces the amount of light reaching the bottom of the tank which is good for many fish like Betta's that don't like strong light. Since I started using Water Sprite I have found that the fish love to hang out inside the dense root ball, resting between the roots a few inches below the surface of the water. The only problem with Water Sprite is that it grows so fast it can easily take over the entire tank so it has to be pruned once a month to keep it manageable. :)

[Nymsley]

I've never heard of anyone else doing that before. I thought I was just being weird :P

My fish don't hide in the plants but they did appreciate the extra overhead cover when they were newly introduced. I leave them floating now because they look so attractive that way.