Aquatic Plant Encyclopedia

A beautiful African fern with delicate deep green leaves. Grown attached to driftwood.

A stem plant coloring deep red to pink. Creates vivid accent color among green aquatic plants.

A compact red aquatic plant perfect for foreground to midground accent color.

Charming floating plant with round leaves. Simply float on surface for easy care. Long trailing roots provide shelter for fry and shrimp. Excellent water purification.

A representative aquatic plant with large sword-shaped leaves. Gives strong presence as background centerpiece.

A beautiful stem plant with delicate needle-like leaves. Grows without CO2, beginner-friendly background plant.

Hardy shade plant from Africa. Typically attached to driftwood or rocks. Thrives without CO2 in low light — ideal for beginners. Very slow growth keeps layouts stable.

An even smaller variety of Anubias Nana. Tiny densely packed leaves, ideal for nano tanks.

A unique plant with banana-bunch-like tubers. Charming when producing floating leaves.

Beautiful rosette plant native to Japan. Thin leaves spread radially, adding movement to midground layouts. Takes on reddish hue with CO2 — very attractive.

Fern with beautiful deeply lobed dark green leaves. Epiphytic, attached to driftwood. Creates mature, refined aquascape.

Epiphytic plant endemic to Borneo. Unique texture and iridescent leaves popular with collectors. Slow but hardy.

A popular Bucephalandra variety with ghostly translucent leaves. Epiphytic, attached to driftwood or rocks. Very slow-growing but the unique iridescence is prized by collectors.

A stem plant with beautiful delicate fan-shaped leaves. A longtime staple of goldfish tanks.

A moss branching in triangle like Christmas tree. Creates more three-dimensional scape than regular moss.

Root-dwelling plant from Southeast Asia. Many varieties with subtle beauty. May melt with environmental changes but recovers.

The smallest Cryptocoryne species. Used as a foreground plant, growing very slowly. Once established it is hardy and easy to maintain. Grows without CO2 in low light.

A hardy Cryptocoryne from Sri Lanka. Calm brown to green tones ideal for midground placement.

Small North American stem plant. Tiny opposite leaves grow densely, turning red-orange under high light. Somewhat slow growth, ideal for midground. Hardy despite delicate appearance.

A beautiful foreground-midground plant with star-shaped wavy leaves. A unique aquatic plant from Thailand.

One of the smallest foreground plants. Creates a dense green carpet, a staple of Nature Aquarium.

A foreground plant with fine thread-like leaves spreading as a carpet. Propagates by runners across wide areas. Creates beautiful green carpet with CO2 and adequate light. Grows well in sandy substrates.

A foreground-midground plant growing densely like lawn. Very hardy, spreads quickly by runners.

Representative large aquatic plant also called Amazon Sword. Ideal for mid to background. Propagates by runners, easy for beginners.

Adorable tiny round-leaved foreground plant. Even smaller than Glossostigma, creating a delicate green carpet. Needs high light and CO2 but looks great in compact tanks.

Sea urchin-like radial leaves make this a striking high-difficulty plant. Demands soft water, low pH, high light, and CO2. Small rosette ideal for foreground. Popular among enthusiasts.

A beautiful pipewort with radiating thin leaves. Small, perfect as foreground accent.

Small oval floating leaves cover the surface. Fine hairs on leaves repel water. Fast multiplier with strong water purification. Popular for medaka and betta tanks.

The most popular foreground plant in aquascaping. Forms a lush green carpet by creeping along the substrate. Requires CO2 and strong light but grows explosively under optimal conditions. A Nature Aquarium staple.

A green variety of Rotala rotundifolia. Dense bright green leaves create lush background bushes. Easier than red varieties. Replant trimmings to increase density.

A foreground plant with thin thread-like leaves spreading like a meadow. Spreads by runners creating natural aquascapes.

One of the worlds smallest aquatic plants. Tiny leaves create a dense beautiful green carpet. Advanced foreground plant.

A rootless floating plant. Extremely hardy with high water purification, ideal for beginners.

A cute aquatic plant with clover-like trifoliate leaves. Grows horizontally, ideal for midground.

Representative fast-growing hardy stem plant. Polysperma is most common. Easily propagated by trimming.

A stem plant with deeply cut unique leaves. Has unusual ability to attach to rocks and driftwood.

One of the easiest stem plants from Asia. Dense bright green leaves grow vigorously even in low light without CO2. Fast grower ideal for beginners learning aquatic plant cultivation.

An extremely hardy and fast-growing stem plant. Perfect as a first plant for beginners. Grows in any condition.

A fern aquatic plant from Southeast Asia. Attaches to driftwood and rocks, popular for its unique leaf shape.

The most widely used moss in aquascaping. Simply attach to driftwood or rocks for a natural look. Ideal hiding spot for shrimp fry. Perfect for absolute beginners.

A beautiful stem plant from Southeast Asia with purple-tinted leaves. CO2 enhances vivid purple coloration.

A stem plant with bright green underwater and red flowers above. Interesting difference between submersed and emersed forms.

Entry-level red aquatic plant. Red coloring depends on light and CO2. Repens and Super Red are popular varieties.

North American stem plant with distinctive narrow needle-like leaves. Turns vivid orange to red under high light. Delicate appearance but surprisingly hardy.

A hardy stem plant that turns red. Easy for beginners and perfect for adding color to aquariums.

A classic North American red stem plant. Leaf undersides turn beautiful red. Beginner-friendly and popular as a red accent in backgrounds. Hardy enough to grow without CO2.

A popular stem plant that turns red-orange with adequate light and CO2.

A beautiful ludwigia entirely dyed red. Maintains some redness even without CO2 injection.

A mystical plant where only leaf veins remain, creating lace-like appearance. Advanced species from Madagascar.

Spherical algae famous as a natural monument of Lake Akan, Hokkaido. Simply sink in tank. Rolling maintains shape. Extremely slow growing but can live for decades.

A foreground plant with four-leaf clover shaped leaves. Mysteriously becomes single leaf underwater.

North American stem plant with unique serrated leaves. Turns golden to copper-red under strong light. Slow grower but adds unique texture to aquascapes.

A popular foreground plant with densely packed small round leaves. Grows without CO2, easy to carpet.

A microsorum with distinctive trident-shaped thin leaves. Delicate look suits small tanks too.

A foreground plant with round leaves similar to Pearl Grass. Grows without CO2, easy to create green carpet.

A foreground plant with larger leaves than Pearl Grass. Spreads carpet-like, naturally forming dome shapes. Beginner-popular as it grows without CO2. The fluffy texture is charming.

A water lily relative with beautiful green leaves. Becomes focal point when placed in midground.

A stem plant with small round leaves strung like pearls. Used in mid to background planting. Produces beautiful bubbles in water. CO2 injection encourages lush growth.

Stem plant with a unique conifer-like silhouette. Beautiful lime-green foliage makes it a popular layout accent. Somewhat slow-growing but hardy.

A floating plant with beautiful red roots and round leaves. Red roots floating on surface add accent.

Floating liverwort often used submerged. Stunning appearance with oxygen bubbles attached. Can be the star of an aquascape.

A liverwort used as a foreground plant, beautiful when covered in oxygen bubbles. Fixed to stones or driftwood. The sight of oxygen bubbles during photosynthesis is magical. ADA spread this Japanese aquascaping technique worldwide.

Essential background stem plant genus. Many species including R. rotundifolia and R. indica. Beautiful red coloration and dense bushes achievable through trimming.

A very beautiful high-difficulty plant with deep crimson leaves. Queen of aquatic plants turning red with CO2 and strong light.

A popular stem plant that colors red to orange. Beautiful gradation with strong light and CO2.

A beautiful Rotala with needle-like leaves spreading radially like a conifer. Turns pink to red with high light and CO2. Contrary to its delicate appearance, relatively easy to grow.

A foreground-midground plant with small oval leaves growing densely. Perfect for creating green meadow.

South American low-growing plant for foreground to midground. Hardy and easy to grow, even without CO2. Forms beautiful green bushes when densely planted. Tolerates trimming well.

A water lily relative with beautiful round leaves featuring red-brown spots. Creates accent in tank midground.

Beautiful star-shaped whorled leaves from Brazil. Requires soft, acidic water — challenging conditions. Stunning star rosettes when conditions are met. A challenge for experts.

Compact and delicate Rotala species. Submersed leaves are narrow and turn red to pink. Beautiful red under strong light and CO2. Perfect midground to background accent.

A carnivorous plant that creates a stunning grass-like foreground carpet. Extremely delicate and difficult. Only establishes in stable conditions. Unmatched foreground when successful.

Long tape-like leaves swaying in current create beautiful background. Spreads explosively by runners. Extremely hardy.

A small vallisneria with thin leaves swaying coolly. Hardy and easy for beginners to grow.

A background plant with long ribbon-like leaves that wave in water current. Propagates abundantly by runners, creating a natural river scene. Hardy in low light without CO2. Often used in goldfish tanks.

A fern with beautiful pinnate delicate leaves. Versatile plant that grows floating or planted.

Epiphytic moss that attaches to driftwood and rocks. Perfect shrimp shelter. No CO2 needed, beginner-friendly.