Planted tanks

Easy aquarium plants for beginners: 8 that grow without CO2

By The FishFits team · Updated

The easiest aquarium plants for beginners are anubias, java fern, cryptocoryne, java moss, amazon sword, vallisneria, hornwort and floating plants such as frogbit and dwarf salvinia, and none of them needs CO2 or a special light. Tie or glue anubias, java fern and java moss to wood or rock, and never bury the rhizome of anubias or java fern. Plant crypts, swords and val in the gravel and feed them root tabs, and let hornwort and floaters drift at the surface.

You don’t need CO2, a special light or fancy soil to grow live plants. The plants below survive on plain gravel, the light that comes with most tanks and the nutrients your fish already make. What kills most beginner plants is planting them the wrong way or keeping them with fish that eat them.

The 8 easiest aquarium plants at a glance

Plant How to plant it Light Growth Typical height Root tabs?
Anubias (nana) Tie or glue to rock or wood Low Very slow 2–5 in (5–12 cm) No
Java fern Tie or glue to rock or wood Low to medium Slow 6–12+ in (15–30+ cm) No
Cryptocoryne (wendtii) Roots in the gravel Low to medium Slow to medium 4–8 in (10–20 cm) Yes
Java moss Tie to rock or wood, or let it sit loose Low Medium Spreads as a mat No
Amazon sword Roots in the gravel Low to medium Medium 20 in (50 cm) or more Yes, lots
Vallisneria Roots in the gravel, crown showing Medium Fast 12 in (30 cm) to past the surface Yes
Hornwort Float it Low to high Very fast Long stems No
Frogbit, dwarf salvinia Float it Low to high Very fast Floats on top No

Heights are for plants settled in for a couple of months. All eight do fine at 72–80 °F (22–27 °C), the range most tropical community tanks run at. Hornwort also handles water down to about 50 °F (10 °C).

How much light easy plants need

The basic LED that comes with most tank kits is enough for anubias, java fern, java moss, crypts, hornwort and floaters. Amazon swords and vallisneria manage in low to medium light too, but they grow faster and fuller under a light sold for planted tanks.

More light is not better without CO2. Strong light on slow plants like anubias and java fern grows algae on their leaves faster than the plant grows new ones.

  • Put the light on an outlet timer.
  • Start a new planted tank on 6–8 hours a day. If your light dims, start at about 20–40% brightness.
  • Once plants are growing well, you can go up to 8–10 hours. Cut back again if algae shows up.
  • Keep the tank out of direct sun.

The algae guide covers what to do if the balance tips the wrong way.

How to plant each type

Rhizome plants: anubias and java fern

A rhizome is the thick, horizontal stem that the leaves and roots grow out of. If you bury it in gravel or sand it rots, usually over a few weeks, and the leaves turn brown and fall off. These two plants want to live on wood or rock with the rhizome in open water.

  1. Take the plant out of its pot and pull away the rock wool with tweezers.
  2. Pick a spot on a piece of driftwood or a rough rock. Texture gives the roots something to grip.
  3. Attach it one of three ways: wrap it on with cotton thread or fishing line, put a few dots of gel super glue on the rock and press the roots into it for about 30 seconds, or wedge the rhizome into a gap between two rocks.
  4. Keep glue off the rhizome, and work quickly so the plant doesn’t dry out. The roots grab on within a few weeks, and cotton thread rots away after that.

Anubias grows about one leaf every few weeks, so it is nearly impossible to kill but its old leaves collect green spot algae. Give it a shady spot. Nana stays small, usually 2–5 in (5–12 cm) tall. Larger types such as barteri and coffeefolia grow much bigger and stand up better to rough fish.

Java fern grows baby plants on its leaves. Once they have roots, pull them off and attach them somewhere new. It handles low to medium-high light, but very strong light can damage the leaves, and brown or see-through patches often mean too much light or too few nutrients.

Root feeders: crypts, amazon swords and vallisneria

These take most of their food through the roots, so they go in the gravel and get root tabs.

  1. Take off the pot and rock wool. Trim off mushy leaves, and cut long roots back to about 1–2 in (2.5–5 cm) so they go in straight.
  2. Make a hole with your finger or long tweezers, push the roots in, and close the gravel around them.
  3. Leave the crown, the pale spot where the leaves meet the roots, just at or above the gravel. Buried crowns rot. This matters most for vallisneria.
  4. Push a root tab in near the roots, deep enough that it doesn’t float out (see below).
  5. Don’t move it again. Root feeders sulk for weeks every time they are moved.

Crypts (Cryptocoryne wendtii is the easiest) almost always “melt” after planting: the leaves go soft and see-through and dissolve. This is normal. Trim the dead leaves and leave the roots alone. New leaves usually appear within a few weeks. Crypts also melt after big changes in water chemistry, so make changes slowly once they are settled.

Amazon swords grow 20 in (50 cm) or more and wide, so they are a background or centerpiece plant. We suggest a tank of at least 29 gallons (110 L). Store plants usually have round, farm-grown leaves that die off over the first month while new, longer underwater leaves grow from the center. Swords feed heavily. If the older, outer leaves turn yellow after the first couple of months, add more root tabs.

Vallisneria spreads by runners and can fill the back of a tank in a few months, which makes it one of the best plants for soaking up nitrate. Pick a type that suits your tank: jungle val leaves can grow over 3 ft (1 m) long and trail across the surface, while corkscrew val stays nearer 12–16 in (30–40 cm). Many hobbyists report val melting when they dose liquid carbon (glutaraldehyde-type) products, especially above the label dose, so skip them in a val tank or start low.

No-root plants: java moss, hornwort and floaters

Java moss has no real roots. Tie thin pieces onto wood or rock with cotton thread or fishing line, spread out thinly so light reaches all of it. In a few weeks it grips on its own. It traps debris, so swish it in a bucket of old tank water during water changes. Shrimp and fry love it.

Hornwort grows best floating. Planted stems never grow proper roots and the buried end tends to rot, so if you want it upright, weigh the end down without burying it. It can grow 1–4 in (3–10 cm) a week. Expect it to drop needles in the first week or two as it adjusts. Leave it alone and siphon up the fallen needles. Keep it away from the filter intake.

Floating plants (Amazon frogbit, dwarf salvinia, red root floaters) just go on the surface.

  • They need calm water. Strong filter flow pushes them under and they rot, so point the outflow away or turn the flow down.
  • Corral them with a ring of airline tubing if you want part of the surface clear.
  • Scoop out a handful every week or two once they cover the surface. They shade the plants below and block gas exchange if they cover everything.

Because they take CO2 straight from the air, floaters are the best plants here for soaking up nitrate and starving algae.

Root tabs and liquid fertilizer

Root tabs are fertilizer capsules you push into the gravel. They feed crypts, swords and val in inert gravel or sand.

  • Push each one deep, below the plant’s roots, so it doesn’t leak into the water.
  • Space them about 5–6 in (12–15 cm) apart across the area with root feeders.
  • Give a new amazon sword 2–3 tabs around its base, and add more as it grows. A big sword can use several a month.
  • Add new tabs about once a month, or follow the label.
  • Use aquarium root tabs only. Houseplant and garden fertilizers can release ammonia that harms fish.

Liquid fertilizer feeds plants that take food from the water: java fern, anubias, moss, hornwort and floaters. In a lightly planted tank with fish, fish waste is often enough for these. If they grow pale or stall, add an all-in-one aquarium liquid fertilizer at the label dose after each weekly water change. Shrimp tanks need a fertilizer labeled shrimp-safe.

Which fish eat plants

Most community fish ignore plants. These are the main fish our species data marks as plant eaters or plant nibblers.

Fish Adult size Plant damage What survives
Silver dollar 6 in (15 cm) Eats plants Anubias, java fern, or artificial plants
Buenos Aires tetra 2.8 in (7 cm) Eats plants Java fern, anubias, floaters
Oscar, Jack Dempsey, severum, green terror 8–12 in (20–30 cm) Eats and uproots plants Anubias and java fern attached to rock
Electric blue acara 6 in (15 cm) Digs up and damages plants Anubias and java fern attached to rock
Common and fancy goldfish 6–10 in (15–25 cm) Eats and uproots plants Larger anubias and java fern attached to rock or wood
Red zebra and demasoni cichlids 3.1–4.3 in (8–11 cm) Eats plants Anubias and java fern on rock
Kissing gourami 8 in (20 cm) Grazes soft plants Java fern, anubias, floaters
Common pleco, tinfoil barb 12–16 in (30–40 cm) Eats plants Few. Use tough plants or none
Molly 4 in (10 cm) Nibbles soft plants Most easy plants
Bristlenose pleco 4.7 in (12 cm) Sometimes rasps soft leaves Anubias, java fern
Rosy barb, gold barb, black ruby barb 2.4–3.5 in (6–9 cm) Nibbles soft plants Most easy plants
Clown, yoyo and zebra loaches 3.5–10 in (9–25 cm) Nibble and dig Attached plants, firmly rooted crypts
Siamese algae eater 6 in (15 cm) Sometimes eats soft leaves Anubias, java fern, crypts
Rabbit snail 3.1 in (8 cm) Eats soft plants when hungry Anubias, crypts if well fed

Our data also marks a few others as occasional nibblers or diggers, including bala sharks, blood parrots, convict, firemouth and jewel cichlids, congo tetras, denison barbs, moonlight gouramis, mystery and ramshorn snails, and dwarf orange crayfish.

With plant eaters, stick to tough anubias and java fern, add hornwort or floaters that regrow faster than they are eaten, and feed vegetable-based foods. Every species care page, such as the bristlenose pleco or fancy goldfish, shows whether that fish is safe with plants.

A simple starter layout

For a 20 gallon (76 L) tank with gravel and a basic LED:

  • Back: straight or corkscrew vallisneria, with root tabs.
  • Middle: 3–5 crypt wendtii, with root tabs.
  • On the wood or rocks: 2–3 anubias nana and a java fern.
  • Surface: a small portion of frogbit or dwarf salvinia, kept to a third of the surface.

Plant on setup day (the setup guide has the order) and use the substrate calculator for 2–3 in (5–7.5 cm) of gravel. Live plants also earn a small waste bonus in our stocking calculator.

Common mistakes

  • Throwing out melting crypts or swords. Give them 8 weeks before deciding a plant is dead.
  • Running a bright light 12 hours a day with no CO2. You grow algae, not plants.
  • Buying “aquatic” plants that aren’t. Mondo grass, purple waffle and peace lily (sometimes sold as “Brazilian sword”) are land plants and rot underwater.
  • Ignoring hitchhikers. Potted plants can carry pest snails, so rinse and check them. Tissue-culture cups are pest-free.

Never release plants into the wild

Bag up trimmings and throw them in the trash, and never pour tank water or plants into a pond, creek or drain. Several floating plants sold for aquariums are invasive. Giant salvinia (Salvinia molesta and three related species) is a US federal noxious weed, so check that what you buy is dwarf salvinia (Salvinia minima), which is not on the federal list, though some states restrict it. Amazon frogbit (Limnobium laevigatum, also called South American spongeplant) is treated as a high-priority pest by California’s agriculture department because it has invaded waterways there. Check your state’s list if you’re unsure.

Gear mentioned in this guide

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Frequently asked questions

Do aquarium plants need CO2?

Not these ones. Anubias, java fern, crypts, java moss, amazon swords, vallisneria, hornwort and floating plants all grow on the CO2 that dissolves into the water from the air and from fish. Added CO2 only speeds them up, and floating plants take CO2 straight from the air.

Do I need special substrate to grow aquarium plants?

No. Plain gravel or sand 2–3 in (5–7.5 cm) deep works. Anubias, java fern, moss and floaters don't use the substrate at all, and crypts, swords and val grow well in inert gravel if you push aquarium root tabs in near their roots about once a month.

Why are my new aquarium plants melting?

Most farm-grown plants are raised partly out of water, so they drop those leaves once they go under water. Crypts are famous for it. Trim the mushy leaves, leave the roots in place, and new underwater leaves usually appear within a few weeks.

Can I add live plants before the tank is cycled?

Yes. Plants can go in on setup day and help soak up ammonia and nitrate, but they don't replace cycling. Cycle the tank as usual before adding fish.

How do I stop fish from eating my plants?

Choose tough, bitter plants like anubias and java fern, attach them to rock or wood so they can't be dug up, and add fast growers like hornwort that regrow faster than they get eaten. Feeding vegetable-based foods also takes the pressure off.

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