One thing that live plants need to thrive is good lighting. For an aquarium that is well planted with live plants your lighting requirements is usually two to three watts for every gallon of water. To add a nice lighting effect you can use fluorescent lighting. One thing to watch for when using fluorescent lighting is the depth of your aquarium. A problem arises when the aquarium is too deep because plants that grow low or have a lot of different levels of foliage may not get enough of the light from your fluorescent lighting. If not enough light is present the plants will not flourish. Be able to advise you in the next little

You should be able to talk to an expert in your local aquatic pet store who will advise you with your plant and lighting problems. He should also be able to advise you in the next little thing to look at which is the water hardness. The hardness of the water should be between 4-12 dH for the majority of aquarium plants and the pH level should be between 6.5-7.2. Correct maintenance of the aquarium should be maintained to keep the water clear and clean to keep your plants thriving. Keeping up with the cleaning is essential as most plants will not survive if the water contains too much debris and the water is toxic with fish excreta which contains ammonia.

Once your aquarium is established it should be clean and have sufficient light for your plants to flourish you then have to maintain. For healthy grown your plants need the correct nutrients both macro and micro. Macro nutrients can be found naturally both from your fish and the tap water you place in your tank. These essential nutrients include sulphates, phosphates and nitrates. They should not need to be added and should be natural in to your aquarium. A very small amount of micro nutrients are also required and should also be readily available from within your tank but may need to be added. These include iron, zinc, and copper and to survive in your aquarium the plants will need them.

Your plants should be able to survive naturally with the nutrients provided in the tank; naturally fertilizer should in general be the same. You should not normally have to add anything in order for your live plants to survive. Healthy plants require having a correctly operating filtration system as do the water and fish. It is best to stay away from filtration systems that require to be operated underneath the substrate as they disturb the surface with a steady stream of bubbles. If your filter system causes too much disruption to the surface of the water carbon dioxide is lost which is detrimental to your plants growth. This type of system also limits the composition of the substrate in which you have to root your plants. Apart from this all other types of filtration system will work just fine. One thing your filtration system should be able to do is create a current which moves nutrients throughout the tank.

So the most important things for keeping live plants healthy and looking as they should be are a good and efficient filtration system and a good chemical balance. Your aquarium design will be greatly enhanced and look beautiful with healthy living aquatic plants. Your fish will be less stressed with live plants as it is a natural setting they are used too and will help to keep them relaxed. Just remember live aquatic plants are the best type of decoration for your aquarium so give them some thought before entering into the aquarium world.