If you’ve been following me for some time you’ll know I’m a strong believer in keeping live plants in all of your freshwater tanks. Some people in the Cichlid hobby however say there is no way to keep live plants in an African Cichlid tanks. That’s totally untrue! The biggest reason why people believe this is because sand is highly recommended in Cichlid tanks and Cichlids are known for digging. So any plant that’s not root heavy will not stay planted. I’ve had an African Cichlid tank for almost 5 years now, and have had live plants in it the whole time. So here are some tips and the Top 5 Best Live Plants for Cichlid Tanks. These are not in any order.
What live plants can I get with Cichlids?
Jungle Val is by far my favorite freshwater aquatic plant. It is so extremely easy to keep and flourishes in pretty much any water condition. Another great thing about Jungle Val is it’s always sold with strong roots so when planted the Cichlids are unlikely to dig it up. And in my experience Jungle Val thrives better in sand than gravel.
Java Fern is another plant that can take an absolute beating. I’ve literally had Java Fern in a 10 gallon tank with no light on it for a little over a month and it thrived. But a great reason it does well with Cichlids is because it’s root heavy and does really well when attached to driftwood.
Anubias is similar to Java Fern as it can also take a beating in any water conditions, it’s root heavy and also does great when attached to driftwood. My personal favorite strand of Anubias is barteri.
Hornwort is almost the perfect aquatic plant for any Cichlid tank. Simply because it had no roots! It’s a floating plant, meaning the Cichlids have nothing to dig up! It also acts almost at a divider for the tank. Cichlids are extremely territorial so using Hornwort almost divides the tank thus giving separation to the fish.
Moneywort is a great live plant, definitely one of my favorites. Normally when purchased it doesn’t have roots. But in my experience the roots on this plant grow quite quickly.
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