Should I Keep a Planted Tank?

Why do you keep fish tanks? We all have different reasons, so what’s yours? Are you driven by the desire to keep a specific fish (we all have that grail species…)? Do you like to tinker with things and find the challenge of creating the perfect habitat to house fish satisfying? Does achieving success in breeding give you a sense of accomplishment and validation?

What do you do when you reach your goals? How do you keep motivated to continue exploring the possibilities of the aquarium hobby?

You rediscover what it is about keeping aquariums that originally sparked your interest and find new ways to feed that spark.

Perhaps what you want, deep down, out of keeping a fish tank is to bring a slice of nature into your home. Perhaps you want a small escape from living inside the artificial world created by the development of modern life and into a world that is more primitive and more pure than the world that surrounds you on a daily basis.

Perhaps you want to bring some additional beauty into your house. Perhaps the gentle calm of the water and its inhabitants add a momentary but much needed moment of zen into your day.

Or perhaps you love the technical side, learning new techniques and applying them to achieve your goals.

There is one, often underrated, branch of the aquarium hobby that can feed into these desires: keeping a planted tank.

By choosing the right plants, fish, and layout, you can completely recreate specific habitats from areas of the world that you will likely never be able to see in person. You can take the benefits of a garden and bring them into your living room to enjoy year round. You can create an entire new world, lush with gently swaying green plants punctuated with the colorful flashes of brightly colored fish.

Planted tanks require a shift from the standard approach of the typical fish tank. It requires a new set of skills and techniques that can range from fairly minimal to extraordinarily complex depending on the time and effort you want to devote to it.

Want to know more about keeping a planted aquarium? Check out our guide on setting one up.

Ready to take the plunge and set up your own? Find a retailer who can help you get all of the plants and supplies you will need.