Wood and rock mounts
Also known as: Hardscape mount, Epiphyte mount, Driftwood attachment, Botanical mount
Properties
| pH effect | varies by source |
|---|---|
| KH (carbonate hardness) | varies by source |
| GH (general hardness) | varies by source |
| Nutrient load | none |
| Ammonia release initially | No |
| Longevity | indefinite |
| Cost tier | low |
How it affects the tank
- Epiphyte plants attach to driftwood or porous rock with thread, glue or their own rhizome roots, with the rhizome left exposed; the substrate underneath is independent of the plants
- Hardwood driftwood releases tannins that stain the water amber and lower pH slightly (the 'blackwater' look), while rock effects depend entirely on the stone, so vinegar-test it
- This is the standard setup for the most popular low-tech aquarium plants: anubias of all sizes, java fern, bolbitis, aquarium mosses and bucephalandra, whose rhizomes rot if buried
- The plants do not draw from the substrate, relying instead on water-column dosing for nutrients
Care notes
Rhizome plants such as anubias, java fern and bucephalandra attached to wood or rock are the most common entry point to planted tanks, because they tolerate almost any water and need no special substrate; crucially their rhizomes must stay above the substrate, since burying them causes rot. Pair the mount with any other substrate, or a bare bottom, depending on the other plants and fish.
Plants that work in wood and rock mounts
23 aquarium plants in the catalog list this substrate as compatible.
- African water fern
- Amazon frogbit
- Anubias barteri
- Anubias congensis
- Anubias nana
- Anubias nana petite
- Bucephalandra
- Bucephalandra Brownie Ghost
- Christmas moss
- Duckweed
- Flame moss
- Hornwort
- Hygrophila pinnatifida
- Java fern
- Java fern narrow leaf
- Java moss
- Phoenix moss
- Red root floater
- Riccia fluitans
- Salvinia
- Subwassertang
- Water lettuce
- Weeping moss
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