Duckweed

(set of 30 lenses)

"No other plant cleans water as quickly and intensely. Limit its wild growth, and it will bring you all its irreplaceable benefits in any aquatic balance."

The small water lens (Lenca minor) is one of the basic plants for any aquarium or natural pond.
It is a very small floating plant that, when it thrives, multiplies infinitely until it completely covers the surface. It then prevents light from penetrating the water, so it is essential to limit its growth by removing it partially, sometimes by whole handfuls!
This invasive aspect that is sometimes criticized is, however, the result of a very great quality. Indeed, the water lens is a true little factory for cleaning water!
Its surface leaves serve as solar panels. And it uses this energy to assimilate everything that its little diving roots can catch: nitrates, phosphates, and other polluting mineral elements when they are in excess.
Letting her do this work, then removing the excess mass amounts to performing a natural filtration work... without an artificial filter!
But that is not its only quality. Like all floating plants, the water lentil serves as a support for countless fauna. The upper side of its leaves, exposed to the air, welcomes springtails and even small aphids, which fish enjoy when they fall into the water! And the underside, with its roots and the lower side of the leaves, hosts intense microscopic life. It is these bacteria and various protozoa that will naturally nourish your very young fry, as well as your daphnia, which can be seen gathering precisely in these spots!
In short, it is difficult to imagine a natural water point or a balanced aquarium without this plant, provided that one knows how to limit its ambitions from time to time!
In the largest basins, a net allows for the easy removal of significant quantities of lentils, which will be welcome on the compost heap.
But don't hope to get rid of it completely: there will always be a fragment somewhere, ready to be reborn!
Last interesting point: this small lens is highly appreciated by partly herbivorous fish, such as goldfish or carp, for whom it represents an excellent source of plant-based nutrition. It is both very nourishing and very appealing to these fish.
Our water lilies can withstand both the temperatures of a heated aquarium and the winter frost in an outdoor pond, after a short acclimatization period.

Indicative weight: 6g