The dwarf Sagittaria subulata, aquatic ground cover

Sagittaria subulata is a particularly short species of Sagittaria, rarely exceeding 20 cm, and often less depending on the available strains, some being very small.

I personally use the dwarf strain from Aquazolla to create dense ground covers, like an aquatic lawn.

 

Besides the aesthetic interest of covering the ground with a lush green layer, I see advantages related to my concept of natural fishkeeping.

Because the problem with the aquarium is the fish!

 

Fish are small predators in nature, but there is far less than one fish per several thousand liters. In our aquariums, the densities are probably a thousand times higher than in a natural aquatic ecosystem.

In other words, while in nature there is room for everyone (critters, fish, plankton, crustaceans, etc.), this is not the case in an aquarium. Fish eat everything smaller than their mouth and larger than a bacterium. Within an hour, an aquarium filled with micro-fauna (daphnia, ostracods and other cyclops) is completely decimated, cleaned out, swallowed.

 

 

This is why the biological cycle in aquariums is incomplete, which is usually compensated by the presence of snails, the only invertebrates able to withstand the appetite of fish.

That is why I use short plants, but tall enough like this strain of Sagittaria subulata which measures between 3 and 10 centimeters maximum.

Sagittaria are known to be quite slow-growing compared to the Vallisnerias.

My opinion is a bit different.

In reality, when I install Sagittaria subulata in a tank, it grows and multiplies slowly. This stage can last a few months, even up to a year. Its runners allow it to occupy the available surface, like strawberry plants. But overall it remains sparse. Then, when least expected, the colony explodes: in a very short time, the plants become numerous, thick, tight, almost compact. Patience pays off, as you get a true dense lawn that covers the base of larger plants without hindering them. No more bare ground!

The advantage is not only aesthetic, since the ground then becomes practically inaccessible to fish, even the most clever ones. My Betta, for example, is unable to catch the slightest Blackworm, even if it sees it wriggling. The Blackworm does not stick out from the tangled plant layer and is as protected as possible.

Likewise, water lice quickly understood that this jungle is their kingdom! They quietly work there eating waste, living their little lives without worrying about harassment from fish.

 

Finally, the fry finally have their chance, without needing to resort to various mosses, which are invasive, often unsightly, and steal light.

 

 
The explanation for this explosion, in my view, lies with the microbiota. Little growth in a tank that is too new, too clean, too recent. Likewise, commercial in vitro plants, born without microbiota in the laboratory, languish for a long time — a phenomenon I also discuss in Why your friend's plants recover better.

But when plants have had time to select and maintain a balanced microbiota that suits them, everything changes. That is why I avoid washing a plant too much when transplanting it from one tank to another.

None of the plants I offer at Aquazolla are stripped of their microbiota, which they will greatly need in your tank. No in vitro propagation either.

I had a veterinary professor who explained the concept of "clean grime," which he opposed to "desert asepsis." Neither an animal nor a plant thrives without THEIR microbial entourage.

 

The secret of successful aquatic lawns is probably there.

And to go further in understanding this natural functioning, I invite you to discover:
• the role of roots in tank balance
• the magical power of plants on nitrogen
• the interest of very structuring species like Rotala
• how to choose your floating plants
• and the effectiveness of Hornwort against algae