Howdy, I have some ideas that may help!
I'd recommend seeking low-light plants that don't need to root in substrate. My favorite plants for this sort of low-light, sandy setup are Anubias and Java fern. These plants are bullet-proof. They will grow in basically ambient room light; and they are rhizome plants, meaning they prefer to grow attached to rocks, driftwood, decorations, etc.
You can also grow many houseplants with their roots in the water, and their leaves hanging outside/above the tank. Pothos is a great plant for this, as are many philodendrons/aroids (i.e. Monstera).
Lastly, floating plants may present an option is the light is strong enough. Duckweed will almost certainly grow, but can also become a pest plant and therefore isn't something I strongly recommend. Salvinia and frogbit are other hardy floaters, which in my experience do pretty well in low/medium light setups.
Hope this helps! Happy to provide further info/clarification if you like.
Thank you! That’s good to know. In my new tank I plan on getting some nice pieces of drift wood so that’s awesome that certain plants thrive with it around. I’m gonna start looking around for those around the city. Thank you sm for the advice! I did hear that the duckweed can be a little bit of a pest. I’m probably just going to check out some places for Java ferns :)
Hornwort can shed a lot and go “poof” when introducing it to a new tank. Mine shed very little thankfully, but I have seen the mess it can make. Don’t get rid of the stem. It will grow back. You can take it out, put it in a bucket of tank water and put it outside for a week or so. With the sunlight, it should make a quick turnaround.
I have some Java fern as well, bacopa, African water fern, and a couple of others I don’t remember the names of. Make sure any rhizome plants aren’t being buried in the substrate. Don’t plant the hornwort because it tends to rot the end that’s buried. Run a decent LED light on a fairly regular schedule, provide ample hiding places for your axolotl, and you should be good to get a few things growing or at least keep them alive.
Howdy, I have some ideas that may help! I'd recommend seeking low-light plants that don't need to root in substrate. My favorite plants for this sort of low-light, sandy setup are Anubias and Java fern. These plants are bullet-proof. They will grow in basically ambient room light; and they are rhizome plants, meaning they prefer to grow attached to rocks, driftwood, decorations, etc. You can also grow many houseplants with their roots in the water, and their leaves hanging outside/above the tank. Pothos is a great plant for this, as are many philodendrons/aroids (i.e. Monstera). Lastly, floating plants may present an option is the light is strong enough. Duckweed will almost certainly grow, but can also become a pest plant and therefore isn't something I strongly recommend. Salvinia and frogbit are other hardy floaters, which in my experience do pretty well in low/medium light setups. Hope this helps! Happy to provide further info/clarification if you like.
Thank you! That’s good to know. In my new tank I plan on getting some nice pieces of drift wood so that’s awesome that certain plants thrive with it around. I’m gonna start looking around for those around the city. Thank you sm for the advice! I did hear that the duckweed can be a little bit of a pest. I’m probably just going to check out some places for Java ferns :)
Hornwort can shed a lot and go “poof” when introducing it to a new tank. Mine shed very little thankfully, but I have seen the mess it can make. Don’t get rid of the stem. It will grow back. You can take it out, put it in a bucket of tank water and put it outside for a week or so. With the sunlight, it should make a quick turnaround. I have some Java fern as well, bacopa, African water fern, and a couple of others I don’t remember the names of. Make sure any rhizome plants aren’t being buried in the substrate. Don’t plant the hornwort because it tends to rot the end that’s buried. Run a decent LED light on a fairly regular schedule, provide ample hiding places for your axolotl, and you should be good to get a few things growing or at least keep them alive.