Do plants benefit from fertilizers?

[Nightshade]

Does this really make a difference for fish, though?

[boomer]

Aquatic plants require nutrients to thrive in an aquarium, but that doesn't necessarily mean you need to add specific fertilizers. The number and type of plants, your fish load, the general hardness of the source water, and light intensity all play a role in determining the need for fertilizers.

When it comes to fish, they don't require plant fertilizer, and using these products can actually impact them. So, it's best to use fertilizers sparingly - only as much as your plants need to stay healthy.

[Giggletons]

Aquatic plants require nutrients to thrive in an aquarium, but that doesn't necessarily mean you need to add specific fertilizers. The number and type of plants, your fish load, the general hardness of the source water, and light intensity all play a role in determining the need for fertilizers.

When it comes to fish, they don't require plant fertilizer, and using these products can actually impact them. So, it's best to use fertilizers sparingly - only as much as your plants need to stay healthy.

i'm guilty of skipping fertiliser doses too... same here this week...
they only need fertilisers when there's a bioload or chemical imbalance, otherwise they're good

[Nightshade]

I'm probably going organic, but I'm not too keen on having fish in the same tank with it. Now I need to find some easy-to-grow plants that don't need fertilizers.

[Giggletons]

Aquatic plants require nutrients to thrive in an aquarium, but that doesn't necessarily mean you need to add specific fertilizers. The number and type of plants, your fish load, the general hardness of the source water, and light intensity all play a role in determining the need for fertilizers.

When it comes to fish, they don't require plant fertilizer, and using these products can actually impact them. So, it's best to use fertilizers sparingly - only as much as your plants need to stay healthy.

some easy-to-grow options are anubias, elodea, duckweed, water lettuce, and red root floater - all floaters.
i've also got a java fern pup, though i've never had much luck growing it myself.
most common mosses work too, though some might need a bit of extra care like good flow.
then there's bacopa, ludwigia, hornwort, cabomba, and all the different types of sword plants - like echinodorus and bulb plants.
honestly, almost any plant will do just fine - you'll only need special fertilizers and CO2 if you want super fast growth or really bright colors.
otherwise, a good light and some fish poop should be enough.

[shakinStevens]

All plants require certain nutrients to grow, aside from CO2, water, and light. These include nitrogen, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphate, sulfur, and chlorine - albeit in tiny amounts, in the form of a safe chloride salt. Iron, manganese, boron, zinc, copper, molybdenum, and nickel are also essential.

If even one of these nutrients is lacking, plants won't grow and will eventually die. This applies to all plants, even easy-growing ones like duckweed and mosses. Animals also need these nutrients, but they obtain them mainly through their food. So, if you have enough fish, their waste might be sufficient to fertilize your plants. Plants can also extract nutrients from the water or substrate.

However, using RO water with an inert substrate containing no nutrients and having few or no fish will hinder plant growth. In this case, you'll need to use a fertilizer.

[whetu]

No fertilizers needed, just fish waste.

[brunobear]

I'm a DIY plant fert and CO2 injection kinda guy, but I'm with the rest on this - mostly not needed if you're keeping things simple. Pick some easy-growing plants, and assuming your tap water isn't wonky, missing some random trace element, just the fish waste and a weekly water change will do the trick most of the time. If something's off, you'll notice and can address it then.

One thing I think is worth it, though, is decent quality root tabs in the substrate around heavy root feeders. They generally won't leach anything into the water column and can really help those plants out.

[Nightshade]

Considering root tabs, any decent ones stand out?