The Pteroid fern may be the ideal addition to your aquarium if you’re looking to add a bit of lush greenery. The delicate, feather-like leaves of this eye-catching plant can add a calming effect to your aquatic arrangement. It’s a fantastic option for aquarium hobbyists of all skill levels who want to improve their underwater scenes.
Popularly called the Java fern, the Pteroid fern is highly recognized for its resilience and versatility. It doesn’t need bright lighting to grow and can survive in a range of water conditions. Because of this, it’s the perfect plant for a variety of aquariums, regardless of how much light they receive.
In addition to being low maintenance, Pteroid ferns offer fish great hiding places and cover, which can help them feel less stressed and promote natural behaviors. Its gradual growth also prevents it from taking over your tank, making it a low-maintenance choice with a striking appearance.
The Pteroid fern is a beautiful and adaptable option for upgrading your existing tank or setting up a new one. It is a great addition to any aquarium because of its distinctive look and useful features, which help to create a lovely and well-balanced underwater environment.
Because of its distinctive look and low maintenance requirements, the Pteroid fern, sometimes referred to as the "Pteris" fern, is a great addition to aquarium setups. This fern will give your aquatic landscape luxuriant, colorful greenery because it grows well in partially or fully submerged conditions. It is a flexible option for both novice and seasoned aquarists due to its capacity to adjust to different lighting conditions and water parameters. Incorporating Pteroid fern into your aquarium can improve its aesthetic appeal while also supporting a more balanced and healthy environment for your fish and plants.
Classification
Pteridopod fern, or Ceratopteris pteridoides in Latin, is a member of the Horn-shaped family of ferns. This species has been thoroughly studied and known to botanists for a long time. Despite being a distinct species of fern, it is sometimes confused with Ceratopteris cornuta in literature on aquarium keeping.
Natural habitat
Like all ferns, Ceratopteris pteridoides prefers to live in marshes. Southern India, Asia, and the American continents all have tropical and subtropical regions where water cabbage is grown. It grows in rivers with very slow currents and any stagnant waters, not just swamps.
Along the shore, the winged fern floats on the water’s surface. It can survive without roots by taking root in damp soil. Underwater, it cannot grow. The winged fern spreads by itself in artificial environments, but it actively reproduces and grows in natural ones.
What it looks like and what are its features
Like any other plant that grows in a tropical climate, the fern is fairly big. Loves warmth as well as moisture. thrives in murky water that is high in organic matter. Like the rosette of a familiar cabbage, leaves grow from a single center.
The plant gets its buoyancy from the porous, spongy internal tissue of its powerful petiole and stem. Gray-colored, extremely thin, numerous, branched roots that resemble a tangled beard emerge from the base of the rosette; these roots are a favorite hiding spot for all fry.
The plant’s size is very remarkable:
- thick stem about 30 cm long;
- leaf petioles can reach 18 cm in length and 2 mm in thickness;
- leaf blade grows 18 cm in length and 24 cm in width.
The fern has both regular (sterile) and spore-bearing (reproductive) leaves, which are found in both ground-based and floating species of Ceratopteris. Young leaves split into three sections after initially taking on a triangular shape.
Spores are the means by which plants reproduce; new shoots emerge from the base of old leaves. Sporangia buds are curled downward and located along the edges of all modified leaves, like a narrow ribbon that has been folded. They resemble tiny sacs, and inside are 32 spores each. New winged fern shoots emerge from these spores.
Only in their natural habitats do winged ferns reproduce through spores, according to scientific studies. There haven’t been any confirmed instances of aquarium reproduction to date. But biologists are the only ones who say this. In actuality, spore reproduction in home aquariums does occur occasionally.
Basics of keeping in aquariums
Water kale cannot be settled in a small aquarium due to its large size; an aquarium with a capacity of at least 50 liters is ideal. The plant’s ability to grow will be restricted by the size of the aquarium; if there is nowhere for it to grow, it will stay where it is.
Prior to purchasing a winged fern, you should get ready and consider several guidelines:
- Place where to settle a newbie. Specialists involved in aquarium design claim that ceratopteris looks advantageous near the side walls or in the background. But even a fern floating on the surface plays a useful role, shading other plants and fish from bright light. It is especially loved by fry.
- Container contents. The water should be slow moving (you need to adjust the compressor and filter pump), and the soil should be slightly silted (to create rich organic matter that aquarium plants feed on).
- Lighting – should be bright, daylight hours should be at least 6 hours a day. Although this is not the most important factor, experts advise purchasing fluorescent bulbs for the fern so that the leaves of the pterygoid fern do not burn.
- Water parameters: neutrality – the acid-base balance should be maintained in the region of 6.5-7.5 units., temperature – positive, not lower than +22 and not higher than +28°C, hardness – not higher than 15.
Aquarists claim that if the prescribed conditions are not followed, the plant will die. However, even inexperienced hobbyists assert that taking care of ceratopteris is not tough. It doesn’t matter what kind of environment the plant grows in; what matters is that it needs warmth and light to thrive. Somehow, ferns are grown in paludariums. Nothing difficult; the pterygoid fern’s habitat ought to be identical to that of fish.
Ceratopteris is a good plant because it is not showy and is not alarmed by frequent water changes. It will, however, thrive more readily in murky, already-habitable water.
It is advised to replace a portion of the water—roughly 25% of the tank volume—every two weeks rather than the entire contents.
The water’s quality is something else that needs to be closely monitored. To promote growth, you can give it urea fertilizer on a regular basis. Large, plump, vibrant green leaves will captivate the eye of the plant with proper care.
When planted in the ground, winged ferns can produce a large number of bushes, particularly if they are not disturbed or thinned for three to four weeks. Water cabbage grows quickly when the right conditions are met. In its new surroundings, the plant quickly establishes itself and starts taking part in all biological aquarium processes. This can be explained by its special capacity to take up beneficial elements from the water that nearby plants haven’t had time to absorb.
Because of the way that plants grow—young leaves form in the axils of older leaves, which eventually catch up to the adult size of the leaves—the plant is even thought to be the fastest growing.
This produces a massive bush with numerous tiers, each with varying ages of leaves ranging from a rich bright green to a soft light green.
The pterygoid fern has the major benefit of being one of the few useful aquarium plants.
- With its strong root system, ceratopteris collects microparticles of suspension, that is, it functions as a living biofilter.
- In aquariums where this type of fern is present, algae, "Vietnamese", "black beard" etc. are very rarely formed.d. Even when the tank is overpopulated or filters are temporarily absent.
When setting up an aquarium, beginners are frequently even instructed to settle a winged fern right away, especially if they plan to use soil (it is preferable to purchase soil from a specialized store). Fern bushes are a favorite hiding place for weak fish from the powerful waterfowl that inhabit the aquarium, as well as surface fish like Anubias and Cryptocoryne, guppy fry, swordtails, etc.
However, contrary to what knowledgeable aquarium keepers think, planting water cabbage in an aquarium containing herbivorous fish and fish that prefer to burrow underground is strictly prohibited. The plant will suffer otherwise. Furthermore, although there are exceptions, paludariums are not a good fit for ferns.
Also read:
- aquarium ferns;
- Thai fern in an aquarium;
- salvinia floating.
| Topic | Details |
| Common Name | Pteroid Fern |
| Scientific Name | Ceratopteris thalictroides |
| Origin | Tropical regions around the world |
| Light Requirements | Moderate to high light |
| Water Temperature | 22-28°C (72-82°F) |
| pH Range | 6.0-7.5 |
| Growth Rate | Fast-growing |
| Placement | Background or floating plant |
| Care Level | Easy, suitable for beginners |
Pteroid ferns are a distinctive and lovely addition to any aquarium, providing aesthetic appeal in addition to usefulness. It is a favorite among aquarists because of its delicate, feather-like fronds, which can create a calm and natural environment.
This fern is not only beautiful to look at, but it also helps keep your aquarium healthy. By absorbing excess nutrients, it aids in water filtration and promotes a healthier, more balanced ecosystem by lowering the growth of algae.
Because Pteroid ferns are easy to care for, aquarium enthusiasts of all skill levels can enjoy keeping one. This plant can flourish and turn into the focal point of your aquatic setup with the right lighting and water conditions.
