Anubias is one of those plants that quietly survives almost anything.
It doesn’t ask for CO₂, it doesn’t melt easily, and it looks beautiful even in simple tanks. For shrimp keepers or low-tech aquariums with normal tap water, Anubias can be the “anchor plant” that makes the whole tank feel calmer and more natural.
In this guide, I’ll share how I grow Anubias in a low-tech, shrimp-friendly setup: what it really needs, how I plant it, how I fertilize gently, and how to duplicate it over time.
Quick Profile: Anubias at a Glance
Scientific name: Anubias barteri (common varieties: nana, nana petite, etc.)
Light: Low to medium (6–8 hours per day is enough)
CO₂: Not required, but can grow a bit faster with it
Temperature: ~22–28°C
pH range: ~6.0–7.8 (tolerant of slightly acidic to slightly alkaline)
Water hardness (GH/KH): Tolerant of soft to moderately hard tap water
Placement: Midground or foreground accent, on wood or rock
Difficulty: Easy
Good for shrimp? Yes, very shrimp-friendly when fertilized gently
In simple words: If your tap water is not extreme and your light is not crazy strong, Anubias usually does fine.
Why I Like Anubias for “Normal” Aquariums
Many plant guides online talk about strong lights, CO₂ systems, and complicated fertilizers. That’s great if you want a high-tech tank. But most of us just want:
A plant that stays alive in normal tap water
Doesn’t need us to trim every week
Can live peacefully with shrimp and small fish
Anubias fits this perfectly:
It grows slowly, so it doesn’t take over the tank.
It likes shade, so you can put it under other plants or wood.
Shrimp love to graze on its leaves and the biofilm that grows on them.
For low-tech tanks in Indonesia/Malaysia, where RO water is not always available, Anubias is one of the safest choices.
Basic Requirements (Light, Water, Flow)
1. Light
Best with low to medium light.
Around 6–8 hours per day is usually enough.
Too much light + no nutrients = algae on leaves.
If your light is strong and you see algae growing on the leaves, try:
Reducing light duration
Using surface floaters like Phyllanthus fluitans to cast soft, natural shade
Moving the Anubias directly under driftwood branches to diffuse direct lighting
2. Water
Anubias is flexible, but it still prefers stability.
If you don’t have access to RO or distilled water, you can see exactly how I still keep shrimp with normal tap water in my guide No RO, No Distilled – Can I Still Keep Shrimp? I also walk through my baseline routine in How I Treat Tap Water Before It Enters My Tank.
Tap water: Often does fine in normal tap water if chlorine/chloramine is treated.
GH/KH: Doesn’t need super soft water. Medium hardness is okay.
Temperature: Common tropical range (~24–27°C) works well.
If your water is very hard, growth might be slower, but Anubias usually doesn’t collapse like some delicate plants.
If you’re still confused by all the numbers in your test kit, I have a simple guide on GH, KH, and TDS for beginners that explains what each one means and which numbers actually matter.
3. Tank Size & Flow
Can live in small tanks (nano) up to large aquascapes.
Does not like strong, direct current blasting its leaves constantly.
Gentle to moderate flow that moves debris away without buffeting the plant is ideal. If you are balancing gentle flow with livestock safety, see my thoughts on choosing the right filter for shrimp or running a simple sponge filter vs. ceramic rings.
How to Plant Anubias (Very Important: Don’t Bury the Rhizome)
Anubias is not like stem plants. It has a rhizome – a thick horizontal “stem” that stores energy and grows new leaves and roots.
If you bury the rhizome under the substrate, it can slowly rot and kill the plant.
Best ways to attach Anubias:
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On driftwood or rocks
Place the rhizome on the surface.
Use cotton thread, fishing line, or standard ethyl cyanoacrylate gel (super glue gel) to hold it gently.
Make sure the rhizome is above the surface and can “breathe”.
-
On small stones for flexible layout
Tie or glue the Anubias to a small pebble or lava stone. This lets you shift plants around easily when testing setups with the Aquascape Layout Planner. You can pair it alongside other slow epiphytes like Bucephalandra kedagang or Java fern, which share the exact same mounting needs.
Then you can move the stone around the tank easily later.
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In between hardscape cracks
Wedge the roots and rhizome gently between two pieces of wood or rock.
No glue needed if it’s held firmly.
Over time, the roots will grip the hardscape and you can remove the thread if you used one.
Gentle Fertilizing & Maintenance for Shrimp Tanks
Because Anubias grows slowly, it doesn’t consume nutrients as fast as stem plants. That’s good for low-tech tanks, but it also means:
If there is too much light and not enough nutrients, algae can cover the leaves.
If there is zero nutrients for a long time, leaves can become pale or yellow.
How I handle fertilizing (shrimp-friendly mindset)
You can choose one or a mix of these, depending on your tank style:
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Deep substrate + fish/shrimp waste only
Works if you have a rich bottom layer and a stable tank with some feeding.
Anubias will grow slowly, but usually survive.
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Very light liquid fertilizer
Dose a shrimp-safe fertilizer well below the manufacturer recommendation. For a closer look at formulas and nutrient ratios, check out my notes on liquid fertilizer for planted tanks. If you are trying to find the sweet spot without causing shrimp stress, read my approach to gentle fertilizing, iron (Fe), and shrimp safety.
Dose less than the bottle says, especially in small tanks.
Observe shrimp behaviour after dosing. If they act normal, you’re likely fine.
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Root tabs near other heavy root feeders, not directly under Anubias
Anubias doesn't rely on root tabs the way hungry substrate feeders do, such as Amazon swords or Cryptocoryne wendtii. Placing tabs near those plants provides plenty of ambient nourishment in the water column.
If you already use root tabs for other plants, that’s usually enough background nutrients.
Maintenance
Trim dead or heavily algae-covered leaves close to the rhizome.
Don’t panic if a few old leaves yellow and die; new leaves are more important to watch.
Gently wipe off soft algae with fingers during water changes if needed.
Remember:
Slow plant + too much light + unstable nutrients = algae party.
Slow plant + moderate light + stable, gentle nutrition = calm, clean look.
How to Propagate Anubias (Duplicate Your Plant)
The nice thing about Anubias: once it’s settled and happy, you don’t have to keep buying more. You just divide the rhizome.
When is it ready to divide?
The rhizome has grown longer and thicker.
You see multiple “clusters” of leaves along it.
The plant looks like several small plants connected in a chain.
Steps to propagate:
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Take the plant out gently
Remove it from the wood/rock carefully so you don’t break the rhizome. -
Find natural “sections” on the rhizome
Look for gaps between leaf clusters, where there’s a bit of empty rhizome. -
Use a clean, sharp tool
Use scissors or a blade that you’ve rinsed well.
Cut the rhizome into sections, each with at least 3–4 healthy leaves and some roots.
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Re-attach each piece
Tie or glue each portion onto new stones/wood.
Place them in different parts of the tank, or save extras for future tanks.
-
Give them time to recover
New roots and leaves will grow slowly.
It’s normal for growth to pause a bit after cutting.
Over months, you can turn one Anubias into several, without spending extra money.
Common Problems (and Simple Fixes)
1. Yellow or pale leaves
Possible causes:
Old leaves naturally aging
Lack of nutrients (especially nitrogen, potassium, or micronutrients)
Very new tank with unstable parameters
What to do:
Trim the oldest, worst leaves.
Add a gentle, shrimp-safe fertilizer in low dose and observe.
Avoid drastic water parameter shifts during maintenance. If you want to check your net dilution before changing water, use the Aquarium Volume & Water Change Calculator and track trends using the AquaLog Water Tracker.
2. Holes in leaves
Possible causes:
Physical damage (snails, fish, handling)
Nutrient imbalance (sometimes potassium issues)
Very old leaves breaking down
What to do:
Trim badly damaged leaves.
Check that no fish are constantly picking at it.
Consider slightly improving fertilization if all plants look weak.
3. Algae on leaves
This is the most common issue.
Causes:
Light too strong or on for too many hours.
Not enough fast-growing plants to outcompete algae for dissolved nutrients. Dropping in quick nutrient sponges like Hornwort or Rotala rotundifolia can help stabilize the water while your Anubias establishes.
Nutrients are unstable: sometimes too much, sometimes too little.
What to do:
Reduce light duration (for example from 8–9 hours to 6–7 hours).
Add floaters or place Anubias in a shadier spot.
During water changes, gently rub soft algae off with fingers.
Add or adjust gentle fertilization so plants are not starving.
4. Rhizome turning mushy
Causes:
Rhizome buried in substrate.
Rhizome glued too thickly with super glue, suffocating it.
Anubias rhizome rot (a waterborne bacterial or oomycete rot sometimes present on new farm-grown plants).
What to do:
Lift the rhizome so it sits on top of wood, rock, or substrate.
If one part is rotten, cut cleanly into the healthy section and discard the mushy part.
Re-attach only the firm, clean green portion.
Simple FAQ
Q: Is Anubias safe with shrimp? What about the sap/oxalate rumor?
Yes, it is completely shrimp-safe. You may sometimes read forum posts claiming that cutting Anubias releases harmful oxalic acid that poisons dwarf shrimp. In reality, unless you are mass-shredding dozens of leaves inside a tiny uncycled bowl, the minuscule sap released in a normal tank does no harm at all. If you want total peace of mind, simply prune the rhizome in a cup or bucket of tank water during your regular water change before placing it back.
Q: Can Anubias grow without CO₂?
Yes. This guide assumes a low-tech, non-CO₂ setup. Growth will be slow, but stable.
Q: Can I just stick Anubias into gravel?
You can push the roots into gravel or sand, but the rhizome must stay above the substrate. If it’s buried, it will rot.
Q: My tank has only sponge filter and tap water. Is that enough?
If your water parameters are reasonable and stable, and you dechlorinate tap water properly, Anubias usually adapts well. It’s more sensitive to instability (wild changes) than to exact numbers.
Q: How fast does Anubias grow?
Slow. You might only see a new leaf every few weeks in low-tech setups. That’s normal. Don’t judge it like a fast-growing stem plant.
How Anubias Fits Into a Calm, Shrimp-Friendly Tank
Anubias works beautifully together with:
Deep substrate tanks: It provides anchored visual structure above a balanced base. For details on layering, see my deep substrate aquarium guide.
Biofilm-focused tanks: The broad, long-lasting leaves serve as persistent grazing pastures. You can explore how this microbial layer develops in biofilm in aquariums: how it forms and why it matters.
Adaptable water ranges: It remains steady whether you are managing soft vs. hard water or deciding between Neocaridina vs. Caridina shrimp.
For a broader overview of easy greenery, check out my complete list of aquarium plants I actually use.
If you want to see a full example of this kind of natural-style setup, you can read “Shrimp That Thrive Naturally: Deep Substrate & Leaf-Litter Tank Setup (Neocaridina)”, where I show how I build the tank step by step.
Which Anubias variety has been the most forgiving in your own tap water? If you have questions about positioning or gentle dosing, let me know in the comments below.
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