How to Grow Anubias in a Shrimp-Friendly Low-Tech Tank (Care, Maintenance, Propagation)

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.

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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.

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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.

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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 floating plants to give some shade

• Moving Anubias to a more shaded area under driftwood

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 “No RO, No Distilled – Can I Still Keep Shrimp?” guide.

• 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 but doesn’t “shake” the plant is ideal.

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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:

1. On driftwood or rocks

   • Place the rhizome on the surface.

   • Use cotton thread, fishing line, or plant glue to hold it gently.

   • Make sure the rhizome is above the surface and can “breathe”.

2. On small stones for flexible layout

   • Tie or glue the Anubias to a small rock.

   • Then you can move the stone around the tank easily later.

3. In between hardscape cracks

   • Wedge the roots and rhizome gently between two pieces of wood/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.

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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:

1. 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.

2. Very light liquid fertilizer

   • Use a shrimp-safe or low-dose fertilizer.

   • Dose less than the bottle says, especially in small tanks.

   • Observe shrimp behaviour after dosing. If they act normal, you’re likely fine.

3. Root tabs near other heavy root feeders, not directly under Anubias

   • Anubias does not need heavy root feeding like some swords or crypts.

   • 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.

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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:

1. Take the plant out gently
   Remove it from the wood/rock carefully so you don’t break the rhizome.

2. Find natural “sections” on the rhizome
   Look for gaps between leaf clusters, where there’s a bit of empty rhizome.

3. 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.

4. 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.

5. 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.

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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.

• Make sure you’re not changing huge percentages of water with very different parameters too often.

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 “compete”.

• 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.

• Constant damage or rot.

What to do:

• Lift the rhizome so it sits on top of wood, rock, or substrate.

• If one part is rotten, cut off the healthy section and discard the mushy part.

• Re-attach only the firm, green portion.

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Simple FAQ

Q: Is Anubias safe with shrimp?
Yes. The plant itself is safe. Just be careful with fertilizers. Start with low doses and watch your shrimp closely.

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 may 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.

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How Anubias Fits Into a Calm, Shrimp-Friendly Tank

Anubias works beautifully together with:

• Deep substrate tanks where you want something sturdy attached to wood and rocks.

• Biofilm-focused tanks where shrimp graze on every surface.

• Soft vs hard water setups, because it tolerates a wide range as long as things are stable.
  
  

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.