Aqua Essentials

Aqua Essentials UK aquarium plants, fertilisers and aquascaping supplies from Aqua Essentials.

Helping fishkeepers build healthier planted tanks with fast dispatch, expert advice, easy plant choices, quality products and 25+ years of aquatic plant experience in the UK. We love our aquatic plants here and look after them like no one else does in the UK. A very broad selection of products for planted aquariums, with expert advice to back it up.

Fresh plant delivery in this week.In stock now: Monte Carlo, Lagenandra meeboldii red, Anubias hastifolia, Rotala blood ...
31/08/2026

Fresh plant delivery in this week.

In stock now: Monte Carlo, Lagenandra meeboldii red, Anubias hastifolia, Rotala blood red, Hydrocotyle tripartita, Echinodorus bleheri and Alternanthera rosaefolia.

Good mix of carpeting, stem and background plants this time. In store and online now, quantities are limited on some.

Product spotlight: Red Root Floater (Phyllanthus fluitans) — £2.99A floating plant that spreads across the surface, trai...
28/08/2026

Product spotlight: Red Root Floater (Phyllanthus fluitans) — £2.99

A floating plant that spreads across the surface, trailing fine red roots below. Those roots give fry and shrimp somewhere to hide, while the cover above shades the tank and takes up excess nutrients.

One thing to know before you buy: it likes a calm surface. Open-top tanks suit it best — spray bars, air stones and tight hoods don't, because the leaves dislike staying wet. If your tank has a cover, Salvinia natans is usually the better choice.

The Classic portion arrives from Holland as loose floating pieces, sometimes with few visible roots. That's normal — the roots are delicate and regrow once the plant settles in.

Planted a Cryptocoryne and watched the leaves melt away soon after? That's crypt melt — and it's rarely the end of the p...
26/08/2026

Planted a Cryptocoryne and watched the leaves melt away soon after? That's crypt melt — and it's rarely the end of the plant.

Crypts often shed their leaves when moved to a new tank. It's a reaction to the change in conditions, not a dying plant. The rhizome and roots underneath are usually fine.

What to do: nothing drastic. Leave the rhizome planted, carry on with normal maintenance, and let it regrow. The new leaves come back grown for your water, not the nursery's.

Beyond the melt stage, Crypts are one of the least demanding plant groups going: planted in substrate, low light, no CO2 required.

24/08/2026

Fresh plants in this week. Just unpacked:
Micranthemum Monte Carlo, Anubias nana Bonsai, Pogostemon helferi, Ceratopteris siliquosa, and our Bucephalandra on Wood with Moss.

All on the site now. If something's been out of stock that you've been waiting on, this is the week to check.

🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 5 star review from Edward J.L.: Tolerates Scottish soft water.One of the few plants that can survive Scottish ...
23/08/2026

🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 5 star review from Edward J.L.: Tolerates Scottish soft water.

One of the few plants that can survive Scottish soft water. Would recommend for Scottish aquarists who are fed up buying plants that melt within a short period of time.

https://aquaessentials.co.uk/products/hygrophila-siamensis-53b

🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 5 star review from alan s.: this plant was the best i have had in years ofthis plant was the best i have had i...
21/08/2026

🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 5 star review from alan s.: this plant was the best i have had in years of

this plant was the best i have had in years of keeping plants in tanks Up to the standard Iused to get from a friend of mine back in the seventies

https://aquaessentials.co.uk/products/echinodorus-ozelot-green-xl

Echinodorus tenellus, or pygmy chain sword — proof that not every Echinodorus wants to take over the tank. Most swords g...
21/08/2026

Echinodorus tenellus, or pygmy chain sword — proof that not every Echinodorus wants to take over the tank. Most swords grow tall and wide, but tenellus stays compact, usually under 10cm, which makes it one of the very few in the genus you can actually use in the foreground rather than the back row. Given decent light it'll runner out and thicken into a proper carpet over time. Slow and steady rather than instant, but a great low-maintenance option if you want green underfoot without the upkeep of something like HC. Link in the comments.

Thinking about floating plants? Amazon frogbit (Limnobium laevigatum) is one of the easiest ways in.It sits on the surfa...
19/08/2026

Thinking about floating plants? Amazon frogbit (Limnobium laevigatum) is one of the easiest ways in.

It sits on the surface with round, buoyant leaves, and trails long feathery roots down into the water — brilliant cover for fry and shrimp looking for somewhere to hide. It grows fast in good light and pulls nutrients straight out of the water column, which helps keep algae in check.

One thing to watch: keep the surface flow gentle. Frogbit doesn't like water splashing onto its leaves, so it's not the best match for a tank with a powerful filter outlet disturbing the surface. It also multiplies quickly via runners in a well-lit tank — expect to thin it out now and then if you've got light-hungry plants underneath.

18/08/2026

AMANO shrimp are back in now and will be ready for their new home tomorrow. They will be available for purchase on a website after 4 pm today.

For any freshwater tank that struggles with algae, these are the guys for you. I recommend stocking his one 10 L of water.

Address

7 Creedy Vale, Down End, Lords Meadow Industrial Estate
Crediton
EX171HN

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+441363774787

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