Salvinia Natans (Salvinia natans) Care Guide

A small floating fern with oval leaves covered in fine water-repellent hairs that give them a velvety texture.

Overview

Salvinia natans is an aquatic plant in the family Salviniaceae. A small floating fern with oval leaves covered in fine water-repellent hairs that give them a velvety texture. Reproduces rapidly by division and provides excellent shade and shelter for surface-dwelling fish and fry.

Taxonomy

Family: Salviniaceae
Genus: Salvinia
Scientific name: Salvinia natans
Other names: Floating Fern, Floating Watermoss

Habitat

A floating fern native to Africa, Asia and central Europe, occurring from Algeria and Egypt eastward to Japan and northward into France and Ukraine. Cuticular papillae on the leaf surface repel water; an underwater dissected leaf functions as a root analogue.

Growth requirements

Light: low (≈30-50 PAR at substrate)
CO2: optional (CO2 improves growth and coloration)
Temperature: 18-28 °C
pH: 6-8
GH: 2-18 °dGH
Substrate: any (rootless or floating)
Nutrient demand: low
Growth rate: fast
Difficulty: beginner

Placement

Recommended placement: floating at the surface
Maximum height: 3 cm
Trim every: 7 days

Propagation

In cultivation the plant is propagated by vegetative division or fragmentation.