Wood and rock mounts
Also known as: Hardscape mount, Epiphyte mount, Driftwood attachment, Botanical mount
Properties
| pH effect | varies by source |
|---|---|
| KH (carbonate hardness) | varies by source |
| GH (general hardness) | varies by source |
| Nutrient load | none |
| Ammonia release initially | No |
| Longevity | indefinite |
| Cost tier | low |
How it affects the tank
- Plant material attaches to driftwood or porous rock with thread, glue, or its own rhizome roots; substrate underneath is independent of the plants
- Hardwood driftwood releases tannins that stain water amber and lower pH slightly (the "blackwater" look); rock effects depend entirely on the stone (vinegar-test it)
- Required setup for the most popular low-tech aquarium plants: anubias of all sizes, java fern, bolbitis, all aquarium mosses, bucephalandra
- Plants do not draw from substrate: rely on water-column dosing for nutrients regardless of what is in the tank floor
Care notes
Rhizome plants (anubias, java fern, bucephalandra) attached to wood or rock are the most common entry point to planted tanks because they tolerate almost any water and don't need a special substrate. Pair with any of the other substrates (or bare bottom) underneath, depending on what other plants and fish are in the tank.
Plants that work in wood and rock mounts
23 aquarium plants in the catalog list this substrate as compatible.
- African water fern
- Amazon frogbit
- Anubias barteri
- Anubias congensis
- Anubias nana
- Anubias nana petite
- Bucephalandra
- Bucephalandra Brownie Ghost
- Christmas moss
- Duckweed
- Flame moss
- Hornwort
- Hygrophila pinnatifida
- Java fern
- Java fern narrow leaf
- Java moss
- Phoenix moss
- Red root floater
- Riccia fluitans
- Salvinia
- Subwassertang
- Water lettuce
- Weeping moss
Sources
Data drawn from: aquatic-plant-central, tropica-plant-database. Last verified 2026-05-13.
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