Monte Carlo and Dwarf Sag

Monte Carlo and Dwarf Sag.

This month’s fish of the month isn’t a fish at all, rather the foreground plants ‘Monte Carlo’, (Micranthemum tweediei) and Dwarf Saggitaria. Relatively new to the hobby, Monte Carlo is native to Argentina, and has found huge popularity as an easy to grow carpet plant. Carpeting plants grow dense and low to the ground, emulating the look of a lawn in the aquarium. Traditionally, these plants are incredibly hard to grow, with popular choices such as “HC”, Dwarf Hair Grass, and Baby Tears requiring high end lighting, lots of fertilization, and CO2 injection to grow at all. Monte Carlo, however, will grow fine without high intensity lighting or CO2 injection, growing slower with finer leaves. The same can be said of Dwarf Sag, growing slightly less dense, with longer leaves in lower light. While CO2 injection can more than double the growth rate of these small plants, it is certainly not necessary. Seachem’s Flourish Excel is a fantastic alternative to pressurized CO2, providing a huge bump to the growth rate of your plants when you’re looking to quickly grow your aquatic lawn.

Monte Carlo and Dwarf Saggitaria will grow best in a fine, or small-grained substrate. Fluval Stratum represents the ideal medium for growing this plant. As Monte Carlo is typically sold potted in rock wool, the plant should be gently removed from the potting substrate and split into several small bunches for planting in the substrate. A single pot of Monte Carlo, when appropriately planted, can actually fill up an entire 5 Gallon aquarium!  Dwarf Sag, when planted in a small patch, will quickly send out runners with new baby plants on it, growing much like the terrestrial Strawberry plant, where the growth of your plant is much easier to see than the slow creep of a vine style carpeting plant.
Interestingly enough, these low lying floor plants are wanted amongst shrimp keepers, as they provide the dense cover young shrimp need to survive, while also remaining low enough to the ground that your adult shrimp are still easy to see. Anyone
interested in getting into breeding freshwater shrimp will be incredibly pleased with these
small carpeting plants. Whether you’re looking for a small, interesting foreground plant, or
looking to carpet your whole tank in lush greenery, Monte Carlo and Dwarf Saggitaria make excellent additions to the aquarium.