BettaBotanicals

06/17/2025

I thought this fish had died 💀 About 6 months ago I took a trip down to with to invest in some species I’d never kept before, and I knew these Toothpick Fish would be elusive….but I’ve had exactly three sightings in 6 months, two of which are yesterday and today. I think they hunt the cherry shrimp fry, feasting on the brine shrimp and other microfauna I occasionally add to the tank. Special guest appearance of the rocket killifish baby who is definitely male, and the first oow tadpole of the R. Imitator Veradaro 🍂🥃🌱🪾
•
📩 Resources In Our Newsletter 📩
•

05/26/2025

It was truly an honor to provide natural materials for these aquascapes! A big congrats to all the participants, and I'm looking forward to seeing everyone in person at Aquashella Aquarium Festival New Jersey and Los Angeles later this year! 🍂

05/21/2025

Fresh From The Forest 🍂🥃🍁🪾🪵 tomorrow 5.21 @ 9 AM PST there will be four NEW natural botanicals for your current and future botanical method aquariums.
•
Ichnocarpus Bark: textured, durable & full of amber tannins
•
Ceylon Date Flower Stalk: intricate habitat for your fish to swim through
•
Ulin Pods: your favorite betta’s new favorite cave
•
Mulberry Leaves: okay, not NEW, but we brought them back for our shrimp enthusiasts. Full of vitamins and minerals for healthier molts.
•
📩 Resources In Our Newsletter 📩
•

05/16/2025

If you need me I’m just playing with grass in the garage 🍂🌿🥃 The Clown Killi baby has grown so much from a spec to a rice grain, constantly exploring the grass and hunting the microfauna which are eating the grass. I’ve got them in a Foresta to mimic allochthonous inputs of organic materials from the terrestrial ecosystem above. Just like in nature.
•
al·loch·tho·nous /əˈläkTHənəs/
adjective
1.Geology (of a deposit or formation) having originated at a distance from its present position.
2. Biology: introduced from a different environment, habitat, or geographical area. “allochthonous microorganisms may easily be outcompeted on arrival in natural to new ecosystems”
•
🚀 Free USA Shipping on select orders $35+ 🚀
•
📩 Resources In Our Newsletter 📩
•

05/07/2025

If you find a big ole pile of leaves and pods at one of the tables near the Aquascaping Competition at there is a 100% chance it’ll be us 👀 I may not physically be at the table, but there will be some info cards and static clings to pickup as you wish! will be doing his best to recreate this layout (I’m sure it’ll be better still!) and Saturday you can meet one of our Ambassadors at the booth (DM her to meet) and she’ll tell you all about the episode of Nat Geo happening in her latest ecosystem. It’s truly an honor to sponsor materials for this year in their Aquascape Competition by …time to go finish packing the box so Ryan can soak everything in his hotel room! 🍂🥃
•
🚀 Free USA Shipping on select orders $35+ 🚀
•
📩 Resources In Our Newsletter 📩
•

05/01/2025

I broke the “rules”… carefully 🍂
•
After years of using Casuarina cones in my botanical method aquariums—to the delight of my shrimp and microfauna, I kept wondering: What about the needles?
•
While many forums warn against using pine, cypress, or cedar in the aquarium, I decided to cautiously investigate further. I sourced naturally fallen, dried Casuarina equisetifolia needles and began testing… slowly and intentionally, and with ecosystem health in mind. I even shared them with trusted ambassadors for broader insight with their critters.
•
The results? Thriving ecosystems. No weird plant melt. No mystery spikes. Just layers of intricate woven needles on the substrate, crawling in microfauna, and a better replication of nature.
•
Here’s what I’ve learned; Many “rules” in this hobby are rooted back to over a decade where one person had a bad experience and then it perpetuated—never revisited. But, with proper sourcing, preparation, and a gradual introduction, these needles function just like any other botanical material.
•
🛒 Casuarina Needles are now available on the site. Sprinkle them into your substrate like you would with leaf litter and let nature do the rest.
•

04/22/2025

Please tag your favorite conservation groups below and why you support them. Support could mean a financial donation, a follow, subscribing to their newsletters, sharing their content, and more

04/01/2025

03/22/2025

Busy Week in the Ecosystem Garage! Photographing and testing new products, admiring the broms in the gold dust viv, and welcoming into the family! Peep the last two slides for some habitat inspiration 👀
•
We had new life in the Botanical Method Paludarium with our clown killis, but it was matched with the mysterious death of Enzo. He ate dinner like everyone else and then the next day he was 💀. I think a break from Domestic bettas is in store and after a reset on the tank I’ll introduce some new life.
•
🚀 Free USA Shipping on select orders $35+ 🚀
•
📩 Resources In Our Newsletter 📩
•

03/01/2025

Trust The Process 🍂🥃🌿 The sediments will settle as the biofilms establish, helping to lock them into the substrate and other surfaces. The plants will take hold. The wood will sink to its final resting spot. The currents from the filter outflow will position the leaf litter and detritus beds. Just give it time! The botanical method aquarium establishes itself in layers.
•
🚀 Free USA Shipping on select orders $35+ 🚀
•
📩 Resources In Our Newsletter 📩
•

02/22/2025

A botanical method aquarium is an ecological microcosm where natural materials—leaves, bark, seed pods, and wood—fuel biological processes that can influence water chemistry, govern microbial colonization, and nutrient cycling. It closely mimics wild aquatic habitats, where allochthonous inputs (materials from terrestrial environments) shape the underwater world.
•
Unlike traditional aquarium approaches, which focus on pristine clear-water aesthetics and mechanical filtration, the botanical method leans into the natural processes of decomposition, detritus accumulation, and microbial proliferation. The aquarium becomes the largest filter. We do our best to foster this ecology within the bounds of a closed system, the aquarium.
•
Bonus dart frog photo of the Ranitomeya imitator veradero because I’m obsession with them rn.
•
🚀 Free USA Shipping on select orders $35+ 🚀
•
📩 Resources In Our Newsletter 📩
•