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Live or artificial aquarium plants

Updated: 22 October 2026

You are looking at a tropical or coldwater tank in a British living room, and amazon.co.uk has put a plastic stem beside a £14 to £17 bunch that does not name a species. Live or artificial aquarium plants is the split that decides whether the leaves change the water or only the view. Plastic will not add oxygen, and a stressed live bunch can rot and foul the tank. This page stays indoors. Pond shelves are a different job, set out on the [aquatic plant comparison](/hub/garden-ponds/aquatic-plant). A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You are looking at a tropical or coldwater tank in a British living room, and amazon.co.uk has put a plastic stem beside a £14 to £17 bunch that does not name a species.

Our top picks

BEGONDIS BEGONDIS (14 seaweed pieces)

Best overall

BEGONDIS BEGONDIS (14 seaweed pieces)
8.4/10about £9.99
View offer
DIGIFLEX DIGIFLEX (20 cm foliage)

Rank 2

DIGIFLEX DIGIFLEX (20 cm foliage)
8.7/10about £9.99
View offer
Generic Generic (25 live bunches)

Rank 3

Generic Generic (25 live bunches)
5.1/10about £17.00
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.What live plants do that plastic cannot
  2. 2.Plastic aquarium plants in this set
  3. 3.The three unnamed live bunches
  4. 4.When to choose live or plastic

What live plants do that plastic cannot

Interpet's starting notes put the biology plainly. Living leaves take up nutrients and release oxygen, while plastic does neither and needs no light or fertiliser. Swell UK adds the matching warning: a live plant that dies can rot and pollute the water, and a plastic plant has no biological value. A plastic layout needs no CO2 and no special lamp, which helps when goldfish, cichlids or algae eaters would strip anything green. Fluval UK names goldfish and cichlids as fish that eat live plants. A healthy live plant can add oxygen in the light, though it does not replace the filter, and nothing in this set measures a nitrate drop. If the stems arrive dead, rotting tissue adds waste. Plastic avoids that rot and also avoids the oxygen. None of the plastic rows here is silk, and a stiff leaf can catch a long fin.

Plastic aquarium plants in this set

DIGIFLEX is the top pick: one plant of about 20 cm at about £9.99, with 4.3 from 3,009 amazon.co.uk reviews. The listing claims freshwater and saltwater and says you skip lighting, CO2 and fertiliser. Reviewers used it in a 34 litre tank after a hot-water soak. The base is too light during a water change unless you push it into the gravel. The Ficus line is a label, not a species. BEGONDIS seaweed is the best value: 14 stems of about 30 cm at about £9.99, with 4.5 from 497 reviews. One UK reviewer received ten pieces, not fourteen, and another says to keep it off bettas. The 25-piece tree set is about £15.99, with heavier bases, but pieces broke on assembly. YIKUBO, ACEBON and Cabilock sit on seven to 14 reviews. A 4.6 from seven is not the same evidence as 4.3 from 3,009.
BEGONDIS BEGONDIS (14 seaweed pieces)

Testsieger

BEGONDIS BEGONDIS (14 seaweed pieces)
8.4/10about £9.99
View offer

The three unnamed live bunches

The live side is three generic bundles, indoor, USDA zone 10, low light and pre-weighted: 15 plants at about £14.00 (3.5 from 10 reviews), 20 at about £15.50 (3.5 from 3), and 25 at about £17.00 (3.6 from 28). Species are not named. Java fern and Anubias are not these bunches. A coldwater word in the title does not make them a pond oxygenator. Reviews describe die-off more often than growth: one £14 review says all the plants were dead, another describes a pink plant that fell apart, and about half the £17 bundle failed with little root. Three ratings on the £15.50 bundle are too few to settle. These packs fail if you need a species you can replace, and they are a weak buy for goldfish or cichlids that strip stems.

When to choose live or plastic

Choose plastic when you will not run a plant light and CO2, or when the fish already strip live leaves. DIGIFLEX is the plastic with the largest UK sample if you can anchor a light base. Skip BEGONDIS seaweed with a betta. Choose live plants only if you can replace what dies and you know the species. That points away from these unnamed zone 10 bunches. If the parcel is meant for the garden rather than the tank, use pond plants or aquarium plants before anything goes near the liner.

Common questions

Which should I buy if my fish eat plants?
Buy plastic if goldfish or cichlids have already stripped live stems. Fluval names those fish as plant-eaters. In this set, a DIGIFLEX stem or a BEGONDIS clump is the usual answer, if you can anchor a light base and keep seaweed off soft fins. The £14 to £17 live bunches are a poor match, because you still do not know the species.
Are the £14 to £17 bunches named species?
No. The 15-plant pack at about £14.00, the 20-plant pack at about £15.50 and the 25-plant pack at about £17.00 are unnamed. Zone 10, low light and a weighted base are what the listings state. Java fern and Anubias are not the names on these files. A product photo is not an identification.
Will a light base stay down?
Not always. DIGIFLEX reviews say the base is too light during a water change, so the plant walks unless you push it into the gravel. The BEGONDIS 25-piece tree is the contrast: reviewers mention heavy bases, though the tree itself can fail to join. YIKUBO reviews say the bases stay, on a sample of seven. Check the plant after the first water change, not only on the day you unbox it.
Are plastic plants safe for bettas?
Not across the board. One UK reviewer of the BEGONDIS seaweed set says not to use it with bettas or other soft-finned fish, despite 4.5 from 497 reviews. Cabilock's title names betta tanks, and a title is not a safety test. These listings are not silk. If your betta has long fins, watch any new plastic for a week.
What if half the bunch is dead?
Treat the dead half as waste, not as stock you can nurse back. On the £17 bundle, UK reviewers describe about half the plants failing, with little root and brown stems. On the £14 bundle, one buyer reported all the plants dead. Remove brown stems before they rot in the gravel, because a rotting live plant can pollute the tank. Plastic avoids that arrival lottery, and it still will not oxygenate the water.

Related pages

Best aquatic plants

Aquatic plant

Best pond plants UK: sort the job before the price

How to plant pond plants the day your parcel arrives

Aquarium plants in a pond: keep them inside the tank

Sources

Public UK sources from the research digest, used for this page in October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are from the eleven amazon.co.uk listings. A nitrate, oxygen or algae line on a listing is the seller's claim, not a laboratory result.

  1. RHS, choosing pond plants (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. RHS, planting aquatic and bog plants (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. GOV.UK, invasive non-native plant rules in England and Wales (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (Prohibition on Sale etc.) (England) Order 2014 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. GB Non-native Species Secretariat, Be Plant Wise (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. Natural History Museum, garden pond FAQ (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 11 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. OATA, do not sell aquarium plants for ponds (retrieved 19 October 2026)