How To Grow Sweet Potato In Fish Tank

How to grow sweet potato in aquarium:

In this tutorial I will show you how to grow a sweet potato plant in fish tank which can be used as a free of cost nitrates filter. The byproducts of ammonia can create a big problem which could be due to the outcome of aquarium debris, leftover food, & dead plants. I want to grow a sweet potato plant in aquarium which can be half submerged in water. It won’t be a stress to clean dead leaves in this case as it could be removed easily from sweet potato plant & the roots will absorb lots of nitrates to keep aquarium water clean & sweet potato plant can offer shelter to fish & provide hiding places for fish fry so that they can avoid adult fish.

I choose sweet potato plant because this plant can make a healthy root system very quickly which can help in water filtration & can offer hiding spots to the inhabitants. If sweet potato stem is submerged in water, then it will grow roots which can help in the filtration. This plant is suitable for beginners & it does not need too much light & it can survive for long.

I purchased sweet potato for this project from market. Instead of adding sweet potato to the aquarium directly, I allowed sweet potato to grow in a plastic cup. After 1 week, sweet potato develops roots & leaves, & one month later I choose to add it to the fish tank. A little container is made for holding sweet potato plant & I attach the container to fish tank glass using a suction cup. You don’t need to use any special equipment & you can simply make it at home.

The plants in aquarium can offer a better source of filtration but it is hard to manage them. However, sweet potato plant does not need that much maintenance & it can help you in nitrates filtration. You will not require adding carbon dioxide or fertilizer to this plant as it can absorb carbon dioxide from the air & the byproducts of ammonia can help as a fertilizer.

Nitrates will be consumed by sweet potato & if you do not know about it then it is a toxic byproduct of nitrogen cycle. Learn more about nitrogen cycle.

Steps: How to grow sweet potato plant inside aquarium:

In this video I will show you how to grow sweet potato plant inside aquarium & you can make a container to hold the sweet potato by attaching it to the aquarium glass.

Ep. 1 Grow Sweet Potato In Fish Tank, Nitrates Filter, No CO2, No Ferts

Step 1: Buy sweet potato from supermarket: 

Buy gold sweet potatoes from supermarket

On day one of DIY sweet potato project, I bought some sweet potatoes from supermarket. Then I half-fill disposable cup with tap water & I add a sweet potato in the disposable cup. I am not adding sweet potato directly to the fish tank because I have been busy so I will leave sweet potato in the disposable cup for a month so that it grows roots & leaves, & when sweet potato becomes more stable then I will add it to the aquarium.

Step 2: Add sweet potato in disposable cup & half fill it with water:

Sweet potato after 1 & a half week

On day one when I half-fill the cup with water, I add a sweet potato & place it next to the window so that it can get some sun light which speeds up its growing process. After one & a half week, the sweet potato begins to grow roots & leaves. I change the water in the cup with tank water & also I add fish food to the cup which can offer nutrient for sweet potato to grow. If you want to avoid this step, then you can because there is a lot of nutrient inside the sweet potato that can help in growing of the plant.  

Step 3: Sweet potato will grow quickly & you will see progress very soon:

Sweet potato after 2 & a half week

After two & a half week there is a big progress in the growing of the plant because it has grown more roots & it has more leaves & the leaves have grown bigger. The sweet potato is getting stable but I will wait for more days before I can add it to the aquarium & the reason behind is I want to see more progress.

Step 4: Add sweet potato to aquarium but first make a container for holding it:

Sweet potato after 1 month

After a month you can see in the picture that sweet potato has very beautiful leaves & it has grown very well so I think it would be the perfect time to add it to the fish tank but I do not want to add it directly to the aquarium & instead I want to make a container for the sweet potato which will let 60 percent of the potato to sit in the water & some part will be out of the water surface.

Step 5: Use bottle lid for building container to hold sweet potato inside aquarium:

Bottle lid & suction cup that will be used for holding sweet potato

I decide to make a container for the plant using a normal bottle lid & for attaching the container to the tank glass I am using a suction cup. I cut a hole in the lid & I decide to push the sweet potato through the hole. 60 to 65 percent of the sweet potato will sit in the water & remaining part will be outside. The part inside water will develop roots & the part outside can grow leaves.

Step 6: Cut a hole in the lid & push the sweet potato through the hole:

Cut a hole in the lid & Styrofoam

I use scissor & knife to cut a hole in the lid. A sharp blade allows me to make a clean cut. The hole in the lid has sharp edges so I think may be over time it might hurt the sweet potato so I chose to cut Styrofoam & add it inside that would hold the sweet potato. Be prepare to clean the mess when you cut the Styrofoam. Also you need to use a suction cup to attach the container to the aquarium glass.

Step 7: Finally add sweet potato to the aquarium:

Attach suction cup to the lid

Attaching the suction cup to the container is simple because I have to make a hole in the lid by heating a nail & use the hot end of the nail to pierce a hole in the lid. Then I attach the suction cup to the lid. I insert the Styrofoam inside the lid & push the sweet potato through the hole. I attach the lid to the aquarium glass & about 60 percent of the sweet potato is inside water & it starts growing roots.

Conclusion:

Sweet potato plant pictures

After adding sweet potato plant to the aquarium, I have taken multiple snapshots from time to time to see how it grows. I have added few snapshots of sweet potato plant growing in my aquarium. 

Below is an update of sweet potato plant. Watch episode 2 of sweet potato plant which works as a free nitrate filter.

Ep. 2 Sweet Potato Aquarium, Nitrates Filter, No CO2, No Fertilizer (12 weeks update)

I have had successfully kept the sweet potato plant in aquarium for 6 months and below is the final update. I hope you will enjoy the last video of sweet potato aquarium, no CO2, no Ferts. 

Ep. 3 Grow Sweet Potato In Aquarium, Nitrates Filter, No CO2, No Ferts

If you have any questions, suggestions or feedback about how to grow sweet potato in aquarium then please post it in the comment section below.