PSA: Watering my pothos with fish tank water turned it into a monster

I've had this pothos for like 4 years and it just sat there, barely growing. One day I ran out of tap water and grabbed a cup from my betta tank during a water change. After a month the thing put out 6 new leaves, and now the vines are crawling across my shelf. The fish waste has nitrogen and stuff plants love, and I don't have to buy fertilizer. Anyone else try this with their houseplants or is it just a fluke?

2 comments

2 Comments

jamies451mo ago

Nah it's totally real. I've been doing this for a couple years now with my pothos and snake plants. The key is to use the water from your water change, not straight from the tank while your fish is still in it obviously. Just don't dump a whole bucket on one plant at once. I rotate through my plants, giving each one a cup or two every other week. My monstera is the one that really went nuts off it, leaves got way bigger than ever before. One thing though, if you've got a planted tank with algae problems, that water can bring algae spores with it, so just keep an eye on the soil surface for green fuzz.

robin8361mo ago

Yeah that tracks. Fish tank water is basically free liquid fertilizer, your betta was doing the work for you the whole time. I did the same thing with a sad fern last year, now it's taking over my bathroom counter and I can't even see the mirror anymore. It's not a fluke, the nitrates and waste really wake plants up compared to plain tap water. Just don't go overboard with it, too much can burn the roots if you dump too often.