Riccia fluitans Tissue Culture – Live Aquarium Plant

Riccia fluitans, commonly known as Crystalwort, is a bright green aquatic liverwort that can be used as a floating plant or attached to rocks, driftwood or mesh to create dense cushions and low foreground growth.

Its fine branching structure gives planted aquariums a soft, vibrant appearance and makes it particularly popular in aquascaping and shrimp tanks.

This plant is supplied as a tissue culture aquarium plant, providing clean young plant material that can be divided into several portions before use.

Quick Plant Care Guide

• Scientific Name: Riccia fluitans
• Common Name: Crystalwort
• Plant Type: Aquatic liverwort
• Position: Floating, foreground or attached to hardscape
• Growth Rate: Moderate to fast
• Lighting: Low to medium; stronger light encourages denser growth
• CO₂: Optional, but beneficial for faster and more compact growth
• Difficulty: Easy to moderate

Versatile Floating or Attached Growth

Riccia fluitans naturally grows as a floating plant, forming bright green mats at the water surface.

It can also be attached to rocks, driftwood or stainless steel mesh using thread or fine mesh, allowing it to form dense cushions through the foreground of an aquascape.

When grown submerged under good lighting and CO₂, Riccia can develop very compact, vibrant growth.

Ideal for Aquascaping

Riccia fluitans is especially useful for creating soft green texture around rocks and hardscape.

It can be used to create small mounds, cover mesh, or form a low foreground feature. Regular trimming helps keep the growth dense and prevents loose pieces from breaking away and floating to the surface.

How to Use Riccia fluitans Tissue Culture

Remove the plant from the tissue culture container and gently rinse away the growing gel using clean aquarium water.

Divide the plant into several small portions before use.

For floating growth, simply place the portions on the water surface. For submerged aquascaping, secure the plant to rock, driftwood or mesh until it establishes and forms a dense mat.

Growing Riccia fluitans

Riccia fluitans is adaptable and can grow without injected CO₂, although stronger lighting and CO₂ generally produce denser, faster growth.

Regular liquid fertilisation can also help maintain strong green colour and healthy new growth.

When grown attached to hardscape, trim the plant regularly to prevent thick mats from lifting away from the surface.

Why Choose Tissue Culture Aquarium Plants?

Tissue culture aquarium plants are propagated under controlled conditions and are supplied free from unwanted snails and algae.

Each container can usually be divided into multiple portions, making tissue culture a clean and convenient way to establish Riccia throughout an aquascape.

Browse our live aquarium plants and aquascaping supplies for more plants, substrates and aquascaping tools.