Salvinia natans is an easy floating plant that gently shades your aquarium, helping reduce the intensity of bright LED lighting. Ideal for tanks where the light feels a little too strong.
Give your plants everything they need to grow well without pressurised CO2. Neutro Combo is a top seller for low-tech tanks, helping plants stay healthy, grow steadily and compete naturally with algae.
Compact Thai foreground plant with curly leaves, grows without CO2 supplementation
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Rating: Average
Common name: Dao noi or Little Star
Origin: Asia
Position in Aquarium: Foreground
Grows up to (cm):
Pot Size:
Growth rate: Medium pace
Pogostemon helferi is a striking foreground plant with tight, curly leaves that give it a compact, textured look. Native to Thailand and often called “dao noi” or little star, it naturally grows along riverbanks in nutrient-rich clay soils. In the aquarium it typically reaches around 10cm tall, staying much more compact at 5 to 8cm under strong lighting, while lower light can see it stretch closer to 15cm.
When planting, remove any decaying leaves and trim by removing whole shoots rather than cutting tips, as this helps light reach the base of the plant. It can be grown without CO2, which is unusual for a foreground plant, but CO2 or liquid carbon such as Neutro CO2 will encourage faster growth and a denser, more compact form.
You’ll receive a healthy, rooted plant in a pot, similar to those shown. Each one is hand-checked before dispatch.
Same-day dispatch on orders placed before 4pm, Monday to Friday. Tracked 24 Service from £4.99, DPD Express from £6.99.
It is moderately challenging. It grows without CO2 which is unusual for a foreground plant, but benefits from good lighting and nutrient-rich substrate.
No, it can grow without CO2. However, adding CO2 or liquid carbon such as Neutro CO2 will encourage faster, denser, and more compact growth.
Under strong lighting it stays very compact at 5 to 8cm. In lower light it can stretch to around 15cm. It typically reaches around 10cm in average conditions.
Remove whole shoots rather than cutting tips. This allows light to reach the base of the plant and encourages healthy, compact regrowth from the bottom.
It is native to Thailand where it grows along riverbanks in nutrient-rich clay soils. It is commonly known as dao noi, meaning little star in Thai.
