You’ve seen them, those gorgeous rainbows of colour, long-finned, graceful and exotic-looking. You’ve seen them in big-box stores like Wal-Mart and in every pet shop. You’ve seen them in tiny little containers that couldn’t possibly hold more than a few ounces of water - 2 or 3 at the most - stacked side-by-side and one on top of the other like units in a high-rise. You may not know what they’re called but you do know of them. They are without a doubt one of the most familiar, popular and beloved fish in the aquarium trade.

The ‘them’ that I’m talking about are the Siamese Fighting Fish commonly referred to as Bettas, Betta Fish or Betta Splendens. The male of the species is a long-finned, brilliantly coloured, charming fish with long flowing fins that grace the water they swim in. The females have shorter fins and are usually less vibrant therefore you’re more likely to find males available for purchase. A closer look at these gorgeous little fish reveals an upturned mouth that brings a bulldog to mind. That mouth is designed that way to grab unfortunate insects – fortunate for the Betta - that have fallen into the water, and to allow for the gulping of air from the surface, which in turn allows for survival in water that is low in oxygen.

Bettas are truly mesmerizing with rich colours in almost any shade you can imagine. Solid colours, multi-colours, bi-colours, patterns – the variations are too many to cover. And they are unlike any other fish you’ll ever own because they have oodles of personality. They wiggle their richly-coloured little bodies, wagging their tails in excitement when they see you (they’re actually begging for food), enchanting you with their endearing behavior. The happier and healthier they are, the more of their charming personality they’ll display for you and the more radiant their colours will be as they dash around their home, the home you provide for them.

I fell in love with these finned critters quite awhile back and finally brought one home with me December 2005, right before Christmas. He’s a dazzling, royal blue shade. I named him Indigo. At that point I thought I’d fulfilled my need to save at least one Betta from a life of misery in the tiny cups they’re forced to live in. But I was fooled. Bettas are like a bag of your favourite potato chips (Lay’s BBQ for me). You can’t have just one. Once you get a taste for them, you want more. And I did. So I brought Phantom home, a translucent and very active little fellow. I made the mistake of leaning forward to look at the Bettas at a pet shop and he met me at the edge of his cup, waving his fins as he danced back and forth. He charmed his way into my heart and into my home.

I swore I would stop there. I couldn’t just buy Bettas indefinitely without justification. Indigo was bought purposely, for me, one fish, just one. I got away with bringing home Phantom because I had a solid excuse – he was for my daughter. All I had to hear were the magic words from my 9-year-old: “Mommy, can I have my own Betta?”

“Of course you can sweetheart” Smile. Every child should have a Betta fish. Don’t you know that?

So I had Indigo and Phantom (technically he belonged to my daughter) and when my family asked me if I was going to pick up any more I said no. Not really. Well, maybe. But only if I found one with a really cool colour like red or turquoise. Or if I ran across a Betta with personality (which one doesn’t have personality?). Okay, maybe if I saw one in really shoddy conditions and had to make a sympathy purchase, I’d succumb. But that’s it. No other reason. Honest.

And of course I found Bettas to fit into some of the above ‘justified reasons to buy just one more Betta’.

How could I not bring home the dazzling, red-toned, full of zip Betta that I spotted from a mile away and whom my daughter (much to my dismay) named Raspberry? How could I leave this gorgeous fish in a tiny cup where he’d die a slow and miserable death? How could I walk away from such brilliant hues? I didn’t. Then right after Raspberry came Opie – my daughter named this one too - whose washed-out purple shades and stoutness make him very endearing. Opie was to some extent a sympathy purchase. He’s quite aggressive and spirited when he’s near the other Bettas yet he hides in fear as soon as I put him back in his freshly-washed bowl because the whole experience is distressing. His stocky frame and masculine persona remind me of a dock worker. He has difficulty making bubble nests, looks clownish rather than threatening when he flares up and has somehow managed to earn the reputation of being somewhat of a simpleton (I honestly don’t know how that happened). But we love him just the same.

So I managed to build up a modest collection of Bettas – four to be exact – and I was okay with that. Then Phantom up and died unexpectedly with no forewarning. I had to replace him because I couldn’t leave my young daughter brokenhearted and Betta-less. That’s understandable. What wasn’t understandable is that instead of giving her one of the existing Bettas, I decided to replace Phantom with a new addition. That’s when I picked up Rainbow – naturally named by my daughter of course – who placed a check mark on one of my items of ‘justified reasons to buy just one more Betta’ with his alluring Turquoise shades. I was enamored. So was my daughter.

Yuri – named by me this time – was the fifth and final Betta (I swear) to follow me home. He was definitely a sympathy purchase; fragile, not very colourful, somewhat dull. But he was very friendly – and dare I say sweet – as he waved his fins at me one day at Wal-Mart from his tiny cup. Charmed by his sociability, I offered him a home. He broke my heart by getting sick and dying soon after. I did not regret buying him. While he was healthy, he was happy. And for a little while he lived in more than just a few ounces of water.

After Yuri died, I had an empty bowl. I needed no reason other than that to pick up a stunning deep blue and bright red crowntail Betta that was not given a name right away. After weeks of contemplation, and reserving the right to name him (I wasn’t going to fall victim to my 9-year-old’s crocodile tears), I finally christened him Skittles. Yes, you heard right, Skittles. Lame, I know. You’re probably thinking the kid could’ve done better. She probably could have too!

One year later the amount of Bettas in my home has not increased. I have five beautiful, healthy male Bettas whose needs I take care of like clockwork. They’re not just a decoration, I absolutely adore them. To most – even to my own family from time to time – they’re ‘just fish for crying out loud’. To me each one is a distinct and valuable life.

So now, after all this personal rambling about my Bettas, which was meant to sensitize you a little to them, the question remains: “What do Bettas have to do with houseplants?”

Plenty.


The Infamous Betta Craze

Someone, somewhere, at some time, decided to invent an undeniably attractive decorative item for homes and offices. This item became extremely popular, an irresistible fad, and was duly regarded as an eye-catching mini ecosystem. This tabletop ornament is the joining together of a fish and a plant in a clear glass or plastic container. As an added visual touch there are river rocks, pebbles, shiny glass stones, marbles or colourful crystals at the bottom of the container. The chosen fish for this trend is the Betta because it can survive in dirty water with dissolved oxygen and take a long time to succumb to improper care. The companion plant is usually the Peace Lily (Spathiphyllum) for its hardiness and ability to grow in water.

This setup is referred to as the ‘Betta in a vase’ or the ‘Betta craze’. It is a controversial and fiercely-debated topic. There are those who oppose it entirely, arguing it’s an inhumane way to contain Betta fish. The opposite point of view is that it’s just a fish after all, so what’s the big deal?

I personally doubt that the inventors of this home ‘décor’ took into consideration, at any given time, the needs of the fish or plant. Because the Betta is so hardy and capable of lasting longer than many other fish, it became the ‘chosen one’. It could have been a Goldfish, a Neon Tetra or any finned creature for that matter; any one would do as long as it was tough and took long to die if neglected. What the inventors probably focused on was the music to their ears that each ‘Betta in a vase’ sale would make; the beautiful sound of a cash register ringing up a transaction. Ching-ching...

But that’s just my own opinion.

This new fad with its reasonable price and visual appeal – even I have to admit it’s tempting – is a good deal - unless you are a Betta. Consumers will readily pick up this two-for-one setup – a fish and a plant – regardless of whether they know or understand what type of care the Betta or the Peace Lily require.

There are a multitude of things that are wrong with the Betta-plant union. For one thing, people do not change the water regularly or often enough, under the assumption that the plant will filter it. And in a way it will, if it has enough fresh oxygen to keep it healthy, which in turn will encourage it to filter the water. But people believe (are sometimes even led to believe) that this setup is a self-contained ecosystem that requires absolutely no added effort on their part.

The Betta craze is not a complete ecosystem. It makes no difference how shallow the rice paddies where Bettas originate from are. In their natural habitat, these gorgeous fish live in a real ecosystem, a system that is fed by a larger body of water. The huge volume of water together with numerous large plants and naturally occurring bacteria dilute and convert the toxic fish waste. Ecosystems work because they are big enough to allow a safety margin for fluctuations. Because of that reason, the whole ecosystem won’t crash just because one of the components changes. A plant in a vase just doesn’t compare. One small change in this enclosed system that holds a small amount of water (about ½ gallon) that you manage can change the fragile balance significantly. If that ‘significant’ change becomes routine, it will eventually kill your Betta. Comparing this man-made system to an authentic ecosystem is like comparing your bathtub to a lake.

Although I do have Bettas and other small tropical fish at home, I’m not a professional or experienced aquarist and this website is not about taking care of fish or the aquariums they live in. As a result, I’m not going to go into too much detail about Betta Splendes, what their needs are and how to keep them healthy (at the end of this article I will provide a couple of links for Betta care). Instead, since this website is about plants and water, I’m going to write about how to keep that peace lily in the vase or bowl in good shape, along with the water it sits in. A Betta in a vase display can work if it’s done right, and if you provide the necessary care regularly.


Making A Betta Display Safe

I’m not a big fan of the Betta in a vase fad, but if you are, it’s to your advantage to know how to care for it properly. A Betta vase that is not well maintained will promptly turn into a Betta death vase.

I would like to remind everyone reading this that the vibrant little fish swirling around the roots of the Peace Lily needs to be fed regularly. There is an erroneous claim going around that the Betta fish eats the plant’s roots and, in return, the plant removes the toxic waste and keeps the water that the fish swims in clean and detoxified. The impression you’re left with is that this setup is a completely self-contained ecosystem that requires absolutely no effort on your part.

“You don’t need to feed the fish. You don’t need to feed the plant. You don’t need to change the water.”

Unfortunately nothing could be further from the truth.

First and foremost, Bettas are carnivores not herbivores. Their staple diet consists of insects, larvae and aquatic worms, not plants. Desperation is the only reason your little finned friends will succumb to eating plant roots every day. And even though they’ll nibble on the vegetation in despair, they won’t survive that way for long. In fact, if not fed properly, Bettas will starve to death – slowly. It can take up to an entire month before this fish finally joins the big aquarium in the sky. This is truly a slow, agonizing death that can be avoided by simply feeding these adorable pets a proper diet.

The water in the vase must be changed frequently to assure that toxins do not build up to harmful levels. The Betta vases sold are usually no more than a ½ gallon size, which means that you should change the water in them every 3 – 4 days (twice a week). If you upgrade to a gallon, you should do a clean up once a week, every week. It is important to follow a regular schedule if you want your Betta to live a long and healthy life. Good water quality is one of the most important aspects in providing an acceptable home to your finned pet.

When it’s time to clean, remove the plant from the Betta vase and promptly place it in a container of water to keep the roots moist. It is important to keep the plant sitting in water. Roots exposed to air can dry out completely, which will cause irreversible damage to them, inevitably killing your plant. Remove some water (enough for your fish to swim in) from the Betta vase and place it in another container – a different one from the plant. Scoop your Betta out of his home with a net or a cup (do this carefully to avoid tearing his fragile fins) and place him in that container with the old water. While your pet waits in his temporary location, dump all the old water out of his vase and rinse the whole kit and caboodle - including all the decorations (marbles, gravel, river rocks). Never use soap or detergents to clean any part of the setup. Completely rinsing the soap from these items can prove very difficult and soap residue, even the smallest trace, can be lethal to your fish. Wash only with warm water and use an abrasive bush, if you desire, for more thorough cleaning. Once everything is clean and fresh, place all the objects back into the vase.

The next step is to make sure that the plant used is in good shape before you put it back in the Betta ensemble. The most typical plant used in this fad is the Spathiphyllum, commonly known as the Peace Lily. This tropical, humidity-loving flora is a member of the Aroid (Araceae) family. The Aroids are a large group of attractive and very popular plants, many of them readily-available as houseplants and frequently used in commercial settings because of their versatility and ease of growth. Some well-known cultivars include: Aglaonema, Alocasia, Anthurium, Caladium, Colocasia, Dieffenbachia, Epipremnum, Homalomena (recent introduction), Monstera, Philodendron, Spathiphyllum, Syngonium and others.

The most important thing to remember about all the Aroid members is that none of them are aquatic plants. What this means is that while they are perfectly capable of growing indefinitely in water like many houseplants can, they will only do so if the water is kept well oxygenated all the time. Regular water changes must be made to preserve essential oxygen levels, never allowing them to become fully depleted. Even though plants grown in water develop water roots, those roots also need to breathe air. Plenty of oxygen must be available at all times to avoid root rot. If the water gets cloudy or starts to smell bad, it is an indication that it lacks oxygen and must be freshened up immediately! (For further reading on growing plants in water, visit issue number 15 in the Hydro Log: Hydroculture vs. Growing In Water)

It’s now time to inspect your plant. Check the roots of the plant carefully – make sure that you keep the roots moist at all times – and remove any that are dead or dying immediately. Decayed and rotted materials will pollute and possibly kill your fish. With a sharp knife or scissors, trim back the roots of your plant to prevent them from taking over all the space that your Betta needs for swimming. This type of maintenance should be done regularly to also assure that the plant’s roots are not covering the entire surface, which the Betta needs to reach to keep from suffocating.

Bettas derive oxygen from the water just like all the other fish but they also have a labyrinth organ, which allows them to breathe atmospheric air, similar to the human lung. If the plant in the vase is not maintained properly, its massive root system will completely block the Betta’s access to that air. With an insufficient amount of space at the top of the water, your fish will be unable to reach the surface to draw in the necessary amounts of oxygen needed to survive. This can cause your finned pet to suffocate in a matter of hours. Keep your plant’s roots trimmed back and very clean, and make sure to leave a couple of inches of breathing room between the plant and fish to provide the air needed.

With your Betta vase’s trinkets reassembled, refill it with clean water, preferably aged water that has been sitting in a container for a minimum of twenty four hours. By allowing the water to sit for at least one full day, it will reach room temperature, and the chlorine - which is toxic to your fish - will dissipate. This method will not completely detoxify the water so make sure that it is further treated with tap water conditioner to fully remove chlorine, chloramines and other heavy metals that are detrimental.

Your vase is now ready for a living creature. Scoop up your Betta from his temporary location where he has been waiting patiently and put him back in his clean, fully-oxygenated home. Reattach the plant and place the whole kit and caboodle back in its regular spot. Make sure that your Betta is not sitting in drafty locations, in direct sunlight or any other area of your home that can cause sudden temperature fluctuations. These brilliantly-coloured little fish are very sensitive to extreme changes in their water and can become very sick if subjected to unstable conditions for prolonged periods.


Have Your Betta And Keep It Healthy Too

While I may not be a huge fan of the Betta in a vase fad, I do believe that it can work with proper care and commitment. Yes, it may seem like a hassle to carry out this weekly or bi-weekly ritual, but it is essential to your Betta’s wellbeing. And in all honesty, it doesn’t take more than a few minutes of your time. Surely all of us, no matter how busy, can spare a few minutes that will mean the difference between life and death for both plant and fish.

Keeping everything clean and maintaining the plant’s health is vital. No matter what anyone tells you, the plant sitting in the vase will not – ever – be capable of removing all the toxins from the water. It would require quite a number of plants to remove the waste produced by the Betta, more than you can fit into the vase. One plant alone cannot do the trick, not to mention the fact that it would also die without regularly-oxygenated water because its roots would rot. Human intervention is the only way to make this arrangement work.

With a hands-on approach, you can turn ‘The Little Ecosystem That Couldn’t’ into ‘The Little Ecosystem That Could’.


To learn more about Betta fish, visit these informative websites:

Betta Talk - www.bettatalk.com

Betta Central - www.bettacentral.com

Siam’s Best Bettas - www.siamsbestbettas.com

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