WIth frogbit being one of the more popular aquatic surface plants for aquariums we do see a large number of people asking what fish are suitable to keep in a tank with frogbit as well as various questions about maintaining their frogbit.
One of the more common questions that we see is specifically about how to stop your frogbit dying so we have decided to publish this dedicated article on the topic.
With so many people seemingly having problems with their frogbit dying as well as seeing a number of very common yet easy to avoid mistakes being make time and time again, we hope that our article will be able to help as many of our readers as possible.
When it comes to caring for frogbit or any other type of surface plant, once you have identified the more common mistakes that cause it to die you are usually in a much better position to care for the plant.
We have added our table of contents below to allow you to skip directly to sections of the article where you think that you may be making mistakes.
If you have already tried a few different things to improve the survival rate of your frogbit then skimming over the whole article will probably be able to help you identify your issue.
Why Are My Frogbit Plants Dying?
The most common reason that we see frogbit plants dying is due to issues with water temperature as frogbit tends to do better in colder tanks.
If the water is too hot then it will have issues and decrease survival rate. Damage to the roots due to fish eating it, poor water conditions, and incorrect lighting can also be common.
Although some smaller fish will be discouraged to eat frogbit in your tank due to the longer roots often putting them off before they eat it, larger fish will still be able to eat surprisingly large amounts of frogbit too.
We see a large number of beginner fishkeepers thinking that their frogbit is dying when in actual fact, it is simply being ate by their fish and that is why it is disappearing.
Although rare, some amphibians such as frogs or axolotls will sometimes also eat frogbit too but this is rarer than fish. If fish try to eat the frogbit and then spit it out by damaging the roots in the process this can also result in the frogbit dying sooner than it otherwise would.
Is Your Tank Temperature Right For Frogbit?
Frogbit tends to be able to survive in a water temperature range of 64-80°F/18-26°C but can have issues at the higher end of that range.
Most of the more popular fish such as betta fish need a water temperature of around 80°F/26°C meaning that the frogbit will not last as long as it would in a colder tank.
The same can be said for anyone who keeps their frogbit in a cold water tank or in an outdoor pond. Although it will tend to do better at the lower end of its temperature tolerance, it really does struggle with anything below 64°F/18°C, even by just a few degrees.
We know that there are some specialist frogbit variants that have been produced to thrive in colder temperatures but their performance is controversial.
If you do have a tank that is outside of the recommended water temperature for frogbit then this can be a common reason that the plant will struggle.
It is very common for beginner fish keepers to overlook the fact that just like their fish, snails, shrimp, and amphibians, their live plants also have a temperature tolerance that has a direct effect on the performance of the plants.
Does Frogbit Need A Lot Of Light?
Frogbit tends to do well in most lighting conditions for aquariums and due to it being a surface level plant, it is closer to the light too allowing it to get as much as it requires.
If you have an ultra low light tank then frogbit may struggle and die but all other tank lighting conditions should be fine for frogbit.
Frogbit tends to be fine if you have a bunch of UV lights for your tank too helping it score points over some of the other popular surface level aquatic plants.
That said though, we have seen some reports of people saying that they are sure that their frogbit has died early due to UV light exposure but we have not been able to confirm this.
Although very rare, there can be issues with frogbit dying in tanks that have restricted lighting times.
These do tend to be rare though and we doubt that many of our readers will be operating their aquariums in these conditions anyway so this will probably not be an issue for most of our readers anyway.
Is It Ok To Trim Frogbit Roots?
Although a large number of people do choose to trim the roots of their frogbit due to them usually growing much longer than other popular surface plants, this can damage the plant and cause it to die.
If done correctly with you leaving plenty of the root on the plant it should be safe and not cause problems though.
The main issue that we see with beginners over and over again when it comes to trimming their frogbit roots is that they simply remove far too much.
Although the roots of frogbit can be very small when you first get the plant, it rapidly grows and requires a larger root system. If you trim the root back too much then it is unable to pull nutrients from the water and will die.
A similar effect can occur with your frogbit if you have fish in your aquarium that try to eat the plant and then spit it back out but damage its roots.
If the plant is unable to pull the nutrients it requires then it will end up dying and this can be a common occurrence with frogbit in particular.
Do You Have An Optimal pH For Frogbit?
The optimal pH level for frogbit is between 6 and 7.5 so it does tend to fall within the usual range for most fish kept as pets.
There are some fish that do require slightly harder or softer water though so having a pH level outside of what is recommended for your frogbit can cause it to die.
It can be common for a beginner to fish keeping to make mistakes when trying to maintain their water pH levels anyway and accidentally knock them out of the recommended range for their fish and live plants.
You should at least have a basic water test kit to allow you to monitor the water conditions in your tank to allow you to correct fluctuations.
The majority of our readers should easily be able to maintain the pH levels in their tank though and not have problems with their frogbit dying due to the pH levels or water conditions.
As we said though, some fish will require a pH level that is outside of the recommended levels for other fish and live plants and you should try to avoid putting frogbit into tanks like that altogether.
Conclusion
That brings our article on how to stop your frogbit from dying to an end. The mistakes that we have gone over in our article are surprisingly common yet very easy to avoid or fix in most cases. This should allow you to keep your frogbit alive for as long as possible without issue in your tank unless your fish are actively eating the frogbit but this can still be manageable in some cases.
