Can you have too many plants in an Aquarium

[faolteam]

I have java moss n water fern in a Tank with Corydoras blue and Sterbai and blue velvet Shrimp, Moss has gone really good should i cut it back a bit so fish have more room to spin, ill take a photo later thanks .

 

[Rocky998]

I mean... There is really no such thing as "too many" unless the fish cant swim lol. The benefits of plants really outweigh how many there are. Although if you feel there is too much than just trim it I suppose

 

[Colin_T]

You can have too many plants in a tank.

If there are lots of plants and no surface turbulence, the oxygen level can drop at night as the carbon dioxide (CO2) level goes up, the pH can drop, and fish can suffocate.

During the day the CO2 level drops and the pH can go up and the fluctuating pH can harm the fish.

This can be prevented by having aeration/ surface turbulence to stop excess CO2 building up.

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The other issue that has already been mentioned is swimming space. If the fish get tangled up in plants, there is not enough room for them.

 

[Lemon]

Also remember that there will be less actual water in the tank with items in it. Plants fish or decor all take up room so if you have a 70% planted tank you will have to do more changes because it is less water

 

[Lynnzer]

I suppose it's all down to the tank size, the number and types of fish really but I know from experience that letting plants just continue growing often creates clumps at the surface that look unsightly and more importantly also creates water dead spots with no flow and a consequent affect on the water chemistry.
My own tank as shown below was only created late March/early April and just got so massively cluttered at the rear corner that I had to get the scissors out and trim it all back. The massive amount of growth also affected the colouration of the plant tops which should have red but didn't achieve it.

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[faolteam]

Thanks folks ill do a bit of pruning

 

[Stan510]

Closer to no than yes. If you use up all the swimming space to the point the aquarium becomes blocked off to the "pelagic" fish like Danios,then you have to trim back or choose lower growing plants. I've gone through plants that were too successful and the constant pruning was a chore. Its why I like Epiphytic plants like ferns and Anubias and perennial plants like Swords in the 240 gallon. Scale it down for the average fish tank.