Plants That Live in Saltwater

According to Live Aquaria, saltwater plants are an important part in keeping a marine aquarium's water quality good by removing nitrates, carbon dioxide and some metals. What saltwater plants do on the small scale in an aquarium is the same as what they do on the large scale in the oceans and seas. There are a large variety of saltwater plants that all look different and have different marine purposes.

  1. Algae

    • Algae is one of the largest groups of plants found in seawater and is often a food source for different sea creatures. The types of algae range in size, color and shape. The Mermaid's Fan is green algae that look like a fan and are approximately 3 to 6 inches in size. Gracillaria can come in a variety of colors. It can be green, red or a mixture of both. Despite the differences in color, all the varieties of this algae look like a mass of tiny root systems all tangled together. Another variety of algae is kelp. It is a brown algae and a type of seaweed. It grows in long strips in underwater forests and can grow up to 87 yards in length.

    Mangrove

    • The mangrove is a type of tree or shrub that has adapted to live terrestrially or partially submerged in saltwater. They range in size and care requirements. The three most common varieties are the Red Mangrove, the Black Mangrove and the White Mangrove. The red variety grows best in fine grain sand or a mud. They have massive root systems, while the branch and leaf growth above water can be unassuming. The black variety prefers more soil or mud to sand and is less tolerant of the amount of salt in the water. The white variety prefers very little submersion of its roots in saltwater and prefers to grow mostly on land, but can tolerate some salinity from the saltwater.

    Seagrasses

    • In general, seagrass grows in small spaces but can extend to form underwater meadows. They are similar to terrestrial grasses that have evolved to life in the sea, but they are not grasses. The grasses provide shelter as well as food for different sea creatures. One example is the eelgrass. Often thought to be a type of seaweed, according to Nature in Shetland, eelgrass is actually a flowering plant. However, the flowers it produces are very small and found around the base of the leaves of the plant, making them very difficult to see. It prefers a shallow environment with gentle currents. Another example is turtle grass. It also prefers shallow depths. It also develops flowers that are somewhere between a milky green color to pink. They also develop a pod-like fruit.