How to Use Charcoal to Sweeten Water Plants

Activated charcoal is made from heating certain hardwoods like coconut shell to a high temperature without actually burning it. The resulting product is carbon with almost innumerable surfaces for organic materials to cling to and get trapped--a process called adsorption. In water plants, the warm water tends to be a perfect breeding ground for bacteria and fungi.

Horticultural charcoal
Container
Pebbles
Gravel
Sand
Decorative stone

Instructions

- 1
  Rinse off the roots of your water plant and cut away any dead or diseased portions. The cleaner your plant is to start with, the less chance of trouble later. Clean out the container that will hold your water plants.
- 2
  Put down a 1-inch layer of small (1/4-inch) pebbles or aquarium rocks after rinsing them with clear water. This will form the bottom layer of your soil.
- 3
  Add the next layer, horticulture charcoal, on top of the pebbles. The layer should be about 1-inch thick. This will give any bacteria or microbes a place to grow, keeping the water cleaner longer.
- 4
  Cover the charcoal with an inch of coarse sand. This is the soil for your water plants. If you are using a glass container, the layered effect will look interesting and give your arrangement texture and color as seen through the sides.
- 5
  Set the plants' roots on the sand and cover them with enough gravel to hold them in place, but not too far up the stem.
- 6
  Add any decorative rocks to the surface and fill the container with water until it just reaches the top level of gravel.

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