Lots of good advice in this thread. Chris has covered the "crossover" topic well, ie. that when plants are growing and healthy, they are a help to the water chemistry and thus a help to the fish. When they are struggling and dying they can reverse and become a large producer of debris, leading to ammonia.
I think the crossover topic is difficult both for beginners and for those of us in the beginners section trying to help each other. The factors that promote healthy plants in a given tank are many and varied. If we have success with plants it can be hard to imagine how difficult they can be for those not having success and if we are having trouble with them it can be hard to imagine that they can be easy. This can lead to mismatches in the given and received advice. Success or failure can seem rather sudden with plants. I guess part of what this means is that beginners should plan to be open to trying live plants regardless of what they hear, as people's experiences with plants vary greatly.
Live plants are certainly capable of taking the naturalness of an aquascape to the next level. Crystal clear water, healthy green plants, natural wood and stone and vibrant fish are all contributors of visual elements that can make an aquarium give a home living space some excitement. That a really good planted tank can be breathtaking can not be overstated I think. As hard as we humans try with our plastic and silk imitations, we are all very expert at figuring out that something isn't real.
There are wonderful aquascapes that are nothing but hardscape (substrate and stone for instance.) There are tanks where the fun is found in color and humor. There are tanks where artificial plants or backgrounds are used well with live plants and of course there are natural aquariums with different levels of commitment to the planted tank side of the hobby. There is no right or wrong, just various sets of acquired information and know-how to be used in service to everyone's unlimited creativity.
Personally, I stand in awe of the vibrant healthy fish many of our members know how to keep, and also of the beautiful aquascapes people come up with. But the planted side of the hobby is right up there with these other two as a creative outlet and rewarding area of tank-keeping activity that I think every beginner should consider aspiring to at some point during their stay.
~~waterdrop~~
