Origins

Aquarium plants have been our great passion for over 50 years!

Nature is full of wonders. It teaches us the laws of biological balance and naturally develops amazing solutions to complicated problems.

Driven by his love for aquaristics (a fairly obscure hobby at the time), Ludwig Dennerle, the company founder of Dennerle GmbH, decided to explore the world of aquatic plants over fifty years ago. This passionate curiosity remains our motivation in Dennerle Plants GmbH today, as we strive to inspire more and more people with the natural world of the aquarium.

It all began in 1966 with the opening of a pet shop in Pirmasens. This was the prelude to Ludwig Dennerle's numerous voyages of discovery to tropical countries, in his quest for discovering new, interesting plants for the aquarium hobby. In his home garden, the first attempts at cultivating various tropical plants were attempted. Just a few years later, some plant species were already successfully growing in large numbers in rented greenhouses.

In 1975, the first high point in Dennerle's history occurred: the company's first fully owned greenhouses were built at today's headquarters in Vinningen. In 1978, a partnership with a tropical farm in Sri Lanka was an important factor in strengthening the marketing of aquarium plants at the time.

The first Dennerle guidebook entitled “Plants for a magnificent underwater landscape” finally paved the way for a new understanding of aquaristics.

The first Dennerle guidebook, titled: “Plants for a magnificent underwater landscape”, finally paved the way for a new understanding of aquaristics.

In 1990, the first edition of the Dennerle manual, "System for a problem-free aquarium", followed. This was more extensive than the previous guide, as it was heavily illustrated with numerous examples of furnishings for decorative underwater landscapes. It also contained valuable information on the topics of light, water quality, substrate, filtering, fertilization, and CO2. The Lexicon of Aquarium Plants was an important part of the popular handbook.

In 1993, a greenhouse extension was necessary for expansion, doubling the cultivation area. Just a few years later, it was expanded again in 1998 to over 8,000 m2.

Many types of plants were, and continue to be, cultivated in the local greenhouses in the Palatinate. In 2002, the new Mbuna(R) underwater trees, which are protected by the utility model law, received special attention. To this day, they have lost none of their attractiveness; they are a real specialty in the company's plant portfolio.

A milestone in aquaristics was the launch of the new nano product line in 2008. With it, Dennerle positioned itself as the first full-service provider in the field of nano aquaristics. Suddenly, small plants played a big role! The subsequent aquascaping trend also enriched the variety of aquarium plants and their possible uses.

In the tradition of Ludwig Dennerle's voyages of discovery, the first Plantahunter tours to distant natural locations of aquarium plants began in 2010.

In 2012, the new Dennerle aquarium plants guide was published for the first time with many impressive underwater photos of the Plantahunter tours. This version includes many examples of furnishings, tips and tricks, and extensive plant descriptions in words and pictures.

Now in its 4th edition, the Dennerle aquarium plants guide still serves as a  popular resource for aquarium fans of all ages and experience levels. It's a valuable source of inspiration, when designing a piece of nature, for your own four walls.