Hey, I'm Bo. I used to keep a Betta, about five years ago (his name was Pugnacious Fitz). Recently, a friend who is moving out of state gifted me with her Betta, who has now been dubbed Thrakazog/Two Rats and a Dog/Susan (for you "The Tick" fans). He is a lovely blue and black with white tips on his long front fins. He came to me in a large vase-type container with gravel, some glass stones, an old sea urchin shell, and a large piece of coral. There is also a cutting of philodendron rooting in the top of the vase - the roots hang free in the water, so it can easily be taken out to clean the container.

To me, it seems really cluttered. I need to clean his tank, and when I do I plan to remove some of the stuff, especially the urchin shell - it collects gunk really fast. My question is, is the planet all right to leave in there? I don't know how the planet chemicals or life cycle might interact with the fish. Any idea? He doesn't seem to mind it at all. He's a very healthy, energetic little guy, he eats and swims and doesn't seem out of the ordinary. But like I said, I have no idea how long my friend has had him in there like that.