Anubias Snow White

Care at a glance

Overview

Treat it like any Anubias, rhizome glued or tied to hardscape and never buried, but expect it to be fussier than the green forms. The white leaves have little chlorophyll, so it needs a bit more light than a standard nana just to feed itself, yet strong light plus its glacial growth invites algae, and it is prone to melting if unhappy. Gentle stable conditions and patience are the whole game. CO2 and mild ferts help it hold and push new pale leaves.

In the wild

The parent plant, Anubias barteri var. nana, is a dwarf form from streams and riverbanks in West Africa, growing emersed or submersed in shade. 'Snow White' is not a wild plant but a variegated tissue-cultured selection of that dwarf, prized for creamy white foliage with only faint green marbling. It keeps the compact habit of nana but carries far less chlorophyll.

Good to know

This is a variegated cultivar of Anubias barteri var. nana, an aroid in the family Araceae. The white coloring comes from a lack of chlorophyll in the affected tissue, which is why the plant photosynthesizes poorly and grows even slower than a normal Anubias. Because the variegation is a somatic mutation rather than a stable trait from seed, it is propagated only by division or tissue culture to keep the pale color.

Did you know

Because its leaves carry so little chlorophyll, Snow White can actually starve under the same low light that a normal Anubias thrives in, making one of the hobby's hardiest genera into a genuinely temperamental plant.

Related plants

• 

  Anubias nana

  Anubias barteri var. nana

  Low lightEpiphyte4.7 in (12 cm)

• 

  Anubias Butterfly

  Anubias 'Butterfly'

  Low lightEpiphyte5.9 in (15 cm)
• Anubias Coin Leaf

  Anubias barteri 'Coin Leaf'

  Low lightEpiphyte5.9 in (15 cm)

• 

  Anubias minima

  Anubias barteri var. glabra

  Low lightEpiphyte7.9 in (20 cm)

• 

  Anubias petite

  Anubias barteri var. nana 'Petite'

  Low lightEpiphyte2 in (5 cm)
• Anubias Chili

  Anubias barteri var. nana 'Chili'

  Low lightEpiphyte2 in (5 cm)