Limnophila heterophylla

Care at a glance

Overview

A classic inexpensive bunch plant for the background. It is fast, forgiving and grows across a wide band of temperature, hardness and pH; medium light is enough and CO2 simply makes it denser. Plant the stems singly with a little space so light reaches the lower whorls, then top and replant as it hits the surface. Being a quick water column feeder it earns its keep in new setups by outcompeting algae. If it thins out low down, that is a light problem, not a nutrient one.

In the wild

Widespread across the Asian tropics and subtropics, from Pakistan through China to Borneo, growing in rivulets, rice paddies and ponds in everything from soft to hard water. It is amphibious: underwater stems carry finely pinnate foliage, while plants on wet margins switch to a plainer emersed form. Its tolerance of cool water reflects a range that reaches well into the subtropics.

Good to know

A member of Plantaginaceae, first described from Roxburgh's Columnea heterophylla. The epithet means different-leaved and points to the plant's two leaf forms: feathery, finely divided whorls underwater and simpler entire leaves above it. It is easily mistaken for Limnophila sessiliflora, its more widely sold relative.

Did you know

The name heterophylla is a literal description: the same plant grows feathery needle-fine whorls underwater and ordinary flat leaves in air, so a stem straddling the waterline wears both wardrobes at once.

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