Monte Carlo White

Micranthemum tweediei 'White'

Also known as Monte Carlo Pearl White, Micranthemum tweediei 'Pearl White', Micranthemum 'Monte Carlo White', White Monte Carlo

FreshwaterCarpetingCuttingsSide shoots

Monte Carlo White (Micranthemum tweediei 'White') — Buce Plant · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Light: Medium light
CO2: CO₂ beneficial
Temperature: 68–82°F; 20–28°C
Max height: 2 in; 5 cm

Growth rate: Medium
Placement: Foreground
Type: Carpeting
pH: 5.5–7.5
Hardness: 2–15 dGH
Spread: 3.9 in (10 cm)
Nutrient uptake: Root + water column
Growth region: Submersed or emersed
Difficulty: Medium
Family: Linderniaceae
Origin: Variegated selection of Micranthemum tweediei, native to Argentina

Overview

Monte Carlo White is a variegated carpeting plant for the foreground. It is of medium difficulty, a step harder than the plain green Monte Carlo.

Did you know

The whiter a portion of Monte Carlo White looks in the cup, the weaker it is in the tank. Variegated plants live off their green tissue, so the palest pieces are the ones most likely to stall after planting.

Caring for Monte Carlo White

Rinse the gel off the tissue-culture portions first. Split them into small clumps and push each one into the substrate with tweezers, a few centimeters apart in the foreground.

Grow Monte Carlo White like plain Monte Carlo, with less margin for error. Its white tissue does no photosynthesis, so the carpet runs on its green patches. Give it medium light and steady feeding through root tabs and a liquid fertilizer, or it thins out where the plain form would shrug. It grows without injected CO2, but grows faster with it.

It grows at a moderate pace to about 2 in (5 cm). Trim the carpet low so the shaded lower layer does not brown out. Pinch out any shoots that revert to plain green, because they grow faster and crowd out the variegated ones. Keep the water at 68 to 82°F (20 to 28°C).

Good to know

Monte Carlo White is a variegated cultivar of Micranthemum tweediei, in the family Linderniaceae. The species name honors John Tweedie, a Scottish plant collector who worked in Argentina. Patches of each leaf lack chlorophyll and lay cream-white over the familiar light green. It is grown from tissue culture and sold as White or Pearl White, a horticultural name with no botanical standing.

In the wild

Monte Carlo White is a nursery selection and does not exist in the wild. Its parent comes from Argentina and nearby parts of southern South America. There it creeps over wet ground and stream margins, growing emersed on marshy soil and submersed when flooded.

Common questions

Does Monte Carlo White need to be planted in the substrate?

Yes. Split it into small clumps and push each one into the substrate with tweezers, leaving gaps for it to fill.

Does Monte Carlo White need CO2?

No, but it helps. Monte Carlo White can grow without injected CO2, and added CO2 makes it grow faster.

How much light does Monte Carlo White need?

Monte Carlo White wants medium light. A light sold for planted tanks covers it.

Does Monte Carlo White need root tabs?

They help. Monte Carlo White takes nutrients through both its roots and its leaves. Root tabs near its roots and a liquid fertilizer cover both.

How do you propagate Monte Carlo White?

Monte Carlo White propagates by cuttings and side shoots. Cut off the top of a stem and replant it, and the stump left behind grows new shoots. Cut a side shoot off once it has a few leaves and plant it on its own.