Monte Carlo White
Micranthemum tweediei 'White'
Also known as Monte Carlo Pearl White, Micranthemum tweediei 'Pearl White', Micranthemum 'Monte Carlo White', White Monte Carlo
Care at a glance
- Light
- Medium light
- CO2
- CO₂ beneficial
- Growth rate
- Medium
- Placement
- Foreground
- Type
- Carpeting
- Temperature
- 68–82°F (20–28°C)
- pH
- 5.5–7.5
- Hardness
- 2–15 dGH
- Max height
- 2 in (5 cm)
- Spread
- 3.9 in (10 cm)
- Nutrient uptake
- Root + water column
- Growth region
- Submersed or emersed
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Origin
- Variegated selection of Micranthemum tweediei, native to Argentina
- Family
- Linderniaceae
Overview
Grow it like Monte Carlo with less margin for error. The white tissue does no photosynthesis, so the carpet runs on its green patches: give it medium to strong light, CO2 and steady fertilisation or it thins out where the plain form would shrug. Plant tissue-culture portions a few centimeters apart in the foreground after rinsing off the gel, and 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 will crowd out the variegated ones.
In the wild
Monte Carlo White is a variegated nursery selection and does not exist in the wild. Its parent, Micranthemum tweediei, comes from Argentina and nearby parts of southern South America, where it creeps over wet ground and stream margins, growing emersed on marshy soil and submersed when flooded.
Good to know
Micranthemum tweediei belongs to the family Linderniaceae and commemorates the Scottish plant collector John Tweedie, who botanised in Argentina. The White form is a variegated cultivar in which patches of each leaf lack chlorophyll, laying cream-white over the familiar light green carpet. It is distributed as tissue culture and sold as White or Pearl White; the name is horticultural, with no botanical standing.
Did you know
The whiter a portion looks in the cup, the weaker it is in the tank. Variegated plants live off their green tissue, so the palest, prettiest pieces are exactly the ones most likely to stall after planting.
Appears in
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