Rotala Manipurensis
Rotala rotundifolia 'Manipurensis'
One of 9 forms of Rotala rotundifolia · See all forms →
Also known as Rotala sp. Manipur, Rotala rotundifolia Manipur
Invasive. Its parent species Rotala rotundifolia is regulated as an invasive aquatic plant in California and Louisiana, and this form falls under the same rules. Never release into the wild; dispose of trimmings in the trash.
Forms · Rotala rotundifolia
See all 9 →- Rotundifolia
- Green
- Ceylon
- Colorata
- H'ra
- Orange Juice
- Blood Red
- Wayanad
- ManipurensisThis page
Care at a glance
- Light
- High light
- CO2
- CO₂ beneficial
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Placement
- Background
- Type
- Stem
- Temperature
- 68–82°F (20–28°C)
- pH
- 6.0–7.5
- Hardness
- 1–12 dGH
- Max height
- 7.9 in (20 cm)
- Spread
- 2 in (5 cm)
- Nutrient uptake
- Root + water column
- Growth region
- Submersed or emersed
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Origin
- Aquarium strain of Rotala rotundifolia from Manipur, northeastern India
- Family
- Lythraceae
Overview
Grow it like a more colourful rotundifolia: a dense group in the background of a nano or the midground of a larger tank. It survives in modest setups but stays olive green there; strong light brings out the orange and salmon tones, and CO2 with iron dosing pushes them further. Growth is quick once settled, so top and replant regularly or the lower stems shade out and shed leaves. The leaves are fine and soft, so handle cuttings gently and keep parameters stable to avoid melt.
In the wild
A trade selection of Rotala rotundifolia collected from Manipur in India's far northeast. The parent species is a wetland plant of rice paddies, ditches and marshy ground across South and Southeast Asia, growing emersed with rounded leaves for much of the year and switching to finer foliage when submersed. The Manipurensis of the trade is farmed, mostly as tissue culture.
Good to know
A form of Rotala rotundifolia in the loosestrife family Lythraceae. The trade epithet manipurensis is not a validly published species name; it simply marks the Manipur origin, and shops also list the plant as Rotala sp. Manipur. Like the parent it is amphibious, with narrow feathery submersed whorls and an overhanging, creeping habit.
Did you know
It is one of the few aquarium plants whose trade name points at a real place: Manipur, the small Indian state on the Myanmar border, whose wetlands handed the hobby this creeping, orange-toned take on the most familiar rotala.
Appears in
High-light plants · Background plants · Stem plants · Fast growers
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