Three-flower Ammannia

Ammannia capitellata

Oblong green leaves on reddish stems, with red veins running through them. Under strong light the whole plant reddens; in an ordinary tank it stays a quiet green and red.

Light: medium–high
Difficulty: medium
Temperature: 18 – 32 °C (64 – 90 °F)

Leaf colour: green, red
Plant type: stem plant
Growth rate: medium
Tolerates light: medium – high
pH: 5 – 8
Carbonate hardness: 2 – 14 °dKH
General hardness: 0 – 30 °dGH
Placement: background, midground +1 background, midground, Dutch street
Propagation: cuttings
Grows emersed: yes

Appearance

Leaves in pairs set at right angles to the pair below, so the stem looks even from every side. Stems and veins carry a red tint that deepens with light.

Keeping

Moderate demands: good light and feeding bring out the red, carbon dioxide is not required. Growth is moderate and upright, and regular trimming keeps the group compact. Plants bought in the above-water form need a few weeks to change over before they look like themselves.

Placement

The middle or back of the tank, in a group.

Propagation

By cuttings: replant the trimmed tops.

Water conditions match

The water suits 1007 of 1249 species in the catalogue — these are the ones people look up most often.

Swordtail Guppies Cobra Guppy Blood Red Molly Butterflyfish Red Zebra Cichlid Julii Corydoras Red-finned Parotocinclus Gastromyzon monticola Egg-shaped Goldfish Flame Tetra Gardner's Killifish African Tetra Kenyi Cichlid Cuckoo Catfish Golden Swordtail Hypsolebias picturatus Common Zacco Labeo Bicolor Gambusia Flying barb Gastromyzon scitulus Albino Zebra Danio Geophagus Brokopondo Zebra Mbuna

Will eat this plant

These species damage plants, especially when their diet is short of vegetable food.

Bengal Loach Zebra Loach Burmese Border Loach Emperor Botia Marbled Headstander Pellegrin's Leporinus Leporinus striatus False Black Tetra Common Metynnis Mylossoma duriventre Red Whiptail Catfish Molly sphenops Balloon Molly Lyretail Molly Marble Molly Hi-Fin Platy Hawaii Platy Blue Platy Pintail Platy Black Platy Chocolate Molly Moonlight Gourami Melanotaenia parva

Will uproot it

These species dig through the substrate and pull rooted plants out.

Marble Loach Peacock Eel Forktail Loach Guntea Loach Long-nosed Loach Horseface Loach Pearlscale Black Moor Goldfish Shubunkin Painted Pleco Featherfin Synodontis Reddish Mystus Catfish Blue Acara Aulonocara maylandi Aulonocara multicolor Aulonocara Orchid Geophagus altifrons Geophagus winemilleri Pearlscale Cichlid Pearl Cichlid Redbelly Cichlid Red-spotted Cichlid Chuco godmanni Haplochromis philander Red Chromide Jack Dempsey cichlid

Matching water does not mean the fish will leave the plant alone.

The same plant with a different look: light, water and care are shared with the species.

Other varieties: Ammannia mauritiana, Nesaea triflora, Ammannia capitellata in Vitro, Ammannia capitellata Topf, Nesaea Triflora

Scientific and other names, conservation status

Other scientific names: Ammannia mauritiana S. A. Graham & Gandhi, Lythrum triflorum L. f., Nesaea capitellata C. Presl, Nesaea triflora (L. f.) Kunth
Ammannia capitellata: (C. Presl) S. A. Graham & Gandhi
Family: Lythraceae

Three-flower Ammannia

Tank conditions

Care and keeping