Congo Anubias

Anubias heterophylla

The large anubias: leaves up to a span long on tall stalks. Same easy temper as its smaller relatives, but it needs a big tank to look right.

Light: low–high
Difficulty: easy
Height: 25 – 60 cm (9.8 – 24 in)
Temperature: 12 – 30 °C (54 – 86 °F)

Leaf colour: green
Plant type: rhizome
Growth rate: slow
Tolerates light: low – high
pH: 5 – 8
Carbonate hardness: 0 – 15 °dKH
General hardness: 0 – 30 °dGH
Placement: cichlid-proof, background +1 cichlid-proof, background, midground
Propagation: rhizome division, division +1 rhizome division, division, daughter plants
Grows emersed: yes

Appearance

Long pointed leaves of a deep green on sturdy stalks; the plant reaches 25–60 cm. Growth is very slow — a couple of new leaves a month at best.

Keeping

Easy: dim light is enough, no carbon dioxide is required, and the water may be soft or hard. As with all anubias, the thick horizontal stem must stay above the substrate — buried, it rots. Slow growth means algae settle on old leaves in bright light, so shade suits it.

Placement

The middle and back of the tank, tied to wood or a stone. Its tough leaves survive cichlids, which is why it appears in tanks where most plants do not.

Propagation

Cut the horizontal stem into pieces with three or four leaves and tie each piece down separately.

Water conditions match

The water suits 1008 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 Spined Loach 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: Anubias congensis, Anubias Heterophylla Supernova, Anubias Congensis Mini

Scientific and other names, conservation status

Other scientific names: Anubias congensis N. E. Brown, Anubias affinis, Anubias bequaertii, Anubias congensis, Anubias congensis crassispadix, Anubias engleri, Anubias undulata
Anubias heterophylla: Engl.
Family: Araceae
Conservation status: LC

Congo Anubias

Tank conditions

Care and keeping