Leaf colourgreen, red
Native range
- Cambodia
- Laos
- Myanmar
- Philippines
- Thailand
stem plant semi-emersed background midground Dutch street foreground
The narrow-leaved form of the temple plant (Hygrophila corymbosa): the underwater leaves are light green, up to 20 cm long and only up to 1 cm wide — noticeably longer and narrower than the above-water ones.
- Light
- low
- Difficulty
- very easy
- Height
- 20 – 30 cm
- Temperature
- 18 – 30 °C
Parameters
Plant typestem plant
Growth ratefast
CO₂ demandlow
Tolerates lightmedium – high
pH5 – 7
Carbonate hardness2 – 18 °dKH
General hardness0 – 30 °dGH
Placementsemi-emersed, background +3
Propagationcuttings
Grows emersedyes
Appearance
The above-water leaves are dark to blue-green, lance-shaped, up to 10 cm long and 2 cm wide, and give off a sharp smell when touched. The underwater leaves are light green and hairless, noticeably longer and narrower than the above-water ones — up to 20 cm long and up to 1 cm wide. It is seen in the hobby less often than 'Siamensis'.
Keeping
Very easy, growth fast, light medium to strong, CO₂ 10–40 mg/l, temperature 24–28 °C. Because it grows quickly it shows nutrient shortages clearly: potassium — small black holes in the leaves, nitrate — yellowing and dying of older leaves, iron — pale, almost white new growth. A gentle current shows off the wavy leaves nicely.
Placement
The background of large aquariums, a contrast to broad- and round-leaved plants; it looks good as free-standing groups. It also grows semi-emersed in open tanks, where in time it flowers with blue-violet flowers.
Trade names
It is usually sold as 'Hygrophila angustifolia', but that is not the botanical species H. angustifolia, which belongs to the H. salicifolia group.
Fish and this plant
Water conditions match
The water suits 841 of 1249 species in the catalogue — these are the ones people look up most often.
ButterflyfishJulii CorydorasRed-finned ParotocinclusGastromyzon monticolaEgg-shaped GoldfishFlame TetraGardner's KillifishAfrican TetraHypsolebias picturatusCommon ZaccoLabeo BicolorGambusiaFlying barbGastromyzon scitulusAlbino Zebra DanioGeophagus BrokopondoHomaloptera bilineataRed-tailed RasboraBoraras naevusLampeye KillifishSpotted Raphael CatfishCorydoras melanotaeniaFestivum cichlidPseudomugil paskai
Will eat this plant
These species damage plants, especially when their diet is short of vegetable food.
Bengal LoachZebra LoachBurmese Border LoachEmperor BotiaMarbled HeadstanderPellegrin's LeporinusLeporinus striatusFalse Black TetraCommon MetynnisMylossoma duriventreRed Whiptail CatfishMoonlight GouramiMelanotaenia parva
Will uproot it
These species dig through the substrate and pull rooted plants out.
Marble LoachPeacock EelForktail LoachGuntea LoachLong-nosed LoachHorseface LoachPearlscaleBlack Moor GoldfishShubunkinPainted PlecoFeatherfin SynodontisReddish Mystus CatfishBlue AcaraGeophagus altifronsGeophagus winemilleriPearl CichlidRed-spotted CichlidHaplochromis philanderRed ChromideJack Dempsey cichlid